A debate about monetary policy framed as a rap battle; George III cast as a petulant, abusive, ex-lover; lily-white American history brought to life by an exuberant multicultural cast...Who does that?
Our latest Geek of the Week, Lin-Manuel Miranda does!
Born in NY to immigrant parents, Miranda developed a love of musical theater early on. He performed in student productions in elementary and high school and majored in theater studies at Wesleyan College.
Miranda began to develop his first production, In the
Heights, while still a sophomore in college. It related the happenings over three very hot summer days in Washington Heights, NY. The show eventually landed on Broadway and was a great success, earning four Tony awards.
In the Heights introduced his name to Broadway but it was his next show, Hamilton, that really catapulted Miranda to international fame.
Inspired by Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton, Miranda re-imagined the story of this founding father, casting actors of color and using rap and jazz in addition to traditional musical theater themes. By casting and scoring the show as he did, Miranda made history relevant to many who had felt marginalized in the past While it does take some liberties with the truth in the service of theater, it does teach that history is for ALL of us. He humanizes these figures from the (seemingly) distant past and, through the use of popular music forms, allows their story to be told in ways that engage people who would have previously written off history as irrelevant.
For taking a crazypants idea and making it an astounding success -- a very Ravenclaw trait -- and for his obvious talent for turning his passions into projects that can teach as well as entertain, Lin-Manuel Miranda is a most fitting (and long overdue) Geek of the Week.
Learn more about Lin-Manuel Miranda and his work:
In the Heights poster: By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15564854
No comments:
Post a Comment