BROWN COUNTY — Whether you know every song of the hit Pulitzer Prize-winning musical “Hamilton: An American Musical,” or you’ve been drawn the story through the Ron Chernow biography, an upcoming singalong in Brown County will help theater-goers connect with the lesser-known American hero, Alexander Hamilton.
Brown County Playhouse Performing Arts Center will present “Hamiltunes: An American Singalong,” featuring a full roster of songs from the musical by composer Lin-Manuel Miranda on Jan. 26.
The free show will be led by 12 students and faculty from Indiana University, with lyrics projected onto the playhouse’s screen so that audience members can sing along.
Brown County High School music students will help lead the songs. Seats may be reserved online for a $2 fee.
Though mega-fans of the musical will no doubt follow every verse and line, it’s OK if you are less familiar with the music and story, organizers said.
“There will be people who know every word of ‘Hamilton,’” said Brown County Playhouse Executive Director Suzannah Zody. “But if people don’t want to sing along, they can also just sit and listen.”
The show’s compelling story of Hamilton’s life was a great fit for the musical genre, but what also has compelled audiences is the non-traditional music and casting selections of the original show, Zody said.
“The music has such as mix of genres and traditions — the idea of a rap song in a musical is something that certainly is innovative, but to have it mixed with show tunes (is unique). I think the non-traditional casting (of non-white actors as white historical figures) is very appealing to people today as well,” Zody said.
IU Jacobs School of Music and the Brown County Playhouse are longtime collaborators. The playhouse began in 1949 as an extension of Indiana University’s theater program. Since the playhouse separated into its own non-profit entity in 2011, it has remained connected to IU through the Jacobs School of Music.
Every year, the playhouse does an annual collaboration with the school — typically an instrumental concert, but this year, both groups decided to tap into “Hamilton” fever for the January show.
“’Hamilton’ had become very popular in other areas. To our knowledge it hadn’t been done in this region,” Zody said.
IU has recently opened the Center for Rural Engagement, whose aim is to connect IU’s resources with smaller communities across the state, and so the annual collaboration was a good fit for that project, Zody said.
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What: "Hamiltunes: An American Singalong"
When: 7:30 p.m. Jan. 26
Where: Brown County Playhouse Performing Arts Center, 70 S. Van Buren St., Nashville.
Cost: Tickets are free, but a $2 fee applies to reserve seats at browncountyplayhouse.org.
Notable: Donations will be accepted to defray costs, with proceeds going to the "Hamiltunes" charity.
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