Hamilton: How the Musical Remixes American History with Richard Bell
Dr. Richard Bell is Professor of History at the University of Maryland. He holds a PhD from Harvard University and has won more than a dozen teaching awards, including the University System of Maryland Board of Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. He has held major research fellowships at Yale, Cambridge, the Library of Congress and is the recipient of the Andrew Carnegie Fellowship and the National Endowment of the Humanities Public Scholar Award. Professor Bell is author of the new book "Stolen: Five Free Boys Kidnapped into Slavery and their Astonishing Odyssey Home," which was shortlisted for the George Washington Prize and the Harriet Tubman Prize.
This conversation is suitable for all ages.
90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.
If you have ever attended a lecture with Dr. Bell, you know he is always thoroughly prepared with well researched material and a cogent presentation. In this talk, he considered two questions: Is "Hamilton" historically accurate and does it matter. Giving Lin-Manuel Miranda full credit for creating a wonderful show (which he has seen four times on two continents), Dr. Bell discussed the historical inaccuracies/omissions largely having to do with racial issues. He discussed the use of Black actors playing the roles of White historical figures, possibly as a way of making up for those inaccuracies and omissions. The question of whether this matters provided an opportunity for attendees to weigh in. Resources were given for further individual exploration. I recommend this program for history and theater buffs as well as for those who enjoy considering "existential dilemmas".
The questions Dr. Bell poses are essentially, "Is Hamilton, The Musical historically correct and does it matter." He uses the time to discuss the play, its historical truths and inaccuracies (most significantly having to do with the issue of slavery being largely ignored), and the use of Black actors to play White roles as possibly a way to make up formatting important racial issues. He gives clear examples and reference sources. The question of whether it matters became the meat for participant discussion. If you've attended programs with Dr. Bell before, you know that everything he has to say is well thought out, researched, and informative. If you are a history or theater buff, or if you just enjoy exploring "existential dilemmas", I recommend this program.
Dr. Bell's lectures are always so interesting and presented in a most entertaining way. I have learned so much from him these last two years.
I loved Hamilton and wondered about the historic accuracy. Richard did a great presentation on the good, the bad and the ugly. I appreciated him sharing resources and loved his enthusiasm. I will definitely look forward to other courses with him.
An entertaining yet thought provoking look at history through the lens of Hamilton. Well worth the time spent.