feature photo by Joan Marcus
Hamilton returns to the Academy of Music next week (October 29th to November 23rd)! This acclaimed, Tony Award-winning musical features a book, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, direction by Thomas Kail, choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, and musical supervision and orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire. Experience the powerful tale of passion, ambition, and the founding of a nation as Alexander Hamilton fights to secure his legacy and influence the future of the country.
Below, cast member Jorge Guerra shares insights about his journey with the show and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s productions, his personal connection to the story, and his reasons for encouraging audiences to see it again.”
Q: What does a typical show day look like for you as a swing?
A: The best way I can describe it is you might be learning algebra or calculus one day, and then while you are learning trigonometry or geometry, you may be tapped on the shoulder and asked to go take a science experiment. And that’s essentially what being a swing is- being able to compartmentalize your mind into multiple areas, separate everything at once, because you don’t want to accidentally mix up the different roles that you’re responsible for. The stage manager might one day be like, “hey, you will be doing this track today.” And then the next day, you might be doing an entirely different track. Having the ability and the resilience to jump back and forth is a huge, huge skill that every swing has to have.
Q: When did you first discover Hamitlon? Why did you want to be a part of the production?
A: It went before Hamilton for me. I was very fortunate that in my career I’ve been able to do In The Heights, and working with Lin-Manuel Miranda’s creations, I just knew that it was different, and it was. It’s not like My Fair Lady or 42nd Street, it’s an entirely different feel and genre of music. I just knew that this was something really special. When Lin played a little sample of Hamilton for the Obama administration, it felt like an echo chamber. Everybody heard about it. Everyone was like, “what is that? What’s going on?” The very first time that I auditioned for the musical was back in 2018. I had just graduated college. Telsey, which is a casting office for the show, called me in to do a general packet that had different songs from the show. It can be a little overwhelming because it’s a lot of words, it’s a lot of intricate rhythms. It just felt like something that you don’t just master. It’s something that you grow with. From that moment, I just said, every time I go in, I want to be able to do it a little bit better each time. This past year, it finally felt like it clicked for me and they gave me the chance to be a part of the team.
Q: Do you have a favorite song, scene or line in Hamilton?
A: My favorite line has to be when Lafayette says “Immigrants, we get the job.” It’s so emblematic of what the United States is- a cultural pot of so many cultures, and we are always better for having more around us. Favorite song? I mean, my sultry Latino side comes out whenever I hear “Say No To This”! There is nothing like it. It’s so powerful. Especially our Peggy/Maria, played by Lily Soto. The way that she just annihilates that song, the way that she wears that red dress, everything about those elements enhances the music for me.
Q: Can you tell me a bit about Voto Latino and what you’re doing to encourage donations to this organization?
A: Voto Latino is an organization that I have been donating to since my time before Hamilton. I had done Evita at Shakespeare Theater Company, and Evita is essentially about the life of a baron and being politically motivated. I felt like every show that I am a part of, I like to find an organization that aligns with that ethos. I found Voto Latino and their objective is to try to gain more voter participation from the Latino community, considering how, historically, it’s one of the lower registrations. So from that moment, I’ve been donating to them. When I got the opportunity to be a part of Hamilton, that felt like a direct alignment. Me being a Latino Jorge Guerra Shares His Story, feeling very passionate, especially with this election season coming up, it is very important to try to gain as much participation as possible so that everyone feels heard and seen. Aside from that, most people like to put their previous shows or history in their Playbill bios. I really wrestled with the idea of if that felt authentic to what I wanted to do this time around. I felt like I had at least one year where I’d be in various places where many people, if they would open the Playbill, would see that on my bio. I’m only speaking about this organization, essentially, and offering people the opportunity to also join me in a donation if they would want to.
Q: This is the third time Hamilton has made a tour stop in Philadelphia. Why do you think this story is so popular? Why should Philly audiences come see it?
A: What makes this show so uniquely special is how it incorporates the fabric and DNA of what the United States is- a melting pot of everything, quite literally, not just down to the historic context of the show, but the way that it is being presented and formatted gives people the opportunity to truly, truly see themselves in multiple ways. And even then, popular music, especially that created by people of color- there are semblances of jazz and how jazz impacted hip-hop and how afro beats impacted the choreography. Everything stems from something. Hamilton shows the stemming and the seed work, which is essentially how the United States was founded. That’s why people can see the United States and feel like this is the land of the free and the home of the brave. Everyone’s so invested in their journey to get to this point. And that is what the story does, it shows the exact reasons behind it without necessarily just underlining and highlighting. It shows a moment in history where possibilities were made true by someone’s dreams. That is something that everybody can connect to, let alone the music. Everyone’s distinct point of view is what makes it entirely different from the last time you saw it. Someone might be able to sing a riff a certain way or not a certain way, but a certain point of view, especially that person’s experience, is entirely different to the one before that. It’s a living, breathing organism that doesn’t look the same even the second time you see the same exact group of people.
Tickets to Hamilton can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999 or online at www.ensembleartsphilly.org. In-person ticket sales can be conducted daily from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. at the Academy of Music Box Office, located at 240 S. Broad Street. See www.ensembleartsphilly.org for more information.
For information on Hamilton, visit: www.HamiltonMusical.com. Follow Hamilton on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X & TikTok @HamiltonMusical.
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