Spamilton

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Spamilton
An American Parody
Spamilton-poster.jpg
Broadway promotional poster
MusicVarious
Lyrics Gerard Alessandrini
Book Gerard Alessandrini
Basis Hamilton
by Lin-Manuel Miranda
PremiereJuly 19, 2016: Triad Theatre, New York City
Productions2016 Off-Broadway
2017 Chicago
2017 Culver City
2018 Off-West End

Spamilton: An American Parody is a musical parody of the Broadway show Hamilton . Written by Gerard Alessandrini, creator of the parody revue Forbidden Broadway , Spamilton also parodies several other musicals, including Gypsy , Chicago , The King and I , Assassins , Camelot , The Book of Mormon and Sweeney Todd , and personalities, like Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Schwartz, Barbra Streisand, Bernadette Peters, Carol Channing and Liza Minnelli.

Contents

The show, directed by Alessandrini, had its first preview on July 19, 2016, and opened on September 8, 2016, at New York's Triad Theatre. Originally scheduled to run 18 performances, it was extended at the Triad until May 28, 2017. It moved on June 2, 2017, to the 47th Street Theatre, near the Richard Rodgers Theatre where Hamilton is presented.

A Chicago production of Spamilton opened at the Royal George Theatre on March 12, 2017. A production ran at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City from November 5, 2017, to January 7, 2018, shortly before a national tour. [1]

A production opened in London at the Menier Chocolate Factory running from July 24 (previews from July 12) to September 15, 2018. [2]

Musical numbers

Recordings

Original off-Broadway cast album (2017)

The original off-Broadway cast recording for Spamilton was released by DRG Records on March 3, 2017. [3]

Original casts

CharacterOriginal Off-Broadway CastOriginal Chicago CastOriginal L.A. CastOriginal London Cast
Lin-Manuel Miranda / Alexander Hamilton Dan RosalesYando LopezWilliam Cooper HowellLiam Tamne
Leslie Odom Jr. / Aaron Burr Chris Anthony GilesEric Andrew LewisWilkie Ferguson IIIEddie Elliott
Renée Elise Goldsberry / Angelica Schuyler / Phillipa Soo / Eliza Schuyler Hamilton / Jasmine Cephas Jones / Peggy Schuyler / Audra McDonald / Jennifer Lopez / Beyoncé / Gloria Estefan Nora SchellMichelle LautoZakiya YoungJulie Yammanee
Bernadette Peters / Barbra Streisand / Carol Channing / Liza Minnelli / Patti LuPone Christine PediChristine PediSusanne BlakesleeSophie-Louise Dann
King George Glenn BassettAdam LaSalleDamian Humbley
Daveed Diggs / Marquis de Lafayette / Thomas Jefferson Nicholas EdwardsDonterrio JohnsonJohn DevereauxJason Denton
Ben Franklin / Sondheim / George Washington Juwan CrawleyDavid RobbinsDedrick A. BonnerMarc Akinfolarin
Offstage CoversCameron Amandus & Claudia YanezChuckie Benson & Ariel RichardsonBecca Brown* & Elijah ReyesJames Hameed & Esme Laudat
Onstage Pianist/Musical DirectorFred BartonAdam LaSalleJames LentSimon Beck
Casting DirectorMichael Cassara, CSAMichael Cassara, CSAAndrew Lynford

The show has the most racially diverse cast of any of Alessandrini's productions. [4]

Critical response

Spamilton received positive reviews from critics. In his review of the Off-Broadway production, Ben Brantley in The New York Times called it a "smart, silly and often convulsively funny thesis, performed by a motor-mouthed cast that is fluent in many tongues". [5] Frank Scheck, in his review of the Off-Broadway production for The Hollywood Reporter , wrote the musical "is so infectiously fun that it could easily run as long as its inspiration." [6]

Marilyn Stasio in reviewing the Off-Broadway production in Variety , wrote, "Like the original show, the pants are tight, the boots are shiny, the bosoms are uplifting and the vests show just enough chest to look manly. Switch-hitting as director/choreographer, Alessandrini assigns his performers signature moves that make each character look authentic, if ever-so-slightly goofy. Getting those physical details right lays the groundwork for the witty character impersonations to come." [7]

Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and director Thomas Kail both attended a performance. Miranda praised the parody, saying, "I laughed my brains out." [8] [9]

Awards

YearAwardCategoryNomineeResult
2017 Drama League Awards Distinguished PerformanceNora SchellNominated
Off-Broadway Alliance AwardsBest Unique Theatrical ExperienceWon
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lyrics Gerard Alessandrini Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical Nora SchellNominated
Outer Critics Circle Awards Outstanding New Off-Broadway MusicalNominated
Theater Fans' Choice AwardsBest Off-Broadway MusicalNominated

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References

  1. Clement, Olivia. "Spamilton Will Play Around the Corner from the Broadway Home of Hamilton and Tour the U.S.", Playbill, April 11, 2017
  2. "Spamilton to Play London's Menier Chocolate Factory | Playbill". Playbill. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  3. "Spamilton, the Off-Broadway Hamilton Parody, Sets Cast Album Release Date". Playbill. March 2, 2017. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  4. Reyes, Raul A. "Like Hamilton, the Hilarious Spamilton Showcases Actor Diversity", NBC News, July 3, 2017
  5. "Review: In ‘Spamilton,’ Broadway’s Savior Meets His Match. It’s Not Burr." The New York Times, September 8, 2016
  6. "'Spamilton': Theater Review" The Hollywood Reporter, September 8, 2016
  7. "Off Broadway Review: ‘Spamilton,’ The Musical Spoof of ‘Hamilton’" Variety, September 8, 2016
  8. "Watching Lin-Manuel Miranda Watch the Hamilton Parody, Spamilton". Vulture. September 16, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  9. Miranda, Lin-Manuel. "We just came from Spamilton. This is Dan Rosales, the talented young man who plays me. I laughed my brains out". Twitter. Retrieved 5 October 2022.