I am not throwing away my shot.
Helpless.
The girls and I were making dinner the other night, busily chopping potatoes to roast and getting the steak ready to grill, when the younger one said, “Alexa, play the song “The Schuyler Sisters,” and as the music from one of our favorite “Hamilton” songs filled the kitchen, I realized that I had successfully brainwashed my daughters.
While I saw the musical when it first opened on Broadway, having the luck of a friend who had the foresight to buy tickets for the show the day its rave review was published in The New York Times, my kids never saw it. I had toyed with the idea a few times about incurring even more credit card debt and getting us all tickets to go around the holidays, but I could never justify the outrageous price of those tickets. Instead, one summer I got us all tickets to see “Dear Evan Hansen” for my birthday and while that came with a big price tag, it was still less than “Hamilton.”
All of this is to explain why the kids were always kind of down on “Hamilton” whenever I brought it up. The topic would come up in conversation and they’d be all like, “We wouldn’t know, no one ever took us,” about it. They seemed jealous that I’d seen it without them, probably because they had friends whose parents could pony up the crazy cost of those tickets and maybe who didn’t have like 10 kids to buy them for.
But when I heard a filmed version of the stage show was being released by Disney+ on July 3, I wasn’t even thinking about the kids seeing the show for the first time. I couldn’t wait to see it again. But first, I had to figure out just how I got that channel on my TV. There was no way I was going to watch it on my computer.
I conferred with my older daughter – a verified TV watching expert – who suggested I get a Roku, since my “smart” TV was older and didn’t have the capability of downloading the new Disney+ channel. Then we needed to subscribe to Disney+, which apparently I already do. Maybe you’re on my account too, like all the people out there who my children have shared my HULU account with? Enjoy.
Anyway on July 3, my daughters and I returned home from a hot afternoon on the beach crammed together under one umbrella to get ready for our viewing. We showered and cranked the AC in our TV room, drew the shades and turned the TV volume up to 80 (as I am hearing impaired) and pressed “play.” Unlike watching it in the theater, the nice part about lying on your couch and watching the show in sweats is that you can use the closed caption setting to appreciate the lyrics and follow the story.
Since that afternoon, I heard the score coming from my older daughter’s bedroom the other night and when my other girl and I went food shopping on Monday, she immediately plugged in my phone and cued the soundtrack to listen to on our drive to Wegman’s.
The girls and I even watched about a quarter of the show again the other night to enjoy all of the Schuyler sisters' songs. And of course, King George’s silly bit. And when my older son returned from a weekend getaway, he reported that his friends had been talking the show's release up and he watched the show that afternoon.
I asked my younger daughter if watching “Hamilton” on TV makes her want to see it in real life, and she said not really. “I think I’d be disappointed that it’s not the same cast,” she told me, and I get it.
Of course, there's nothing like a live performance, but that's not happening any time soon. But somehow, this filmed version of "Hamilton" has been incredibly satisfying for us and it's allowed so many people more people to experience the music and the story. And it let me and the kids have the shared experience as well and I love that they are super into it.
And the cost of the $50 Roku and Disney+ subscription is a lot more affordable than five tickets to see the show IRL.
I highly recommend.
Friday Faves
Did I mention I'm back at Costco? Not that I'm not obsessed with the place, but I decided not to renew my membership earlier in the year because with just one kid left at home, we didn't really need bulk-sized items and it was just another place for me to waste time and money going to. I finally caved a few weeks ago and only regret I hadn't done so sooner during quarantine, with four kids back at home. I went earlier in the week and randomly grabbed a couple of bagged salad kits in the freezing produce room and it was one of my smarter impulse decisions. We had this one the other night with a steak and roast potatoes and it was a hit AND plenty for six people. Am opening up this one tonight to go with some grilled chicken basted with this pandemic staple.
Speaking of food, it seems I am working my way through this food blogger's website this week. This curry chicken salad is AMAZING and these two quinoa salads were pretty yummy, too.
Too hot for the beach? I hear you. If you are hunkering down in your AC, I highly recommend this book, told in the wife's voice in the present and the husband's through his ship log detailing a year long sailing trip the family took that went incredibly wrong.
If you're in the mood for a great show that's easily bingeable in four, hour-long episodes, dive into Netflix's "Unorthodox," based on the memoir of a young woman who escapes from a Brooklyn Orthodox Jewish community that doesn't even like the sound of women's voices. Powerful
On the completely flip side of that, I powered through Season 2 of "The Politician" and would somebody please tell me they remember Judith Light mostly from "One Life to Live"? God, I miss soap operas.
If, like us, you cannot get enough of Daveed, Leslie and Christopher's voices (all original Hamilton actors), try "Central Park," an animated musical series on HULU created by Josh Gad. If you've been melody poisoned by Lin Manuel Miranda's score (I see you, "Helpless"), I defy you to get Daveed Diggs' "If There's a Will" scrubbed from your brain.
Remember you can to this mostly-weekly newsletter here and of course, share with all the weirdos in your life who are interested in Costco salads and cartoon musicals.