Broadway hit ‘Hamilton’ makes Alaska debut in Anchorage

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – The hit Broadway show “Hamilton” is making its Alaska debut at the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday evening.

The musical became a global hit when it was first performed in 2015, and it was nominated for a total of 16 Tony Awards in 2016. The show is a rap-driven portrayal of the life of founding father Alexander Hamilton is told through a modern lens and is moving to many, even those who normally have no interest in the stage. The excitement surrounding the theatrical sensation has transformed theatre and the way we think about history, according to The New York Times.

Now, “Hamilton” is in Alaska for the first time and ticketholders here are just as excited as they would be to see a show on Broadway. Codie Costello, the President and Chief Operating Officer for the Alaska Center for Performing Arts, thinks fans will enjoy it the same, too.

“It is a Broadway experience, 100% the same type of experience that you would have seeing the show on Broadway in New York, you just get to now to see it at home,” Costello said.

Bringing the Broadway show north has been two years in the making, with the center has working with crews of three national companies of “Hamilton” to bring set pieces and equipment from various tours around the country to Alaska.

“We’ve designed a whole new partnership that includes us being able to bring the show’s sets and equipment here by air to help us fit better within that national touring model and schedule, and we’ll be bringing three additional shows after “Hamilton” for this season for years to come,” said Costello.

The equipment for the “Hamilton” production is comprised of pieces from three different touring companies, and arrived via cargo ship and air freight.

The production itself boasts 75 members of cast and crew, bringing with them a total of fourteen 53-foot trailers of costumes, set pieces and more. The production has relied on roughly 100 crew members to load and unload those trailers over the past week.

“Just an incredible number of hand and brains that it’s taken to navigate and plan for this production to come here for our community,” Costello said.

Costello says partnering with the entertainment group the Nederlander Organization has made it logistically possible to bring Broadway shows to Alaska.

“Now we’re going to be able to get the biggest shows, the most current things, it’s a very exciting time, we have a multi-year agreement with the Nederlander Organization — and I already know what season two is going to look like and its pretty exciting,” Costello said.

It’s not just the center that’s excited, Alaskans are too — especially ‘Hamilton’ fans who came out to see it opening night in Anchorage.

“It’s like my favorite play ever and I’m really excited to see it in person,” Trace Brady said, who dressed up to watch the musical. “It’s hilarious, but it’s just kind of emotional — it mixes modern things with old things and makes it a lot more exciting.”

“I’m excited, I’m a competitive singer and so I’ve done a bunch of “Hamilton” stuff, and so I just love the vocals and the writing and I’m excited,” Matalyn Perdew said, who came with her family to watch the play.

Others were excited to feel the energy surrounding the historical — and history-making — show.

“To be here, to see the cast and to see this hip-hop musical come to life, I’m very enthusiastic about it — and I can feel the energy, it’s great,” fan Aryauna Hoeldt said.

Some fans think going to a show as vibrant and eclectic as “Hamilton” is a special treat.

“They have jazz and classical and a lot of rap and everything all mixed in to make it all really entertaining and interesting and to show the different characters. It’s so amazing and I’m so glad that they made it to Anchorage because we don’t get many of these Broadway plays and this one’s the best,” fan Cindy Porter, who brought her sister to watch the production with her.

Costello hopes the Broadway shows will encourage people to keep visiting the Alaska Center for Performing Arts.

“Broadway is an audience-builder — it’s big, its grand — I hope we see a lot of new people coming to the Performing Arts Center, or those that are returning and maybe they haven’t been here since they were a kid,” Costello said. “So I hope we see a lot of audience members out on this side of things also having that same experience, and that we’re building new audiences, so you can see all of the new things the Performing Arts Center has to offer throughout the season.”

The Anchorage run of “hamilton” will feature 30 performances and will run until Sept. 10. Some tickets are still available — especially in weeks 3 and 4 — but will likely sell out. If you want to be in the room where it happened, purchase tickets on Centertix.com or BroadwayAlaska.com.

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