A Ham4Ham for the ages
January 4, 2016 11:20 AM   Subscribe

 
No Ham4Ham while I am there, I am distraught (they aim to come back March 20).
posted by jeather at 11:28 AM on January 4, 2016






I'm sure the folks in NYC will miss it the street performance, but I'm excited to see what he comes up with from inside the theater - that gives them a lot of options!
posted by tzikeh at 11:52 AM on January 4, 2016


I love how gleeful and joyful everyone in this show seems to be. One of my favorite things in all the Ham4Hams is watching Lin Manuel-Miranda's face as he is astounded by whatever is going on in front of him. Look at him and Christopher Johnson watching the Classical Theatre of Harlem! Everyone just seems ... really awesome. I want to be their friends.
posted by ChuraChura at 11:55 AM on January 4, 2016 [6 favorites]


Date somebody who looks at you like Lin-Manuel Miranda looks at any Ham4Ham guest(s).
posted by kmz at 12:00 PM on January 4, 2016 [44 favorites]


If they're taking the lottery digital I really, really wish they'd push the show date out -- even 24 or 48 hours. I would drop everything to travel the 6 hours to NYC to go, and I'm sure a lot more of us would as well. A lottery for TOMORROW's performance would open it up for A LOT more people.
posted by anastasiav at 12:08 PM on January 4, 2016 [5 favorites]


Also the video guy Howard Sherman needs to get a grip on himself. After his Xmas eve post about how he'd stop if they ever actually asked him to show up, he's quite broken up about it moving inside for three months.
posted by anastasiav at 12:10 PM on January 4, 2016


A lottery for TOMORROW's performance would open it up for A LOT more people.

That's not at all what they want, though. They are only replacing the show to make the lottery on West 46th street safer. And it happens to be very cold here now, anyway.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 12:18 PM on January 4, 2016 [1 favorite]


Amazing. Renée Elise Goldsberry killed it as Lafayette! Here's my personal favorite.
posted by moons in june at 12:26 PM on January 4, 2016 [1 favorite]


That's not at all what they want, though.

The point of the lottery is to make it accessible to people (students, artists, etc.) who could not otherwise afford to see the show, yes? So, changing the date to tomorrow's show would open it up to an even wider pool of people who fall into that exact category.
posted by anastasiav at 12:30 PM on January 4, 2016 [1 favorite]


No, that's not the point of a lottery as lotteries exist nowadays on Broadway. It is to make it accessible to people for a cheap price who can make it last minute to the theatre.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 12:38 PM on January 4, 2016 [1 favorite]


The point of the lottery is to make it accessible to people (students, artists, etc.) who could not otherwise afford to see the show, yes? So, changing the date to tomorrow's show would open it up to an even wider pool of people who fall into that exact category.

As much as I'd love a "tomorrow lottery", as someone who lives a few hours from NYC, I just don't think that those of us non-New Yorkers who could afford to drop a day of work in order to travel to NYC on less than a day's notice really qualify as charity cases.

This is a nice gesture they're making to keep people out of the cold, and keep the streets safe. Most other shows don't do anything like the Ham4Hams. I don't think we should ask them to expand their genorisity and make it a more complicated situation than they're comfortable with.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 12:46 PM on January 4, 2016 [5 favorites]


I think the point of the lottery is to sell the remainder of the very few tickets that cannot be sold electronically for a shitload of money because it's too last-minute to process them through sales portals. It's more PR than philanthropy (which Hamilton, at least, is doing through other means).
posted by Lyn Never at 12:48 PM on January 4, 2016 [2 favorites]


I think the point of the lottery is to sell the remainder of the very few tickets that cannot be sold electronically for a shitload of money

That might be the case for other shows - but from my undestanding, Hamilton at least reserves the front row of every show for this purpose. It's not just selling last minute tickets.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 12:49 PM on January 4, 2016 [10 favorites]


I think the point of the lottery is to sell the remainder of the very few tickets that cannot be sold electronically for a shitload of money because it's too last-minute to process them through sales portals.

That's the point of the (always long) cancellation line. And those seats are full price.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 12:51 PM on January 4, 2016 [1 favorite]


I love how gleeful and joyful everyone in this show seems to be.

I love how so many of the cast members who aren't directly participating in #Ham4Ham show up and watch. I'm probably not going to be able to see the show with its current cast, but I have faith that the next generation is going to be as exciting to watch.
posted by gladly at 12:56 PM on January 4, 2016


The in-person lottery is for the 21 front row seats that are reserved each show (outside of special events where groups buy out the theater) just for the lottery ($10 each). Occasionally there's also some standing room only tickets given out. ($40 each)

There's a separate cancellation line that some people wait in to try to get last minute "regular" tickets.

I do wonder about if there'll be trolls entering the online lottery with no intention of going, just to screw fans out of seats.

Also, it looks like Miranda's working with the city on logistics for when the in-person lottery returns which is good because it is seriously a bit of a safety concern now with the size of the crowds.
posted by kmz at 12:58 PM on January 4, 2016 [4 favorites]


Yeah, the lottery isn't for leftover tickets. (The TKTS booth exists for that.) They're for seats set aside for that purpose.

It's more of a seed corn thing. If broke college kids—and others with time to spare but not money—can't afford to experience The Magic Of Live Theatre, then they're not likely to spend their money there when they do have some. The lotteries generate goodwill; they have an immediate benefit for those who do win tickets and get to see the shows; and they're an investment in the ecosystem, presumably paying off in getting more people feeling a connection to Broadway and up for buying full-priced tickets.
posted by Shmuel510 at 1:01 PM on January 4, 2016 [6 favorites]


I didn't realize that I needed a gender-swapped Hamilton in its entirety, but I really do. This is definitely my favorite #Ham4Ham video so far!
posted by bowtiesarecool at 1:14 PM on January 4, 2016 [6 favorites]


I didn't realize that I needed a gender-swapped Hamilton in its entirety, but I really do.

Plus we've already seen dudes play the Schuyler Sisters in a Ham4Ham. I'm down for it.

Renée also KILLS as Burr in that clip. Damn, girl!
posted by Solon and Thanks at 1:54 PM on January 4, 2016 [6 favorites]


I was just in NYC but on days when Hamilton was dark (NYE and the 1st); it broke my heart a little not to be able to soak up Ham4Ham. (I had already given up on actual tickets.) Oh well...

I'm willing to wait for it...
posted by invokeuse at 2:11 PM on January 4, 2016


I just don't think that those of us non-New Yorkers who could afford to drop a day of work in order to travel to NYC on less than a day's notice really qualify as charity cases.


Hi! Chronically-ill and therefore self-employed person here, who, while not a big fan of the phrase "charity case" (it's actually gross), is certainly not now, and likely will never be, in a position to pay for full price Ham tix. I couldn't make it to the show with a couple of hours notice, but I could make it with a day's notice.
posted by mattbcoset at 2:55 PM on January 4, 2016 [2 favorites]


More information and the history of lottery tickets on Broadway.

It's not really possible to scalp Hamilton lottery tickets since the show checks the ID of the winner several times throughout the process.

If the timeline was extended, then the odds would be even worse than they already are. Plus, the further in advance the lottery is done, the greater chance of no shows.
posted by oceano at 3:31 PM on January 4, 2016 [2 favorites]


I watch the multi-camera edit of the Schuyler Kings H4H at least once a day.
posted by Sweetie Darling at 4:47 PM on January 4, 2016 [4 favorites]


Super pumped about the digital lottery! Will be entering as often as my schedule would allow :)
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 5:03 PM on January 4, 2016


I love the irony of Hercules Mulligan in a big pink hat with a pom pom
posted by angrycat at 5:07 PM on January 4, 2016 [3 favorites]


I first found out about this Ham4Ham because someone drew fanart for it and goddammit I love this fandom.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:37 PM on January 4, 2016 [3 favorites]


I love how the guys refrained from joining in at all, just watched on in awe of these talented talented ladies.
posted by sampathcse16 at 7:57 PM on January 4, 2016


For the love of all that is good and holy can we get some middle ground between $10 front-row eleventh-hour tickets and $350+ mezzanine tickets for eight months from now?
posted by desuetude at 8:26 PM on January 4, 2016 [6 favorites]


Yes, there are $177 seats if you are willing to do cancellation line.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 5:44 AM on January 5, 2016 [1 favorite]


Hi! Chronically-ill and therefore self-employed person here, who, while not a big fan of the phrase "charity case" (it's actually gross), is certainly not now, and likely will never be, in a position to pay for full price Ham tix. I couldn't make it to the show with a couple of hours notice, but I could make it with a day's notice.

Yeah. I agree and I apologize. Tone doesn't come through the internet, so I should have known better, but I was using it to side-eye the idea that I hear floating around the Internet that the showrunners would be doing social justice work or something by having a day-advance lottery. I feel like some of it - mostly the grumbling on twitter - is co-opting an important movement for arts accessibility with something that doesn't actually make the show more accessible to most people. But I recognize it was an insensitive word to drop thoughtlessly, so I'm sorry for that.

My thoughts are that while that opens the show to more people, it by definition only would open the show to people who can afford to travel to NYC for a day on basically no notice, and that's a relatively privileged position to be in whatever way we slice it. I see your point about different abilities, and that there are NYC-area people who can't go to shows tonight, but could make arrangements in a day's notice. But I feel like the majority of people who want in on the nationwide lottery are people who will eventually be able to see the show when it goes on tour for like $40-80. Because a last-minute trip to NYC would definitely be at least that much, right, even at its cheapest? And that any of that group of people co-opting the "hey we need to make the arts more accessible to everyone" narrative rankles a little, because there a group of people who'll never be able to see the show, even at a $50 price-point, and this does nothing to solve that problem and potentially makes it worse.

Right now all my friends who attend Ham4Ham are students, un- and under-employed folks, etc. Having the lotto online instead of in-person does a lot to open it up to NYC folks who can't show up in person for whatever reason (work, kids, mobility). But starting to move it far in advance would, I think, end up with MORE working class people/artists/students locked out of it, not fewer, because suddenly every middle-class and wealthy person a day's drive/bus/plane-ride away would be signing up for lottery for the hell of it.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 7:46 AM on January 5, 2016 [3 favorites]


Haven't been able to get into today's lottery yet- site is crashing (big surprise). A co-worker got in, though. Hope she wins! OH HEY, while I was writing this comment, I got confirmation that I'm in! Woot woot!
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:55 AM on January 5, 2016 [2 favorites]


This is now my favorite Ham4Ham. I thought nothing would replace the sheer joy of the aforementioned Three Georges as the Schuyler Sisters (which I watch whenever I need a pick-me-up), but oh god these women tearing it up as the Founding Fathers. I have idly wondered what a gender-swapped or all-female Hamilton would be like, now I desperately want one. And I haven't even gotten to see the original yet! Lin-Manuel has said the problem with this is vocal registers, but surely this is something a creative music director could handle with some different arrangements?
posted by lunasol at 8:04 AM on January 5, 2016


@Lin_Manuel: I did the @morgankei neck thing at "Show Me Where The Ammunition Is" tonight. Because that's just so good.

Also, Time Magazine has a special issue out now about Alexander Hamilton (???) and I am now actually thinking about buying a copy of Time Magazine.
posted by lunasol at 8:10 AM on January 5, 2016 [1 favorite]


But I feel like the majority of people who want in on the nationwide lottery are people who will eventually be able to see the show when it goes on tour for like $40-80.

Seeing the show on tour is a manifestly different (and honestly, lesser) experience than seeing it on Broadway in a custom built theater with the original cast.
posted by anastasiav at 8:13 AM on January 5, 2016 [1 favorite]


Yeah, I'm sure I will see it when it tours, but I think especially with this show, there is a special cache to seeing it with the originating cast, especially the creator.
posted by lunasol at 8:17 AM on January 5, 2016 [2 favorites]


I had heard that Miranda, in his casting notes, gave explicit instructions to gender-swap major roles if circumstances made it difficult to cast people of color (high school or community theater productions, for example). At that exact moment, I realized just how badly I want to play Aaron Burr.

Sadly I can't act. Or rap. But man, this video only intensifies the longing!
posted by KathrynT at 8:26 AM on January 5, 2016 [5 favorites]


Seeing the show on tour is a manifestly different (and honestly, lesser) experience than seeing it on Broadway in a custom built theater with the original cast.

yeah, of course. but I think accessibility for the arts should first prioritize people who won't even get to see a tour, over people who will. like we should make sure hungry people get a warm meal before making sure that the average joe get a table at The French Laundry.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 8:29 AM on January 5, 2016 [2 favorites]


(This might be the best #force4ham yet: Force Awakens spoilers within)
posted by kmz at 8:48 AM on January 5, 2016 [10 favorites]


kmz, that is magnificent.
posted by lunasol at 9:52 AM on January 5, 2016


Sadly I can't act. Or rap. But man, this video only intensifies the longing!

Keep practicing, like in the shower. I couldn't rap at all, and now I can do roughly 2/3 of My Shot.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 11:37 AM on January 5, 2016


Oh, I can spit out the words, in rhythm, with accuracy.* I just have zero presence and even less flow. Out of my mouth, the most inspired rap lyrics sound like bad slam poetry.

*Offer does not include "Guns And Ships." I keep trying, but eventually I bail and just do the "Lafayette!" part.
posted by KathrynT at 11:43 AM on January 5, 2016 [1 favorite]


Doh!
posted by kmz at 1:42 PM on January 5, 2016


What a disaster. The website sent out more winning emails than there are seats, so they're leaving the front row empty tonight.

I'm getting pretty good at Guns and Ships, but not even attempting the French accent.
posted by Mavri at 2:34 PM on January 5, 2016


:(
posted by lunasol at 2:35 PM on January 5, 2016


Empty front row tonight. Ouch. Shame they can't find a good cause to give 'em to.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 2:55 PM on January 5, 2016


they're going back to the regular lottery & ham4ham tomorrow while they work out the kinks.
posted by nadawi at 3:10 PM on January 5, 2016


Also, Time Magazine has a special issue out now about Alexander Hamilton (???) and I am now actually thinking about buying a copy of Time Magazine.

I bought it. If you have already been reading everything you can find on Hamilton for months like uh, some people I know, it's probably not anything super new. Nice selection of articles, though, and you find out more about what Eliza got up to after he died. It'd be a good primer to share with someone not in the know already, though.

Now I am reading a Madison biography. WTF is wrong with me. Actually the one I got (Becoming Madison) is surprisingly good so far.
posted by jenfullmoon at 10:55 PM on January 5, 2016 [3 favorites]


[spoiler for Star Wars content]

I wanted to FPP this but felt bad doing it so soon after this post so will share it here. #Force4Ham is a thing. It is the greatest thing! So much fun!
posted by Wretch729 at 7:49 AM on January 6, 2016


If safety was a big concern (and I can't imagine it wasn't having seen the size of the crowds), I'm surprised they're back to business as usual with the lottery & shows- are they hoping the cold weather will keep the crowds more manageable?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 10:31 AM on January 6, 2016


i think they're hoping to only do it for another day or so. my guess is they weren't actually shut down for safety but were using the break to come up with better solutions.
posted by nadawi at 10:34 AM on January 6, 2016




I've only just listened to the cast recording for the first time this past weekend and, wow, all the raves were right - this is a truly incredible piece of work. And now I'm having fun reading all the reactions and watching the Ham4Ham videos (and the Force4Ham tweets) and catching up on the reviews and commentary.

I see that the show (and all of Broadway) was cancelled due to the storm. I feel sorry for those people, since getting replacement tickets will be almost impossible - especially if they had come from out of town. But the Twitter reaction was priceless.
posted by crossoverman at 1:10 AM on January 25, 2016


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