One of the most successful musicals of all time, ‘Hamilton’, is here in Aotearoa, with shows starting this weekend. To celebrate the cast and crew’s arrival into our country, members of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Marae welcomed them with a pōwhiri.
The huge amount of cast and crew members piled off the buses at the Auckland sight before respectfully watching as the pōwhiri was performed.
If you’re keen to watch the award-winning musical, tickets for all of the twenty shows they’re putting on at Spark Arena are available now.
You can also go into a lottery for the chance to suss a ticket for just $10. TodayTix is running the lottery, so you can either download their app or visit their website for more information.
The musical tells the story of the birth of the United States of America, from the point of view of the titular character, Alexander Hamilton.
Kiwi Matu Ngaropo (Ngāi Tūhoe, Te Rarawa, and Ngāti Porou), plays George Washington in the musical. Despite the story being based far from home, Ngaropo incorporates his Māori heritage into his performance as the military officer turned first US president.
“I understood from my own people’s perspective how we acknowledge war, physically,” he told The Spinoff.
“I tried a few things, a few ways I would use the sword that referenced my culture, and the creatives were like, ‘What are you doing?’. I explained it to them. They went, ‘We’re obsessed. Do whatever you want.’”
“If you actually see yourself represented truthfully up there doing the thing that is the phenomenon, it’s so powerful. That’s our responsibility, to deliver that, and represent that, because that’s the actual magic.”
‘Hamilton’ will only be performed at Auckland’s Spark Arena, but if you’re not in Tāmaki Makaurau there are plenty of times to visit as they are performing until June 11.
