I think I am the last person on earth to see the recorded Broadway hit, “Hamilton” starring Lin-Manuel Miranda, Phillipa Soo, Leslie Odom Jr., Daveed Diggs and others.

Everyone raved and raved about the play, the music, the performances so I had very high expectations. I also read the lengthy book by Ron Chernow, “Alexander Hamilton,” which was the play’s source material.

For a musical, all of the most important elements were excellent. The music and songs were marvelous. Many of the songs are set to a hip-hop or rap genre, adding a unique wrinkle to the traditional Broadway musical. All of the artists and the supporting orchestra were flawless. By far this aspect of the show stood out as its best attribute.

The other part that I appreciated about the play was the modern re-telling of the story of Hamilton’s life as it intertwined with the founding of America. Surprisingly, it follows Chernow’s book closely with several funny but true side notes throughout. The show’s billing says of the performance:

“Hamilton” is the story of America then, told by America now.

The Walt Disney Studios

Like its source material, the play itself is long, almost three hours, but all the great music keeps up your interest throughout.

The mature content and references to Hamilton’s personal indiscretions make the performance somewhat unsuitable for children, while most of the innuendo would likely go right over younger audience’s heads. The mature content coupled with the language throughout earned the film a generous, in my humble opinion, PG-13 rating.

Another impressive feat that the production pulled off was the filming of the play, the sound editing/mixing, the crispness of the picture, the lighting effects from the live performance was all captured for the at-home audience. There is not much lost at all in the filmed version that I could tell.

All in all, the production was a success. It is worth the price of “admission” for Disney+ at only $7/month for unlimited viewing. Tickets to the play in-person ran upwards of $150 here in Denver and sold out in minutes.

Now is the time to subscribe, even if only for a month. Pixar’s newly released “Soul” is available for no extra charge, as well as the live-action “Mulan.” Star Wars fans can watch the first two seasons of “The Mandalorian” with the service too. All for just $7!

Check out the trailer below: