Three students from DeSoto High School performed an original skit, “The Tea Party Cry,” for an enthusiastic audience of 3,200 of their peers at the Music Hall at Fair Park May 2. Alanna Nevins Cruz, Adaora Nwosu, and Alexys Brown-Ramirez, are pictured with DeSoto theater instructor Nanette Smith. Along with 73 other DeSoto High School students, they were invited to see the hottest show in town, HAMILTON, presented by Dallas Summer Musicals through May 5. Over 3,200 students and teachers from 56 area high schools attended the matinee, and 15 of the schools performed an original skit or musical presentation before the matinee.
Students selected to attend HAMILTON spent several weeks in their classrooms studying American history through a special integrated curriculum about Alexander Hamilton and the nation’s Founding Fathers. Following the skits, students participated in a Q&A with HAMILTON company members. Three cast members: Fergie L. Phillipe (Hercules Mulligan/James Madison), Elijah Malcomb (John Laurens/Philip Hamilton), and Kyle Scatliffe (Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson) introduced the student performances.
HAMILTON Producer Jeffrey Seller
Producer Jeffrey Seller said, “Our goal is to ensure students have a shot to see HAMILTON and use its words, music and staging to further their understanding and enjoyment of American history, music, and drama. We’ve had the pleasure of expanding the education program outside of New York in Los Angeles, Chicago, and multiple cities around the country.”
Producers of HAMILTON made tickets for this educational partnership available for $70, with $60 subsidized by The Moody Foundation and The Rockefeller Foundation. Tickets cost $10 for each student.
Participating High Schools
Aldine Senior High School; Booker T Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts; Crowell High School; Daingerfield High School; DeSoto High School; Early College High School; Eastern Hills High School; Edinburg High School; Franklin D. Roosevelt High School; Garland High School; Grapevine-Colleyville ISD Collegiate Academy at Tarrant County Community College Northeast; Harmony Science Academy- Dallas High; Hirschi High School; IDEA Montopolis College Prep; Inspired Vision Secondary School; Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School; Juarez-Lincoln High School; and Justin F. Kimball High School.
Also Kathlyn Joy Gilliam Collegiate Academy; Lake Highlands High School; Lake Worth High School; Lyndon B. Johnson High School; Morgan High School; Munday High School; North Dallas High School; North Garland High School; North Mesquite High School; R.L. Paschal High School; Ruston High School; Sam Houston High School; Seagoville High School; Skyline High School; South Hills High School; South Oak Cliff High School; Southside High School; Thomas Jefferson High School – Dallas; Uplift Grand Preparatory; Uplift Hampton Preparatory High School; Uplift Heights Preparatory; Uplift Luna High School; W.T. White High School; West Mesquite High School; Wilmer-Hutchins High School; Woodrow Wilson High School; WW Samuell HS; and Young Women’s Leadership Academy.
The Rockefeller Foundation provided an initial grant of $1.46 million that funded the educational partnership in New York City. After the resounding success of the partnership, the Foundation committed an additional $6 million to the effort to support the program’s national expansion.
HAMILTON: The Story Of America’s Founding Father Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant from the West Indies, became George Washington’s right-hand man during the Revolutionary War and was the new nation’s first Treasury Secretary. Featuring a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, blues, rap, R&B, and Broadway, HAMILTON is the story of America then, as told by America now.
With book, music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, direction by Thomas Kail, choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler and musical supervision and orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire, HAMILTON is based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton.
HAMILTON features scenic design by David Korins, costume design by Paul Tazewell, lighting design by Howell Binkley, sound design by Nevin Steinberg, hair and wig design by Charles G. LaPointe, casting by Telsey + Company, Bethany Knox, CSA, and General Management by Baseline Theatrical. The musical is produced by Jeffrey Seller, Sander Jacobs, Jill Furman and The Public Theater.
HAMILTON Original Broadway Cast Recording is available everywhere nationwide. The HAMILTON recording received a 2016 Grammy for Best Musical Theatre Album.For information on HAMILTON, visit www.HamiltonMusical.com.
The Hamilton Education Program
One of several history education programs offered by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Its president, James G. Basker—who devised the education program in tandem with HAMILTON creator and producer, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeffrey Seller, and The Rockefeller Foundation—said, “This project is transformative. HAMILTON has struck a chord with our nation’s students because it embodies what great history education is all about: bringing the past to life and fostering connections with the exceptional individuals and moments that have made us who we are. This program empowers students to reclaim their own narrative and teachers to bridge classroom learning with the stage.”
THE GILDER LEHRMAN INSTITUTE OF AMERICAN HISTORY
Founded in 1994 by Richard Gilder and Lewis E. Lehrman, visionaries and lifelong supporters of American history education, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History is the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to K–12 history education while also serving the general public. The Institute’s mission is to promote the knowledge and understanding of American history through educational programs and resources.
