Hamilton: Will this all-American musical translate to a British audience.

There is no doubt that Hamilton has become a smash hit musical. Ask anyone interested in musicals now about it and they will be able to sing at least one (if not all) of the songs from the soundtrack. Its unprecedented sold out off-Broadway run, 16 Tony Award Nominations, 11 Tony Awards, a Grammy and the Pullitzer Prize for Drama - it was only a matter of time before the show was eventually transferred to the West End. And, like many others, when the transfer was announced I waited patiently online for the release of the tickets. Sadly, I was not one of the lucky few and if I want to buy tickets now, then I'll have to wait at least till the end of next year to sit in the gods.

I've listened to the soundtrack religiously and watched as many clips of the show that YouTube has to offer. Admittedly, when listening to the soundtrack, I tend to only listen to the first half of the musical. This is because, not only are there 46 songs on the soundtrack, but the show begins to rely heavily on American history and as a British female whose only exposure to American history is the 1920's onwards, the subtleties of the show begin to allude me. The musical tends to rely on the fact that the audience already have a previous understanding of how the political system in America works in the 1800s. Which, of course, we don't. It is hard enough for us to get our head around politics in America today nevermind in the era of Washington and Jefferson. Now, I admit, you can get watch Hamilton without understanding all of the political language in the musical but this is only one problem that might affect the show reaching the success it has on Broadway.

One of the main attractions of Hamilton is that it is primarily a hip-hop/rap musical which works well in the context of America as it is one of their main genres of music. However, there is a clear distinction between American hip-hop and its English cohort: Grime. One of the main things that worries me is whether a British cast will be able to understand the nuances and rhythms of American hip-hop as, if this is not spot on from the start, then the show will feel jarred and not authentic. The other problem I have when listening to the soundtrack is that, even though the rap sound is innovative and is one of the main attractions of the show, it becomes quite tiring to listen to after a while. As someone who has listened to traditional musicals since a very young age, I cannot help but feel that with more sung through songs, it would help me to engage with parts of the musical that I cannot connect with. British audiences however, are used to the musical being completely sung through due to exposure to Lloyd Webber and Schonberg but the fact that a majority of the songs consist entirely of the cast rapping, it can get to a point where the songs become very repetitive and the audience may switch off.

However, there is no doubt that the musical should be a hit due the fact that it has a brilliant story, when the show is funny its side-splittingly funny and when its sad, the show pulls at all of your heart strings. The show has also already sold out its first year run - despite the fact that the show dates have been pushed back due to the refurbishments of the theatre running behind schedule. Mackintosh has been clever and picked a competent cast; including Rachel Ann Go (who is well known to West End audiences as she played Gigi in the revival of Miss Saignon) as Elizabeth Scheylur. As well as the newcomer: Jamael Westman who will be taking on the titular role of Hamilton. The rest of the cast have all previously been in musicals that required American accents so we will be as close to the authentic original Broadway cast.

Don't get me wrong, I am still desperate to see the show and hope that the things I have brought up don't affect Hamilton's popularity or the longevity of its run in London. My only concern is that American audiences didn't get Oliver! so will British audiences get Hamilton: An American Musical. Only time will tell!

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