Hamilton in Las Vegas

I absolutely loved the cast of Hamilton when the show made a stop in SLC a few months ago and, even though I had the opportunity to see it three times, I still wanted to see it again.  Luckily the same company is now in Las Vegas and I was able to get a ticket.  Before I left on my road trip from SLC to Las Vegas I learned that Joseph Morales, who plays Alexander Hamilton, would be out of the show all this week and I have to admit that I was a little bit disappointed because I loved his performance so much!  However, I really liked Julius Thomas III who played Hamilton last night.  His voice is really beautiful and I especially loved his renditions of "Dear Theodosia" and "Hurricane." I've started judging each each actor in the role by how he makes me feel in "It's Quiet Uptown" and his version was incredibly emotional!  Just about everyone sitting near me was crying!  The show also featured the understudies for King George (Conroe Brooks) and George Washington (Desmond Sean Ellington) and both of their performances were more traditional like the other casts I've seen.  I especially liked Ellington's performance of "One Last Time" because he basically turned the ensemble into a gospel choir complete with choreography.  Like the SLC production, I was blown away by Nik Walker as Aaron Burr, especially in "Wait For It."  I loved all of the humor he infused in "Non-Stop" and "The Room Where It Happens." In this production Kyle Scatliffe, as Thomas Jefferson, blew kisses to the audience in "Cabinet Battle #1," Fergie L. Philippe, as Hercules Mulligan, threw his flowers to the audience in "Satisfied," and Shoba Narayan, as Eliza Hamilton, threw in some wild hand gestures as she was beat boxing in "Take a Break."  All of this business was new to the show since I saw it in SLC and it makes me wonder if the company changes things up when they move on to a new city!   Because I've now seen this show seven times, I am able to notice different things because I'm so familiar with the main action and last night I was particularly struck by the choreography of the British soldiers in "Stay Alive" and by the choreography of "Washington on Your Side."  Every time I see it I also notice something completely new and last night I noticed that the lantern lights flicker when Angelica (Ta’Rea Campbell) sings about Benjamin Franklin’s key and kite in “Satisfied.”  This show is so brilliant!  The excitement in the audience was palpable and I loved it when they applauded after the dance break in "Yorktown."  I've never been in an audience that did that!  A lot of people ask me if it gets old after watching it so many times and I can honestly say that I was just as giddy walking into the Smith Center last night as when I walked into the Richard Rodgers Theatre to see it for the first time.  I love this show so much!