The cast of Broadway’s “Hamilton” made a special stop to perform for former President George H.W. Bush, and the cast’s response to the aging Republican was far different from the response to then Vice President-elect Mike Pence.
Bush thanked the cast for stopping by his Houston office, praising them for making history come to life.
A complete joy to welcome the “HamFam” — the cast and crew of @HamiltonMusical — to our Houston office for a special performance I will never forget. History never sounded so powerful. pic.twitter.com/dL224SkMKn
— George Bush (@GeorgeHWBush) May 15, 2018
Show creator Lin-Manuel Miranda responded graciously to the former president, saying that they were honored to be with him.
The honor is ours, sir. https://t.co/vT815vluaD
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) May 16, 2018
When Mike Pence, fresh off electoral victory, went to see “Hamilton” in late November of 2016 — and following the performance, actor Brandon Dixon read aloud a statement that had been written by Miranda along with director Thomas Kail and producer Jeffrey Seller.
Tonight, VP-Elect Mike Pence attended #HamiltonBway. After the show, @BrandonVDixon delivered the following statement on behalf of the show. pic.twitter.com/Jsg9Q1pMZs
— Hamilton (@HamiltonMusical) November 19, 2016
The statement addressed several concerns that a number of cast members had felt following the election. “We, sir — we — are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights. We truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our American values and to work on behalf of all of us.”
Seller told the New York Times that the statement was drafted immediately after they learned that Pence would be in the audience.
“We had to ask ourselves, how do we cope with this?” Mr. Seller said. “Our cast could barely go on stage the day after the election. The election was painful and crushing to all of us here. We all struggled with what was the appropriate and respectful and proper response. We are honored that Mr. Pence attended the show, and we had to use this opportunity to express our feelings.”
Pence was walking out of the theater when Dixon called him out, but it was reported that he remained in the hallway and listened to the full remarks.