Hamilton Was Here - 6abc Loves the Arts

The Tony Award-winning Hamilton the Musical will be opening in Philadelphia next summer and to get you ready for that blockbuster show, the Museum of the American Revolution has a new Alexander Hamilton exhibition.

Called 'Hamilton Was Here', it transports visitors back to the streets of Philadelphia in the late 1700s.

"You're reliving life in revolutionary Philadelphia," says Matthew Skic, Associate Curator of the Museum of the American Revolution.

The exhibition includes interactive games and reenactments.

"You'll be able to dress up in that clothing and act like you're in the President's house when President Washington and Martha Washington lived here in the city," Skic says.

You can load a life-sized replica of the cannon Hamilton would have commanded as an artillery officer and protect the shipping port through a board game called Stop the Smuggler.

"It's a dice-based game," Skic says, "It will allow you to act as one of the Coast Guard cutters and an-other person act as a smuggler."

The museum has also added Hamilton-related items to its core exhibition, including an 1825 portrait of Elizabeth Hamilton.

"It depicts Mrs. Hamilton," Skic explains, "decades after the death of her husband in 1804 when she continued to defend her husband's legacy."

The Museum of the American Revolution has dubbed this the "Year of Hamilton."

"We're having guest speakers, programs like walking tours, panel discussions," Skic says, as Philadel-phians eagerly await the arrival of Hamilton the Musical that will be staged just steps from where the history actually happened.

"He fights in and around Philadelphia in the Revolutionary War," Skic says, "He also participated in the Constitutional Convention and engaged in debates.

It's a part of a history, Skic says, that a lot of people are not aware of, "In the musical itself, Philadelphia is actually never mentioned, but Philadelphia is such an important spot for Hamilton."

Museum of American Revolution: Hamilton Was Here

Thru March 17, 2019

101 S 3rd Street

Philadelphia, PA 19106

www.TheArtsinPhilly.org

Twitter@TheArtsinPhilly

https://www.amrevmuseum.org/exhibits/special-exhibits/hamilton-was-here