June 13, 2018 The Skanner Page 7
Arts & Entertainment
DC Unveils Special Exhibits as ‘Hamilton’ Comes to Town
Postal Museum, Library of Congress unveil exhibits commemorating Alexander Hamilton
By Ashraf Khalil
Associated Press
AP PHOTO/MANUEL BALCE CENETA
WASHINGTON (AP) —
The blockbuster musi-
cal “Hamilton” is finally
coming to the nation’s
capital, and the city is
preparing in ways that
only Washington can.
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s
genre-bending historical
musical about the life of
Alexander Hamilton is
starting a three-month
run at the Kennedy Cen-
ter on Tuesday.
Hamilton didn’t actual-
ly spend much of his life
or professional career
in Washington. The U.S.
capital was in Philadel-
phia when he served as
the nation’s first trea-
sury secretary, and the
federal
government
didn’t move to Washing-
ton until 1800, four years
before his death.
However, the myriad
museums of modern
Washington have been
preparing
specialized
exhibits designed to
appeal to tourists and
locals who can’t get the
tunes out of their heads.
“D.C. seems like the
sort of town that’s tai-
lor-made for this sort of
wonky, nerding out over
a former secretary of the
Treasury,” said Daniel Pi-
azza, chief curator of
stamp collections at
the Smithsonian’s Na-
tional Postal Museum.
The Postal Museum
has already launched
an exhibit, “Alexan-
der Hamilton: Soldier,
Secretary, Icon,” that
includes mail, por-
traits, and postage
and revenue stamps
reflective of Hamil-
ton’s life and career.
But the real prize of
the exhibit are the two
flintlock pistols made
of walnut, brass and
gold that were used
Alexander Hamilton exhibit called “Alexander Hamilton: Soldier,
Secretary, Icon,” that include mail, portraits, and postage and
revenue stamps reflective of Hamilton’s life and career, at
Smithsonian National Postal Museum in Washington, Monday,
June 11, 2018. The blockbuster show Hamilton is finally coming
to the nation’s capital and the city is preparing in ways that only
Washington can.
in the July 11, 1804, duel
with Vice President Aar-
on Burr, which resulted
in Hamilton’s death.
The pistols are on loan
from the private collec-
tion of JPMorgan Chase
& Co. They will only be on
display through June 24,
although the museum’s
larger Hamilton exhibit
will continue through
next year.
The Library of Con-
gress is unveiling its
own Hamilton display,
drawing on its collection
of more than 12,000 of
Hamilton’s papers and
documents. Much of it
will have direct connec-
tions and references that
fans of the musical will
recognize, according to
curator Julie Miller. Mi-
randa based his musical
on a 2004 biography,
“Alexander Hamilton”
by Ron Chernow, which
drew from much of the
same material.
Miller said the exhib-
it includes a letter from
Hamilton to his wife, Eliz-
abeth Schuyler, in which
he refers to her as “the
best of wives and best of
women” — a line quoted
verbatim in the musical.
There’s also material
chronicling a histori-
cally important dinner
meeting with Hamilton
and Secretary of State
Thomas Jefferson. That
meeting is at the heart
of the song “The Room
Where it Happens.”
Ocean’s
cont’d from pg 6
her a key to a suite.
Next thing you know,
she’s masterminding an
elaborate plan to pur-
loin a priceless diamond
necklace during the
Metropolitan Museum
of Art’s annual costume
ball. Debbie begins by
recruiting a crack team
of cohorts, starting with
her longtime partner in
crime, Lou (Cate Blanch-
ett). The rest of the mot-
ley crew is composed
of hi-tech whiz Nine
Ball (Rihanna), jeweler
Amita (Mindy Kaling),
fashionista Rose Weil
(Helena Bonham Carter),
big screen diva Daphne
Kluger (Anne Hatha-
way), ex-thief coaxed
out of retirement Tam-
my (Sarah Paulson),
and Constance, a trash-
talking crook played by
the scene-stealing come-
dienne, Awkwafina.
The real fun starts after
the get acquainted phase
of the adventure, when
the conspiracy is put into
Kam says “Ocean’s 8” represents a refreshing departure for the testosterone-fueled franchise
action in and around the
museum. Besides a super
cool caper, we’re treated
to a profusion of enough
blink-and-you-missed-it
cameo appearances to
take your breath away.
Dozens of celebrities
attend the marvelous
Met gala, including Katie
Holmes, Kim Kardashian
and her sisters Kylie and
Kendall, tennis pros Ser-
ena Williams and Ma-
ria Sharapova, Vogue
editor-in-chief
Anna
Wintour, and designers
Tommy Hilfiger and Al-
exander Wang, to name
a few. Ultimately more
lighthearted than edgy,
“Ocean’s 8” is a fash-
ion-driven,
fun-filled
affair where all the flair
and famous faces serving
as backdrop practically
upstage a perfectly-de-
lightful, female-centric
crime caper.
You go girls!
Excellent HHHH
Rated PG-13 profanity,
drug use and suggestive
content
In English and German
with subtitles
Running time: 110 min-
utes
Production Studios:
Smokehouse Pictures
/ Village Roadshow
Pictures