‘Hamilton’ creator and star Lin-Manuel Mirand bids low key farewell to hit show

Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator and star of the Broadway smash “Hamilton,” made a subdued final bow Saturday alongside two other departing stars in the show that has become a cultural phenomenon. The performance Saturday at the Richard Rodgers Theatre was also the last for Leslie Odom Jr., who won a Tony Award as Aaron Burr, and Phillipa Soo, a Tony nominee who portrayed Eliza Schuyler. The three — plus an ensemble member — took their bows together but none said anything. Miranda made a solo bow, with his hand to his heart before actor Christopher Jackson pushed him to the lip of the stage to receive the full blessings from the audience.

The show has such universal appeal, it really delights me how he’s taken the book and really amplified it and appealed to such a mass audience. It’s just astounding.

Ron Chernow

Among those in attendance were U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Jennifer Lopez, Jane Fonda, Rosie O'Donnell, Spike Lee, Charlie Rose and Mariska Hargitay. Tickets had been sold at up to $20,000. Rose called it “a majestic moment in the history of theater” and historian Ron Chernow, who supplied the Hamilton biography that Miranda transformed into a musical, seemed still stunned by the course of events. “Well, I think it’s safe to say that when I was writing the book I never imagined that it would be turned into a musical, much less a hip-hop musical, much less this extraordinary hip-hop musical,” he said.

Lin and I, we’re also great friends - I’m not just losing a colleague who won’t be there every day, but also my friend won’t be there every day. I’ll miss him, and do my best to honor what he’s made.

Javier Munoz, who takes over the title role

Lin-Manuel Miranda