#399: Shan Ako // Hamilton West End // Part One
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Release Date: 01/08/2024
#422: Aisha Jawando // Angelica Schuyler in the UK/Ireland Company // Part Two
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Aisha Jawando (Angelica Schuyler, the UK/Ireland tour of Hamilton) is back for round two, talking about her experience doing The Book of Mormon and Motown, and how she's always a little bit in "swing mode" even when playing a principle role. Aisha also tells the incredible story of originating the role of Alline Bullock and working with the legendary Tina Turner in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. When she eventually took over the role of Tina (from the fantastic Adrienne Warren), Aisha explains how she learned about leading a company, setting boundaries, and rewiring her brain to work outside...
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#421: Aisha Jawando // Angelica Schuyler in the UK/Ireland Company // Part One
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Aisha Jawando (Angelica Schuyler, the UK/Ireland tour of Hamilton) is on the pod! In this episode, she talks about her childhood, her training, and the start of her career, including why she (wrongly!) thought lead roles weren't in the realm of possibility for her. Plus, her side hustle of selling pre-loved jewelry, her connection to her Nigerian culture, and dealing with being on tour as a Black woman. ///
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#420: Zach Bravo // Swing on the Philip Tour // Part Three
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
This week wraps up my chat with Zach Bravo, a swing on Hamilton’s Philip Tour. He talks about his experience as Rum Tum Tugger on the 40th Anniversary Tour of Cats and he candidly discusses his mental health. Zach is also taking questions from the Patreon Peeps talking about dream roles and superheroes, and Zach leaves us with some very, very inspirational final words. ///
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#419: Zach Bravo // Swing on the Philip Tour // Part Two
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Zach Bravo (Swing on Hamilton’s Philip Tour) is back and this week we’re talking about Zach’s amazing family, his experience at Pace University, and why he’ll always defend Spiderman: Turn off the Dark. Zach started off not wanting to listen to Hamilton before seeing it but like so many of us… he lost that battle. His first time listening to the album was euphoric and finally seeing the show was fantastic but he was intimidated by the choreography. Fun fact: as that was happening, his mother leaned over in the middle of the performance and said, “I can totally see you in this...
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#418: Zach Bravo // Swing on the Philip Tour // Part One
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Zach Bravo (Swing on Hamilton’s Philip Tour) is here! This week, Zach talks about growing up as a Puerto Rican only child in Queens whose whole life changed when he tagged along to his cousin’s dance class. Thanks to his incredibly supportive family Zach grew up training to do what he loves, from performing Aladdin Jr. to thriving at the famous LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts in New York City. ///
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#417: Billy Nevers // Hamilton UK/Ireland: Lafayette/Jefferson // Part Three
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
As I wrap up with Billy Nevers (Lafayette/Jefferson on the Hamilton UK/Ireland tour), we kick off with questions from the Patreon Peeps. Billy talks about coming to terms with and taking the power back from problematic founding fathers like Thomas Jefferson, describing the terrifying and exhilarating first moments of starting the show as Aaron Burr, the beautiful madness of being in a cast with so many of his dearest friends, and why we should all be watching every iteration of The Traitors. ///
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#416: Billy Nevers // Hamilton UK/Ireland: Lafayette/Jefferson // Part Two
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
In his second episode, Billy Nevers (Lafayette/Jefferson on the UK/Ireland tour) talks about his extensive history with & Juliet, including working with the fantastic Bill Sherman and the prolific Max Martin. Billy also talks about how Legally Blonde was one of the best experiences of his life, how he booked Lafayette/Jefferson for the Hamilton tour, and tells me about the fateful phone call where he was asked a very loaded question: How do you feel about Aaron Burr? ///
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#415: Billy Nevers // Hamilton UK/Ireland: Lafayette/Jefferson // Part One
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Billy Nevers is currently in the UK/Ireland tour of Hamilton playing Lafayette/Jefferson. He’s also in the very rare position of being a principal who covers another principal - he’s the second standby for Aaron Burr, which is pretty unprecedented! Billy grew up in London in a very theatrical family, so he was surrounded by it from a super young age: music was always on, he was always going to see shows, his mom was a drama teacher. His talent and passion were undeniably there from the start but Billy learned early on about the gatekeeping people of color have to deal with when trying to...
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#414: Rubén J. Carbajal // Laurens/Philip on Broadway // Part Three
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Rubén J. Carbajal (John Laurens/Philip Hamilton on Broadway) is wrapping up his three episode series and we are kicking it off with his punk rock version of The Story of Tonight! Plus, he’s taking questions from the Patreon Peeps which includes (but is not limited to!) his favorite LA food spots, adjusting to the East Coast, living life “heart-forward”, his love of Spanish music, and punking Pitbull on MTV. Rubén recently made his Broadway debut as John Laurens and Philip Hamilton, but not before over 1,000 performances on the road including Los Angeles, San Francisco and...
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#413: Rubén J. Carbajal // Laurens/Philip on Broadway // Part Two
The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast
Rubén J. Carbajal (John Laurens/Philip Hamilton on Broadway) is back for another round! This week, he talks about his multiple Hamilton auditions and explains his process: the flights, the preparation, the importance of always showing his personality, and the beauty of staying curious. Rubén talks about his experience on tour, the full circle moment of bringing Hamilton home to Los Angeles, and what it was like performing with Lin-Manuel Miranda in Puerto Rico. And then… Rubén thought he was done with Hamilton in 2022 but some time away, a writers’ strike, and a very supportive...
info_outlineShan Ako is a singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and author who has a degree in Music Business and is in the process of getting her Masters in Positive Psychology. Shan is currently playing Eliza Schuyler in the West End and previously played Eponine in multiple iterations of Les Miserables, Whitney Houston in Whitney: Queen of the Night, and blew everyone away as a member of Simon Cowell’s team on X-Factor. In her first episode, Shan talks about growing up in a musical household and how her musicianship is always at the forefront of her projects and artistry. Her main goal as a performer is honesty, and it comes through in every facet of Shan’s storytelling: from her surreal experience on X-Factor to falling in love with Eponine to hoping listeners are encouraged by the fact that she initially made it as far as final callbacks for Eliza only to be told “no” by the Hamilton creatives. As Shan herself says, “Welcome to The Shan Show!!!”
Shan sings original track at Simon Cowell's house | Judges' Houses | The X Factor UK 2018
The X Factor UK 2018 Shan Auditions Full Clip S15E06
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