KDKA: Irwin native Brad Broman talks all things ‘Hamilton,’ now at the Benedum

The Broadway musical “Hamilton” is about history, but it’s also helping to change the future. Since “Hamilton” has a cast of people of diverse skin colors to play white men and women in history, many more people of color are being cast in leading roles. Last month, “Phantom of the Opera” cast its first black female lead, 34 years after it opened on Broadway.  And last week, “Wicked” on Broadway had it is first black “Glinda, the Good Witch.” 

“I think it’s a direct result of this show, and I think it’s a direct result of the hard work of all the people involved in this show and all the people of Broadway that are fighting for change,” said Brad Broman, company manager for the “Hamilton” tour that’s on stage in Pittsburgh at the Benedum Center through March.

EDUCATING KIDS AND GIVING BACK

As company manager, Broman organizes the performers and handles all logistics for the tour. He grew up in Irwin, graduated from Penn Trafford High school in 2002. He started as a performer, before moving backstage when he got injured.

“There are so many jobs and positions that come together to put on a show, and I think opening students’ eyes to that is my goal from this side,” Broman said.

He was inspired by the story of Broadway actor Claybourne Elder, whom he learned about recently. A stranger gave Elder money to see a Broadway show 15 years ago, and it led to his career as an actor. Elder now pays it forward, giving away tickets to the show he’s performing in. Through his story on social media, he’s even gotten thousands of dollars in donations to send people to shows.

Broman is starting to do the same in Pittsburgh, giving tickets to local children, “to ensure that we can bring kids like me who wouldn’t have been able to afford to see the show to come see it while we’re in town as my guests,” he said.  

“It’s really important for kids to see theater because they can escape to a different world for a little while and they see a lot of things that they would otherwise not see.”

For every show, “Hamilton” sells 40 tickets at $10 each at this link. You can get information here for Edu-Ham — a learning component of the show for kids and teenagers. And if you can’t make it to the live show, it is available on video streaming services.