After putting on multiple performances of the Broadway hit “Hamilton” edited to convey Christian messages – and concluded with an anti-LGBTQ sermon – a Texas church received a cease and desist letter from the official production.
Spokesperson Shane Marshall Brown, explained that the “Hamilton” production “does not grant amateur or professional licenses for any stage productions and that it did not authorize the church to put on the performance,” according to NBC News.
OneStageBlog first reported the unauthorized performances of the musical.
“Hamilton” is an adaptation by Lin-Manuel Miranda based of the 2004 Ron Chernow biography of founding father Alexander Hamilton with a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B and Broadway styles. Since it premiered off-Broadway in 2015, “Hamilton” has received numerous awards, including 11 Tony Awards and a Pulitzer Prize.
Miranda, the show’s creator, has supported LGBTQ causes and read a sonnet about the Pulse nightclub shooting during his 2016 Tony Awards acceptance speech.
CNN reported that The Door Christian Fellowship Ministries in McAllen, Texas performed the edited version of “Hamilton” on Friday and Saturday. NBC reported that the official production was informed of the performances Saturday.
Videos obtained by multiple outlets show a two-hour performance that was livestreamed online by the church and RGV Productions. It reportedly featured biblical references not included in the actual musical, per a description by Howard Sherman, director of the Arts Integrity Initiative at The New School in New York City.
Sherman said the unauthorized performances were illegal.
At the end of the show, an associate pastor named Victor Lopez delivered a sermon, said NBC, which obtained the video from writer and atheism advocate Hemant Mehta. According to The Dallas Morning News, a pastor said “maybe you struggle with alcohol, with drugs — with homosexuality — maybe you struggle with other things in life, your finances, whatever,” during the 15-minute sermon. “God can help you tonight. He wants to forgive you for your sins.”
The Door pastor Roman Gutierrez said the church is not anti-LGBT and “everyone is always welcome,” in a statement to The Dallas Morning News. He also said that he acquired legal permission from the production to put on the performances, though the “Hamilton” spokesperson denied that Monday.
In the cease and desist letter sent by “Hamilton”, the production requested that the church remove the livestream video. As of Monday, it had been taken down. Additionally, people with the official production were expected to discuss with the “parties behind this unauthorized production within the coming days once all facts are properly vetted.”
The “Hamilton” spokesperson thanked the show’s fans for informing them about The Door’s performances.
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