Do you want to find affordable tickets to Hamilton for your family? Check out our Vivid Seats review and how we were able to find an incredible deal on tickets, in Chicago. We also share where to eat, where to stay, and what other fun family experiences you can do. This is one holiday gift your kids will never forget!
It’s 4:30 in the morning and I just can’t sleep.
I can admit that I am still riding on quite the high after returning last night from a, TRULY, unforgettable weekend with my family.
For those of you that follow me on the interwebz, you already know why it was so exciting, but if you are just catching up, I wanted to share with you the surprise getaway I pulled off to see Hamilton in Chicago with my kids.
So many people have been messaging me and asking us questions about our experience that I thought I would share it with you so that others could replicate all the fun that we had!
How We Caught the Hamilton Bug
We caught the Hamilton bug a little later than most of my friends, but when we caught it, we we fell fast and hard for Hamilton.
During a marathon on a puzzle, over our Fall break, we started listening to the soundtrack with our kids. As soon as it finished, they begged to listen to it all over again…and again…and again.
It happened to be around the time of the PBS documentary, so we curled up on a couch with them and watched that too.
As we drove home from our holiday (blasting Hamilton at full volume), we asked the kids IF (and this was a big IF) we could get tickets to Hamilton, would they be interested in doing this for Christmas. Our family is BIG on experiences and not big on crap in our house so this was, of course, a welcome and familiar idea for our kids.
In fact, we have done a couple of our very own Choose Your Own Adventure Christmas gifts that have been an incredible way to give the gift of experience to our children. I HIGHLY recommend this as a great gift idea for big kids.
We did not talk about it again with them and pretended like this would never happen in a million years. In fact, they did not know until the morning we left where we were even headed, not only because we wanted to surprise them, but because it didn’t even feel real to us.
How Did We Get Tickets!?!
We are known for being frugal so thinking about buying tickets when balcony seats are going for $600 (or more!) seemed way out of our comfort zone for pricing.
This month was a crazy month for us though on the site thanks to Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday content I had written. We doubled our ad revenue this past month, thanks to that burst in traffic, and we had more sales than we have ever had through the site, sometimes in just a single day!
Each time you make a purchase, we make a small commision off your purchases. This passive revenue is nothing I ever bank on, it is always just a really happy surprise.
Basically, THANK YOU!
Just in case, I glossed over the successful week on the site, this was the most work I have ever put into it this season. I actually went four days without sleep or a shower, we ate cereal for a week so I could hang out online tracking stuff, and I was pretty awful to everyone around me.
I like to live in a truthful place.
In the end, we pretended like that extra money did not exist and set that amount aside to give our family an experience of a lifetime. It was money that we did not bank upon so it made that a wee bit easier to spend.
Just because you have the money though doesn’t make it easier to spend especially if you are unfamiliar with a theater or its seating. PrivateBank Theater (formerly Bank of America Theatre- VERY CONFUSING!) has some really good seats and some REALLY terribleseats. My worst fear is to spend a ridiculous amount of money only to find that we can’t see a thing when we got there.
I spent a month scoping out tickets, but also asked for advice from a friend who frequently buys concert tickets and is just a guru in general on ticket buying. His advice was to wait until the last possible minute to insure the best deal on the tickets.
We are a two hour drive away from Chicago so we knew we could do that.
Just because you have the money though doesn’t make it easier to spend especially if you are unfamiliar with a theater or its seating. PrivateBank Theater (formerly Bank of America Theatre- VERY CONFUSING!) has some really good seats and some REALLY terrible seats. My worst fear is to spend a ridiculous amount of money only to find that we can’t see a thing when we got there.
I spent a month scoping out tickets, but also asked for advice from a friend who frequently buys concert tickets and is just a guru in general on ticket buying. His advice was to wait until the last possible minute to insure the best deal on the tickets.
We are a two hour drive away from Chicago so we knew we could do that.
After searching on a million sites, we ended up going with Vivid Seats for a few important reasons.
Our Vivid Seats Review
The first reason was that they actually had the lowest priced online tickets after hunting all of the other usual suspect sites. Although some sites appeared to be cheaper, once I started purchasing tickets, I would notice ridiculous service fees or vastly different ticket prices in my shopping cart.
The second was that they offered a 100% buyer guarantee on those sports, concerts, and theater seats so it felt less risky than doing something like buying them on eBay.
The third is that I could get a significant percentage back on my tickets thanks to Rakuten. You can read all about how this app saves our family series money over here. If you haven’t used it before, here is ten dollars to get your account started.
I used the site, A View From My Seat to help us figure out if our seats would be good or not.
This is a great tool for ANY event you are going to and can help determine if your tickets are a good value or not.
Basically, people take a quick phone shot from their seat and tell you whether it is a good one or not.
This was the shot that I found from the tickets we were looking at which said, “Limited View.” Because the view was limited, it lowered the value on the tickets and gave us seats in Orchestra Row F for $300 each which ended up being less than the nosebleed seats.
Spoiler alert: the seats were fantastic and better than we could hope for! More on that later…
Was the process on the ticket site smooth?
No, thanks to the seller we bought them from.
Waiting until last minute to buy tickets online to a live event yielded great ticket marketplace prices (unlike the ticket sales for buying them early) and a panic attack until I received an email confirming that they had been shipped.
I logged in, with my order number, to check that the tickets had been sent out and Wednesday evening they still had not been sent out for us to leave on Saturday morning.
I called Vivid Seats and have to say that I was really impressed with their customer service and their customer support.
I talked to a real-life person who put me on hold, called the seller on another line, and discovered he had not sent them out like he was supposed to.
We made alternate back-up arrangements to have them shipped directly to our hotel and she assured me that I would be getting my tickets as soon as possible. Although I appreciate live chat features on a website, I find great customer service is secured better on the phone.
Hearing a supportive voice telling me to keep checking my email for updated correspondence and to check in if I had received my tickets in time, means that I will now be one loyal Vivid Seats Customer.
The tickets were overnighted and arrived on my doorstep at 4:30 PM the night before we left. I was so thankful to have them in my hands and practically kissed the delivery man who looked bewildered at the unshowered woman in her pajamas having a near meltdown at the front door.
I really appreciated that VividSeats was quick to action and that they made sure that they honored their buyer guarantee to have them to us before our event.
Moving forward, I would happily sell tickets or do an original purchase through Vivid seats any day. It’s a good spot to check for sporting events, theater, or concerts.
We woke them in the morning and I think they were just stunned. I had packed their bags for them and we were a little disappointed they weren’t losing it about all of this. It wasn’t until we pulled up to the hotel that they were BESIDE THEMSELVES. Much like us, seeing is believing!
Where Did We Stay for Hamilton Chicago?
This was our first overnight with our kids in Chicago, but not my own first overnight there.
When I did a girl’s trip, one of the gals arranged our stay at theWit.
We got the room for a steal and had a really enjoyable stay so it seemed like a great place to try again.
The best part is that it was within walking distance of everything so after I booked our tickets, I booked a stay again at theWit.
Definitely check for deals through sites like Booking.com, Hotels.com, or TripAdvisor for scoring a really good rate.
Staying for a girl’s trip is a lot different than staying somewhere with your kids though. I was shocked when the concierge emailed me and said that he saw were coming with our children and wanted to be available to me to answer any questions. We knew our kids would love getting Chicago pizza so I emailed a request for a nearby option for gluten-free pizza. They emailed their pick (it was PERFECTION!) and a menu so we could look it over before we came.
The night before arriving the concierge called again to make sure we had everything in place. He explained the valet parking option ($65 overnight and they park it for you!), went over what time we would be arriving so our room would be ready, and assured us they were available moving forward for anything and gave me his number to call if anything came up.
Um, awesome!
We ended up getting there an hour earlier than we said and the staff was apologetic that the room was just being inspected and not ready. After we threw our diva fit about it being unacceptable (JUST KIDDING!) they got us water and snacks and a few short minutes later, we had keys and headed up to our beautiful room. After breakfast, we came back to a gorgeous complimentary fruit platter welcoming us which was, seriously, the nicest thing ever.
This location was about a 10-15 minute walk to theater and on the way we could see all the beautiful holiday displays in the windows!
What Did We Think of Hamilton Chicago?
As we headed into the theater, an older couple asked if my husband and I were aware of the content in Hamilton since we came with our kids. He grinned and said that they had heard the soundtrack many a time and that we were very aware of what we were taking them to.
There are a couple of f-bombs in the show and there is a sexy number, when Hamilton is involved in a torrid affair, that is pretty sultry. There are also a few sexual innuendos and such that I doubt went completely over their heads.
Here is what I will say about this. I’m a Christian and we have kept our kids very sheltered from a lot in life. At the same time, there are a few things that have recently happened that gave us confidence that our children had the maturity to see this show.
The first is that they are both in middle school now.
Do you remember middle school?
I’m just having a little flashback to a good Christian girl getting down to Humpty Dance repeatedly at dances reminds me that I’m not too worried about seeing a musical with my kids- hahaha!
The second thing is that this political season has been a doozy and they have been exposed to a lot of garbage thanks to that.
Many things happened that I wished I could have sheltered them from, but they still heard all that stuff from their peers, on their news at school in the mornings, and what they have heard on NPR.
This election season, as awful as it was, has created a really honest dialogue with our children about politics and our beliefs. Hamilton is about politics and it is also about a revolution.
You know, our kids are living through a revolution right now and we wanted them to see what happens when people become a part of that narrative for change.
We want to raise kids that are part of the change, part of the good, part of the narrative.
The only worry we had about the Pence drama, by the way, was that it would raise the price of our tickets.
If you thought that might be a worry for us, I encourage you to get to know our family better!
Namaste.
Being familiar with the original cast doesn’t insure anything though, does it?
I have gone to many shows where the current cast was a world away from the original cast.
Here is what I want to say, this cast is as incredible as the original cast and does not AT ALL feel like a second-rate show.
Being as close to the stage as we were, certainly gave us a very personal perspective of the acting to really witness every nuance and every facial expression.
I can’t begin to tell you how moving and how incredibly well done this production is.
Lin-Manuel handpicked their next lead for Hamilton and this is the first leading role for Miguel. You would have never known he hadn’t been the lead in everything he has done and Miguel adds his own flavor to Hamilton, never feeling like a Lin-Manuel knockoff ever at any point in this show.
Every single actor is incredible so it feels unkind to single any out, but I have to do it.
Joshua Henry is one of the most incredible talents I have ever seen on the stage. He played Burr in such a controlled way and the emotions he displayed had me absolutely weeping through much of the show. His voice was unreal good and a perfect rendering needed for Burr.
Ari Afasar’s performance as Eliza was the one that I was most worried about. Phillipa Soo’s voice doesn’t seem like a voice that can be replicated, but Ari’s performance was astounding and perfectly pitched too. It was so much better than I could have ever expected.
Karen Olivo made from an incredible Angelica.
There is this point in the show, after her toast to the bride and groom, where the emotion is rawly displayed on her face at this union between her sister & Hamilton.
For me, it was one of the moments that made the whole show.
In fact, I could burst into tears again thinking about it.
That one moment, for me, really showed off what caliber of actress she was.
Chris De’Sean Lee plays both Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson and adds humor and heart to this performance. He soars in, “What’d I Miss?” and had my kids belly-laughing through his portions in the show.
Alex Gemignani as King George could not have been more pitch perfect. There is so much about his part that you don’t get to hear on the soundtrack and he adds so much hilarity to an often serious show. In fact, King George ended up being both kid’s favorite in the show.
Even the stage was so cleverly constructed and set designer, David Korins, shared that they even tried 33 different colors of brick before they found the one that matched the costumes best. Not a detail was spared on this project and it shows.
At the angle we were seated, we could look into the wing of the theater as the actors exited and entered on stage.
I have done so many shows during my own time of theater so I was curiously watching them while trying to take in the show.
They never once broke character, not once.
Each face you would gaze upon was completely in that moment on stage and never strayed. I think that also says a lot!
Generously, after our performance, Alex shared that they were raising money to assist those with HIV. Several members of their cast stood with buckets to take our donations and it was incredibly moving as a fan to get to say, “YOU WERE AMAZING,” in a really intense stalker kind of way to them.
I hope we didn’t scare them.
As soon as we left, my wish was to do it all over again. The show felt like minutes for me, my son, and my husband. My daughter, however, was satisfied with the first act and it took a forty dollar soda to get her back in her seat for the second act.
She loved it, it was just a long day of travel and excitement for her!
At ten and fourteen, I do believe they loved and appreciated this experience. It’s like Disney…you want them to be old enough to appreciate it so you feel like you made a good investment. We really felt like this was a great age for that.
What Else Did We Do After Hamilton Chicago?
The kids were pretty wiped after the show and we were really glad we picked the 2PM one and not the evening performance because of that. We packed a collection of our favorite Christmas movies (these two for them and this one for us!) and scored a DVD player through the guest services at our hotel. We ordered our yummy pizza, got in our pajamas, and had a Christmas movie marathon.
After a lazy morning, we headed over to The Art Institute of Chicago for the day and got to see some REALLY incredible art (it was also within walking distance of our hotel!). If you haven’t been, it’s an incredible museum filled with more art than you can ever imagine. They also have a beautiful cafe to sip some warm drinks in between.
We finished our trip with our first visit to a Shake Shack (which was right across the street from the museum!) and I really hope it isn’t our last. HOLY YUM!! You can get their patties wrapped in lettuce if you are gluten-free. The shakes are divine and a midday glass of wine hit the spot too for this tired mama!
Unfortunately, the weather took an awful turn and my poor husband had to get us back in the middle of a whiteout and slick roads. We were all so thankful to be home after seeing so many people in accidents. Had the weather not done that, the entire weekend would have been absolutely perfect.
We managed to make it through that awful weather thanks, in part, to The Hamilton Mixtape that came out giving us a chance to hear songs from the show in an entirely different way.
If you haven’t heard it yet, you are in for a real treat. Artists like Sia, Nas, Alicia Keys, Andra Day, Jimmy Fallon, The Roots and so many other incredible talents put their own personal spin on songs from the musical.
You also get to hear the original demos as well as some original music that was created and mixed just for this project. You must, must, must listen to it!
This Christmas will definitely go down in our memory books as one of the best we have ever had. Thank you to the incredible cast of Hamilton Chicago for making it an experience we shall never forget and making an incredible family memory that I hope will last a lifetime!
Thanks so much for letting us share about our experience with you!
Have questions? Ask me!
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