Hamilton Cast Read Alongs

The Gilder Lehrman Institute is excited to extend Hamilton Cast Read Alongs. A program that features Hamilton cast members reading award-winning children’s books followed by a discussion of the history behind the story led by Gilder Lehrman Education Fellow Keisha Rembert.

The goal of this course is to give students an educational and literary experience once a week with members of the theater community. It is an interactive way to hear their favorite stories or stories they are just being introduced to.

Intended Audience

Read Alongs are for elementary school students who wish to interact with Hamilton cast members and learn more about American history. Families and caregivers are also welcome to participate.

Schedule and Registration

Each session is a 30-45 minute stand-alone program. 

Antuan Raimone reading Let the Children March by Monica Clark-Robinson (Simon & Schuster)

Antuan Magic Raimone has over twenty years of professional experience in musical theater and is currently a Universal Swing for the five US companies of Hamilton where he covers all six male ensemble members for each company. From 2007 to 2011 he was also the Vacation Swing for the Off-Broadway/Broadway productions of In the Heights. He has also been paid to dance in the window of a Marc Jacobs retail store dressed in a pig costume. As a Survivor, he uses his voice to help others who have not found their own.

 

Order Let the Children March at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

 

CLASS RECORDING

 

Morgan Wood reading Goin’ Someplace Special by Patricia McKissack (Simon & Schuster)

Morgan Anita Wood has been performing since she was three years old. She is a native of Indianapolis, Indiana, and received her BFA in Musical Theatre from Otterbein University. Some of her regional credits include the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, and Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts. In 2018, she joined the “And Peggy” company of Hamilton, performing alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda in Puerto Rico as Woman 5—an ensemble member and an understudy for all three Schuyler Sisters. She is now a company member of Hamilton’s Eliza Tour company, currently stationed in Los Angeles at the Pantages Theatre.

 

Order Goin' Someplace Special at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

 

CLASS RECORDING

 

Ashley Brook Monroe reading Ticktock Banneker’s Clock by Shana Keller (Sleeping Bear Press)

Ashley Brooke Monroe currently serves as the resident director of the Angelica national tour of Hamilton. Recent shows under her direction include Death Cruise (Access Theatre), Fun Home (Cape Rep), The Goree All-Girl String Band (NYMF), Julius Caesar (CSC), and Orlando (Fordham). She also works as the associate director of Indecent, for which Rebecca Taichman won the Tony for Best Director. Her other Broadway credits include the Tony-winning best musical Fun Home and the 2017 revival of The Glass Menagerie featuring Sally Field. She has developed work with New York Theatre Workshop, The Public Theater, Musical Theater Factory, The Culture Project, The Flea, Soho Rep, IRT, New York Theatre Barn, and Special Sauce Company.

 

Order Ticktock Banneker’s Clock at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

 

CLASS RECORDING

 

Krystal Mackie reading The Bell Rang by James Ransome (Simon & Schuster)

Krystal Mackie (Brooklyn, NY) attended LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts and received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Contemporary Dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, under the direction of Susan Jaffe. She completed a tour of Broadway’s Cotton Club Musical, After Midnight, on the Norwegian Escape, choreographed by Warren Carlyle. She later made her Off-Broadway debut in This Ain’t No Disco at Atlantic Theater Company. Krystal is represented by Lucille DiCampli Artist Representation and is currently in the 1st National Tour of Hamilton.

 

Order The Bell Rang at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

 

CLASS RECORDING

 

Cherry Torres reading Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation by Duncan Tonatiuh (Duncan and Abrams Books)

Originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, Cherry Torres has been performing professionally since the age of 10. After graduating Berklee College of Music, she went on to travel the world singing and acting in multiple shows aboard various cruise lines including Disney Cruise lines and Celebrity Cruises. Following her time at sea, she went on to star in regional productions. Some of her favorite credits include Smokey Joe’s Cafe (Brenda), Rock of Ages in Chicago’s Drury Lane Theatre where she played Sherri, and In the Heights at the John W. Engeman Theater where she portrayed Nina and was nominated for a BroadwayWorld Regional Award. At the moment, she is touring the country with the first national tour of Hamilton as a cover for Angelica, Eliza....and Peggy.

 

Alongside performing, Cherry has a passion for teaching and sharing the knowledge she’s acquired throughout the years with kids, teens, and adults alike. After doing various master classes, workshops, and summer camps throughout her time with Hamilton, she began offering one-on-one coaching and audition prep for people of all ages. She continues to help her students gain confidence and feel more comfortable in audition settings.

Order Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

CLASS RECORDING

 

Marcus John reading Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom by Shane W. Evans (MacMillan)

Marcus John is a Mid-Atlantic based actor, dancer, singer, teacher, and writer. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA, and has worked professionally in various facets of the theater industry for just over a decade. Currently, Marcus can be seen as a principal swing in the national tour of Hamilton. Previous credits include RENT 20th Anniversary Tour, Mamma Mia Farewell Tour, and various plays and readings in Philadelphia and New York.

 

Order Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

CLASS RECORDING

 

Marja Harmon reading Before She Was Harriet by Lesa Cline-Ransome (Holiday House)

Marja Harmon is currently playing Angelica Schuyler in the San Francisco company of the hit musical Hamilton. She also played the Puerto Rico engagement alongside Lin Miranda reprising the title role. She made audiences laugh as Mrs. Brown in the Tony Award–winning musical The Book of Mormon on Broadway. In 2008 she made her Broadway debut among theatrical giants James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof directed by Debbie Allen. She has toured the US as Nala in the Broadway production of The Lion King. and has toured the US and China in the title role of Aida.

 

Her television appearances include: God Friended Me, Murphy Brown, Jessica Jones, Madame Secretary, and Person of Interest.

She graduated from the University of Southern California with a BA in Theatre and BS in Music.

Order Before She Was Harriet at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

CLASS RECORDING

 

Tiffany Mellard reading Ona Judge Outwits the Washingtons by Gwendolyn Hooks (Capstone)

Born and raised in Bronx, New York, Tiffany Mellard began her dance training at Mind Builders Creative Arts Center and Dr. Daniel Hale Williams Middle School. She continued her studies at Norte Maar Conservatory of Dance, Harlem School of the Arts, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, and the American Dance Festival.

 

Tiffany received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from Florida State University with a certificate in Arts in Community Practice. She has performed works by Krystal Hall-Glass, Kevin Iega Jeff, Sidra Bell, Milton Myers, Pedro Ruiz, Bill T. Jones, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, Darshan Bhuller, Trebien Pollard, Leah Cox, Nathan Trice, Gerry McIntyre, and Gerri Houlihan. She has also performed original choreography by Jerome Robbins, Ann Reinking, and Andy Blankenbuehler.

Tiffany is playing the role of “The Bullet” in the “And Peggy” company of Hamilton; she performed in San Juan, PR, and San Francisco, CA. Other credits include Memphis(Gateway Playhouse), Chicago The Musical (National Tour), and West Side Story (International Tour). She has also been a teaching artist with Learning through an Expanded Arts Program (LEAP) in New York City and was on the dance faculty at Mind Builders Creative Arts Center. In addition, Tiffany is currently pursuing her Master of Education in Arts in Education from Harvard University.

Order Ona Judge Outwits the Washingtons at the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Bookshop Store.

CLASS RECORDING

 

Meet Your Teacher

Keisha Rembert is the 2019 Illinois History Teacher of the Year. She’s also a lifelong learner and Assistant Professor of Teacher Preparation at National Louis University. Before entering teacher education, Keisha spent over fifteen years teaching middle school English and history in the Chicagoland area. In 2019, Keisha was also named the Outstanding Middle-Level English Educator by the National Council of Teachers of English. Her passion for equity, social justice, youth literature, and historical understanding and activism coalesce in her service on several boards and as an active member of numerous national organizations. Her work with the Institute has included her role as a master teacher and instructor for the History School course The Paradox of Liberty.

Please email hamilton@gilderlehrman.org with any questions.

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