part of it was also the way he would make eye contact with various audience members as he sang. and he sung while keeping water in his mouth to do the drool part as a near 'frothing at the mouth' sort of thing they (some historians) say the king had a problem with doing, spitting as he got angry.
@@damienburroughs2119 No, I’m pretty sure Jonathan Groff is just spitting because he’s enunciating. He’s said he does that a lot. It just happens to be perfectly in character this time! (Consider how out of character it would be for him to pause to swallow his saliva at any point in this song.)
Jonathan Groff blinks a total of 4 times in this preformance. When he stares into the audiance, he focuses on a specific person. He finds someone random and just doesn't look away from them basically the whole time. Once when he did it the person he was focusing on went to meet the cast after the show, when Jonathan saw this guy he yelled "There's my man!!!". I don't remember anything else. But Jonathan was just super cool with him.
I heard about this elsewhere, but I'm glad you mentioned it here. It improves the performance even more if you know that stare has a specific, very uncomfortable, subject.
You will notice each character has a different style of music assigned to them. You’ll be back is in the style of a British breakup song. Lin manuel is genius
This song opened the door to this whole work for me. Once I heard “I will kill your friends and family to remind you of my love”, was the crazy twist that lead down the path to Hamilfandom.
It's such a captivating take on the "breakup" of a king with a colony. The whole song is this long metaphor I never imagined until the first time I encountered the song itself, and then, WHOA, YEAH.
American here. All thanks to my superlative history teacher for this: If a British subject (which the colonists were, at that point) rebelled against the crown, the British king really did have the power to strip them and their families of all their lands, possessions, positions, and good names. The offender was always put to death, sometimes in gruesome ways (see: hanging and quartering). This, to me, is why the American Revolution was so extraordinary. The colonists were putting everything- themselves, family, all they owned - on the line for their freedom. Would you put your family’s safety and future at risk? They were so f*ckin brave. The song is brilliantly written, encapsulating all the history and George III’s madness into tight lyrics. And Groff’s singing and restrained actions are brilliant too. Spittle, intense stare, controlled movements until the end when he starts jerking his shoulders around, I suppose hinting at the fact that he was losing control of both himself and the quashing of the rebellion. Hamilton has so many wonderful songs and tremendous acting performances. But this one just might be my favorite.
Karen, you hit the nail on the head in all respects. The bravery of the colonists to put everything on the line to gain freedom is truly breathtaking if one thinks about it. Lin Manuel Miranda brilliantly wrote Hamilton in a way that captivates all that see it. This has brought a new found appreciation for the struggle of the Colonists. Regarding our adorable Groff, well his 9 minutes onstage has grabbed the worlds attention. He is a master!
Like you King George was a part of my education in Alabama but only because of his involvement in the Revolution. His going mad was a side note. More important were his relations with the colonist and especially taxation and how a massive tax on tea drove many colonist to say ENOUGH.
I really liked the “when you’re gone I’ll go mad” line because he literally goes mad. King George makes a few appearances in the show where he isn’t singing...he is great! Also, that stare he gives through the performance, it’s so intense and it gives a sense of madness.
It was sheer genius. All his facial expressions and slight movements of the shoulders, just amazing. Not to mention his phenomenal vocal range! I paid a small fortune for tickets in Los Angeles and it was worth every penny. This musical is so much better than others it’s going to make it really difficult to top.
Another hilarious captured moment is when Jonathan recounts forgetting his lyrics while on stage in Spring Awakening. It's on Showbiz Stories channel. So funny!
In the book "Hamilton: The Revolution", Miranda says that he went for a drink with Hugh Laurie after filming their 2009 episodes of Laurie's series House, in which Miranda guest-starred. "I told him I wanted to write a breakup letter from King George to the colonies," Miranda writes. "Without blinking, he improv'd at me, 'Awwww, you'll be back,' wagging his finger. I laughed and filed it away. Thanks, Hugh Laurie." so this happened when House and Alvie went out drinking 🤣
We Americans did learn a lot about the American Revolution and Great Britain. In fact, one of my, history teachers taught us the Revolution from the British standpoint. (He was an American, but wanted us to have a lot of critical thinking, even as 12-year-old kids).
Did he mention it was a pretty minor irritation in the grand scheme of things and it was Parliament, not the King who made policies and enacted the laws? England has been a Constitutional Monarchy for many centuries.
Someone already mentioned the weight of his costume but another fun fact-he came up with a walk that would help him balance the costume. It also happened to be very sassy. So sassy, in fact, that Beyonce made him teach her the walk when she came backstage once. 🤣 Also, another known stage "spitter" is Ben Platt. Watching him talk about the audience sitting in the splash zone during the very Dear Evan Hansen (which is a VERY serious show) is hilarious. 😆
One Broadway director and coach called this short performance a master class in musical theatre. There are dozens of little nuances in this performance, the way he looks at people (not at the audience, just one person in the audience at a time), the way he goes from killing their family and friends to loving them, even the way he says everybody (which he changed part way through his time playing this character-it was more of a command to EVERYONE originally, to the current aside just to the cast). He is totally in control of his body during the performance, all the little ticks, the way he walks, dances, everything took time, though, and work and work to get it just right. There are other videos of his replacements in the show on UA-cam, and you can watch them, and they just not quite as good.
Also the vocal range and precise control of his breathing throughout the song, all while controlling every little movement you mentioned above. An amazing talent.
@@mjwildy2359 In my experience, the U.S. history taught is color-coded according to the state and politics of where you are from. The history I learned in school while living in Louisiana is very different than the history my partner learned while growing up in Rhode Island. Certainly education can vary when state history is taught- it would be untenable to teach every state history to each child; however, general US history should not vary. History is a matter of fact and historical record, not a political opportunity to instill biased framing of those facts.
My U S school district was once so short on money they bought some textbooks on U S history written by Canadians because they were cheaper than the textbooks from the usual sources The title of the chapter on the American Revolution was titled "The Loss of the American Colonies: How England Let Them Slip Away"
As a US citizen who's lived here my whole life, I can tell you our primary school and secondary school education never included reference to his madness. He was described as a tyrant, period. It was implied he treated all his colonies similarly. We just had bunches of feisty people who were terrific at communications, so they were able to foment a revolution against what most colonists saw as unfair and unreasonable treatment. There you have it -- about all we were taught about King George III. Of course we went into great detail about which laws the colonists particularly resented, but that doesn't address your question about what we were taught about King George.
Jonathan Groff is just naturally a spitter when he sings, which has earned him the nickname “Groff Sauce” from LMM. The spitting did work well with the madness of this character, though.
I didn't learn much about King George other then that he went mad in American schools honestly. Mostly they focus on the founding fathers in my experience.
The founding fathers were greatly upset that the American colonies had no representation in Parliament. In fact it has been said that when Benjamin Franklin traveled to England to address Parliament he entered an Englishman, and exited and American, due to the harsh dressing-down he received there. When Massachusetts lost its right to self-governance which it had had from the very beginning, this angered all 13 colonies. Also, King George III had declared that the American colonies could not expand westward, which also angered the colonists.
And the same argument could be made in the present day as relates to the 700 or so thousand residents of Washington, D.C. They have no Senate representation AND the ONE Representative they have in the House is not allowed to vote on Bill's and motions. How's that for equal representation for a population significantly larger than the total population of Wyoming?!
@@whaleymom76: DC was a good idea (the seat of the federal government should not reside in any single state, lest it favor that state's interests) executed very poorly (it's too big; nobody but federal office holders should even live there). The best solution I can think of is to cut out a smaller district that only contains the federal buildings (Capitol, White House, Supreme Court, Smithsonian, monuments, et cet) & the Congressional/SCOTUS/Cabinet residences, and then cede the rest of the land back to Maryland.
I should first say that America's history classes range widely from county to county, state by state. Some go further into certain subjects than others. In my school, King George wasn't mentioned much. It was more focused on what was going on in America specifically than things that happened across the water. It was barely mentioned France helped with the revolution that I can remember. I'm not even sure they mentioned Lafayette. But they talked about more American heroes.
One of the reasons I hate history is that they mainly only talk about America(I live in America and is American) and like I wanna learn about France and Britain (bc I LOVE France and Brittian
@@AthenaC228 I had a different experience in the school system. I learned World History in 4th and 5th grade, 8th grade and 9th grade, World Government in 10th. Unfortunately, most of the word history learned was around Europe, Middle East, Northern Africa, and India. East Asia was hardly covered and that was where my interests lay. Going to japan and learning history, they expected you to know Chinese history and the dynasty's but it was never covered in America.
@@Pablo360able Get to World War I? We rarely did that. (For most of middle/high school we did US history over and over. We started pre-colonial and sometimes got to WWII.)
@@claudiamastroianni4300 but… but that's stupid. that's so incredibly stupid, why would any educators think that's a good idea? oh, right, the US educational system.
American here and a native Texan. My school(s) in Texas taught plenty about King George III. My history class had at least an entire unit of my 8th-grade history book devoted to him. Here in Texas, we learn Texas history in 7th grade, US history in 8th grade, Geography in 9th grade, World History in 10th grade, US Government in 11th grade, Civics and Economics in 12th grade. Also, in case you were wondering, no I did not learn about creationism in any public school I attended.
Love watching you discover Hamilton song by song! Subbed and liked. One thing that I did read was that the King George songs were modeled after Beatles songs, very much a symbol of England, an “establishment” type of thing. And the rest of the songs were inspired by Hip Hop, very American and regular folks coming up from nothing, building something huge and lasting.
within the show it is a pallet cleanser as well as giving the audience a view from outside the bubble the rest of the show is in. The fact it hits so many different levels while doing so is probably the most impressive.
In my American History courses in elementary, middle, and high schools, the most we got on King George was just the fact he was king at that point in time, and that was barely mentioned.
As an American school child we learned about King George only as minor character who was the villain. In high school we learn more about him, his motives and madness, his over extension of British resources through all his wars and his refusal to take advice. We definitely learn about him. College (Uni) history courses are even more thorough, of course.
One reason why King George is so static is because his costume, especially the crown, is very heavy. The crown is hard to balance, even if one is not dancing.
When Jonathan Groff did King George III on Broadway, he had to learn how to balance the heavy crown on his head. The first crown he wore weighed 50 pounds, so he had to walk as if he is on a tightrope in a circus. As a result, he had to put all emotions in his face. One thing to look out for during this song is that Jonathan Groff is hardly blinking his eyes, and he is just focusing on one person at a time in the audience while performing it. The da-da-ya-das refer to the madness of King George III. When he sings about his loyal subjects were abandoning him in North America, Jonathan would purposely drink a lot of water beforehand backstage to make that large amount of spittle on his face. The playwright, the composer, and the lyricist Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote and conceived all the songs for this musical, decided to make this song in the style of the early Beatles. Therefore, this style of music refers to the time of America's British invasion during the mid-1960s in which many British rock bands were going to America to perform such as The Who, The Rolling Stones, and of course, The Beatles.
I don't remember us focusing on King George much in school - it was more the Boston Tea Party (which was not really the main impetus for the Revolution, there were a bunch of others). But if you read the Declaration of Independence, it's basically a letter to King George and I think he is actually mentioned in it.
And the Boston Tea story were not even true. It had nothing to do about taxation. It was about smugglers greed. Of course, we only heard the glorious story our whole lives.
Miranda described this as a Beatles type of tune, light and fluffy talking about a couple breaking up with the idea that they will get together again, but with dark lyrics.
British here, I did American History twice (changed schools in middle of the school year) so it always stuck with me. Who knew I would end up living in US and becoming a citizen but it was wonderful to see places that I had learnt about in school in 1959/1960. Unaware King George was mad until many years later when I lived in Boston.
Yes, in US we learn about King George III all through primary and high school history classes. He is portrayed as mad and failing, but the British army and generals are portrayed as stealthy, clever and extremely formidable. I grew up in Virginia - one of the original 13 British colonies in N. America - so English history is important to our local identity, community and culture (i.e many of our cities and towns are named after British/Scottish royals and villages (Fredericksburg [Prince Frederick], Fairfax [Lord Fairfax], Loudoun [Earl of Loudoun], Prince William [Prince William] etc.) in addition to Native Indian names (Roanoke) and the first families of Virginia with English ancestors (The Lees, Masons, and Washingtons, Etc).
Depending on the region, but he typically gets a brief mention in our history books because of the whole taxation without representation deal, otherwise no we don’t get taught anything else about him
Some perspective on how well George III is known in the US: the play _The Madness of George III_ was renamed _The Madness of King George_ for the film, because they were afraid US audiences would think the movie was the third in a trilogy and not bother because they’d missed the first two.
US History teacher here. Loved the video and your insights. You are correct in your assumption that King George is not really covered here. The Revolution is primarily taught in the earlier grades and the emphasis is on more dramatic events like the Boston Tea Party and Paul Revere's ride. In later grades, students learn of more of the complexities of setting up the army, the hardships they faced, etc. But the British side of things is limited to more big picture things, such as "Why did the British increase taxes on the Americans in the first place?" (to pay for the French and Indian wars). The students get a more balanced view by the time they're in the teens and the British aren't portrayed as 'the bad guys' but its presented as a complex problem. But again, King George's personality (and madness) really isn't covered. I didn't learn about that stuff until college!
if his walk is an issue, the crown and clothes were heavy so it was the only way he could walk without problems.edit: the 'everybody' he said was usually sung in a light hearted way in a lot of the other play showings.
What I enjoy about this musical is how he works in so many different styles of music and what that tells you about the characters. King George's song is 60s Brit Pop and uses the harpsichord as accompaniment which would be appropriate for the time both the 1960s and the 1770s! There was this huge revival of interest in performance practice and interest in how classical music would've sounded at the time that was the academic side to the folk movement. Then these different sounding instruments moved from the academic sphere of performance practice into folk music and from there into rock/pop music so you have harpsichords, organs, alto flutes, and the recorder among others making their way into the Top 40 radio. In the other sections it's not just rap, hip hop, and R&B it's subgenres. There is so much nuance in this show including things that are historical, contemporary, and so on it will be studied for years.
One of the reasons for so little movement was a practical one: the crown was initially so heavy that it was in danger of falling off if the ‘king’ moved too much. I knew about ‘mad’ King George, but then again I was somewhat of a history nerd.
If there’s any King we are taught about in history here in the USA I would definitely say it’s King George because he was in charge during the American Revolution. I also remember spending a lot time on Queen Elizabeth in history class but I wasn’t able to fully appreciate the monarchy until long after high school. Great job with this song and I often wonder how British react to it so cheers to that! Well done, Kenny from Philly
Part of why he wasn't dancing around is because the crown he was wearing weighed something like 20 pounds and he had to move slowly to keep it balanced on top of his head.
I only learned a little about King George in history class, we learned about the Boston Tea Party and Taxation Without Representation. The lessons were baded around the Continental Congress and about the cause of the war between American and Britain to gain our independence but not so much about the King at the time. I hope that helps
I was born in 1960, so my education was different from modern education. We learned about King George, but I don't recall being taught that he went mad. We were taught that he needed money, so he decided to tax his colonies. We were taught about the Stamp Act and the Boston Tea Party, and the "Redcoats" (the British soldiers) who occupied the colonists' houses without their permission. My impression was that King George was a greedy tyrant who refused to listen to reason. It was my understanding that the colonies tried and tried to reason with him, that most folks really didn't want to rebel against him. However, he made it intolerable.
I was born and raised in Virginia. In the United States we learn history different depending on what state you are in or what region you're in. I live in the area of Virginia where the colonies were settled so that would be Jamestown So there's a lot of British history that we do touch upon in-depth because the way we were taught history. And Virginia was the first permanent English colony. So yes we do learn quite a bit about British history.
My son is in 5th grade (11 years old) and since he is learning virtually, I have been able to be more involved than usual with what he is learning in history class (in the US it is called social studies). For the last 4 weeks his class has been focused on the American Revolution. King George has been a part of the history lesson as described through his demands on the colonists (such as the Intolerable Acts). I can tell you that I do not remember much about what I learned and retained in grade school about King George but this time around, every time KG3 is brought up, I think about Jonathan Groff singing this number from Hamilton.
I loved hearing your perspective on this song - I think it's my favorite, but, like you, I think they are all exceptional. This character makes me laugh just by walking onto the stage! In my history classes, the Revolutionary War was told from the American Perspective, so we didn't learn much about King George. Most references were of "the British".
BTW, Alex Lacamoire arranged this for string quartet, rock band (with banjo), and adaptable keyboard that requires the keyboard programmer (or succesor) to be in the pit every performance,. That's because live theatre doesn't happen the same way twice.
Another hilarious captured moment is when Jonathan recounts forgetting his lyrics while on stage in Spring Awakening. It's on Showbiz Stories channel. So funny!
We were taught only a little about King George as a person, but we were taught about what some of the reasons he acted as he did and how those actions impacted the movement and war for independence.
No. King George (in this performance) has a mad kind of innocence wit occasional flashes of malevolence. The Don is all malevolence. Even his "humor" is designated to strike out at someone.
I was waiting for this one! One thing this play highlights very well without stating it outright is the Old World/New World comparison. Most of the American characters rap at some point of the show, but British leaning characters like the king and Samuel Seabury (from Farmer Refuted) have a slower, older quality to their singing. You can immediately tell Samuel is singing in a method that feels centuries old, and the king's music is modeled after the Beatles. They also use classic theatre singing techniques (like Groff's facial movement on "can't go onnn~"). You might also notice the king's outfit is very heavy and detailed compared to the American actors. Everyone else has costumes that are representative of the time period, but adapted to account for dancing 8 times a week. King George's outfit is firmly kept in the olden days with his costumes taken straight from actual portraits of the real king. This divide of Old vs New is done in such a subtle way, yet it feels obvious once you know about it. Word to not just Lin Manuel Miranda, but to Paul Tazwell and the other costume designers that made this possible!
A big reason Hamilton did so well was because with lowered educational standards in American schools in the past 20 years or so, people barely know this history. It was a hit because it taught it in a more engaging way than schools, which when they bothered to teach it at all, did a boring, crap job of it.
Sksksjsk i really love the fact that he's also kristoff from frozen, like the contrast. I was mindblown when i learned about that. Any way love your reactions keep it up man
Thank you for sharing your perspective on the video. I was wondering if the UK could or would enjoy the joke and comedic silliness of the character. As far as what we (most people) learn, I don’t think most Americans know our own history well, let alone the history of other countries (kind of really sad). I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the character and song. Jonathan Groff and his spittle performances are comedically epic and awesome fun!
Different parts of the US pay more attention to the Revolutionary War than others. I grew up in central NY State where there are more soldiers from that war buried than anywhere in the country. I guess you could say although it's not a topic of everyday conversation, details of its history are emphasized in school. Also, there are a lot of forts from that period in New England, so there is more history taught there than say, Oregon, where I live now. Here my kids were taught more about indigenous people and the Oregon Trail than King George and the tea party and that kind of stuff. Also, where I used to live in Clinton, NY is Hamilton College, which is dedicated to Alexander Hamilton.
The reason that is his dancing is so limited is because the crown and costume supposedly weighed more than 50 pounds. A tuff haul, even for Jonathan Groff, 6 ft. +. But it was based on the one the actual King wore. The line “I’m so blue” is a throwback to the fact that King George III had porphyria , which was a problem with iron processing in the body and caused madness. It makes your urine blue. See the movie with Nigel Hawthorne, The Madness of King George. And Groff Sauce is always fabulous. See Spring Awakening.
King George is kind of there in US history when we learn about the Revolution (I swear it's taught thoroughly at least twice). He's not talked about as much as the Founding Father's, he's really the villan of the story, and placed in a poor light, very much as a tyrant. He's heavily talked about in regards to tarrifs and then glazed over when the Olive Branch Petition is mentioned, and again when the war starts and then ends. This is all my experience, of course.
In my experience as an American taking American history courses, King George III is taught about but not in any real depth. He’s more one of the catalysts for the American Revolution. That said, if anyone would ask an American who has no interest in history of any sort, I strongly suspect George III would be one of the few British monarchs they could name. (I hear the comments now! 😄There are over 300 million of us; there are millions who love history here.)
I hear this song and literally go around singing it for hours...mostly the Da Da Da Dat Da Da...part but Jonathan Groff's performance is incredible. I'm in the US and I honestly don't remember learning much about King George in school but it has been a long time ago for me. I did see another reactor and another Broadway performer say something about the Da Da chorus part as well. They said that to them, it really does just epitomize how mad he was and that you can imagine he did walk around just making those random sounds in his madness. I don't think they were quoting it as fact but I can believe, as you said, that it probably was true. LOL To me, the animatic versions don't do much in replaying these scenes. Maybe it is because I am not from the anime loving generation. When I was younger, there were animation festivals we would go to see but they were mostly Wallace and Gromit, The Big Snit, etc. The animatic style reminds me of the Aha video for "Take on Me" from the 80s - yes, that is my generation but I can do without it for the purposes of these types of performances. Just my humble opinion! . :-p
American education of King George III is pretty much "he was the king at the time of the American Revolution'" and known as 'Mad King George' whose taxation of tea led to the Boston Tea Party. He's a minor character in our history.
We dont learn that much about king George, but a lot of other things in this time. the line "you cry in your tea wich you hurl in the sea when you see me go by" is a reference to the tea party, where a bunch of citizens threw tons of tea into the ocean in protest. So much so the it stained the water for weeks.
Another big reason that he doesn't really move or dance much in this song is because that crown is heavy. Jonathan Groff, the actor portraying the King, has actually talked about it. I believe the figure was something like 10 lbs which might not sound like a lot but it's on his head and looks like it has a high center of gravity. Imagine if he tipped his head too much and it started to pull him along lol.
I don't know if anyone has mentioned this already, but a big reason Groff was standing completely straight is because his costume was SO Heavy! The crown supposedly weighed something like 15 or 20 lbs, and the robes were really heavy too
American here, born, raised , and schooled in the suburbs of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania...I remember being taught about King Henry VIII and his six wives , his daughter Queen Elizabeth and then nothing until king Louis ,,I believe it was 16th whose wife was Marie-Antoinette. then a little bit of Queen Victoria and the Victorian era. King George was only mentioned briefly as part of the American revolution but just that he was king nothing else that I can remember. That is about all I learned until much later in life while looking things up on my own.
What he’s doing is picking individual members of the audience to stare at. It’s amazing. After one show, Beyoncé told him she wanted to steal his walk. Then, as he tells it, the floor opened up and he fell into his grave.
Not sure if someone mentioned it, but just in case you didn't learn this in school: The "Boston Tea Party" of 1773 is taught heavily in American schools, when the colonists protested taxation without representation, and which led to the American Revolution. That's the reference at the beginning of the song to "You cry into your tea which you hurl in the sea when you see me go by..."
American history major here. The American Revolution is a HUGE part of our history study, but we don’t study King George very much. The focus is on the colonists and the fighting itself. If we want to know anything about King George, we had to look it up or hope for a teacher who’d touch on the British side of the war.
I personally didn’t learn about King George, however, I learned about the American Revolution and the events leading up to it, such as the different acts put out by Britain, the Thirteen Colonies, the Declaration of Independence, and the different battles in the Revolutionary War.
Another hilarious captured moment is when Jonathan recounts forgetting his lyrics while on stage in Spring Awakening. It's on Showbiz Stories channel. So funny!
Jonathan Groff who plays the King here, is only on stage for 9 minutes, and was nominated for a Tony, great performance.
Does that include the part where he's just sitting on stage watching?
@@Sam_on_UA-cam Not sure sam - also might not include the curtain call either....
@@jennifert8108 if it includes him just sitting there, then all those moments he's silently mugging at the audience are beautiful to experience.
part of it was also the way he would make eye contact with various audience members as he sang. and he sung while keeping water in his mouth to do the drool part as a near 'frothing at the mouth' sort of thing they (some historians) say the king had a problem with doing, spitting as he got angry.
@@damienburroughs2119 No, I’m pretty sure Jonathan Groff is just spitting because he’s enunciating. He’s said he does that a lot. It just happens to be perfectly in character this time! (Consider how out of character it would be for him to pause to swallow his saliva at any point in this song.)
Jonathan Groff blinks a total of 4 times in this preformance. When he stares into the audiance, he focuses on a specific person. He finds someone random and just doesn't look away from them basically the whole time. Once when he did it the person he was focusing on went to meet the cast after the show, when Jonathan saw this guy he yelled "There's my man!!!".
I don't remember anything else. But Jonathan was just super cool with him.
@Paula C 😆 that's insane!
I heard about this elsewhere, but I'm glad you mentioned it here. It improves the performance even more if you know that stare has a specific, very uncomfortable, subject.
@@ThomasPancoast you are so right 😂
It's also clipped, from 3 different performances, so they may have edited it to include the least blinks as possible. That may be why.
@Paula C why does this just make me think of Bo Burnham's...prolonged eye contact! 😶😶😶🤣 Lmao
You will notice each character has a different style of music assigned to them. You’ll be back is in the style of a British breakup song. Lin manuel is genius
This song opened the door to this whole work for me. Once I heard “I will kill your friends and family to remind you of my love”, was the crazy twist that lead down the path to Hamilfandom.
It's my favorite song. Hands down.
Welcome to the madness!
It's such a captivating take on the "breakup" of a king with a colony. The whole song is this long metaphor I never imagined until the first time I encountered the song itself, and then, WHOA, YEAH.
Yes, it reminds me of the ironic juxtaposition of the twisted lyrics and peppy music of The Smiths.
This song & performance is incredible!!!
American here. All thanks to my superlative history teacher for this: If a British subject (which the colonists were, at that point) rebelled against the crown, the British king really did have the power to strip them and their families of all their lands, possessions, positions, and good names. The offender was always put to death, sometimes in gruesome ways (see: hanging and quartering). This, to me, is why the American Revolution was so extraordinary. The colonists were putting everything- themselves, family, all they owned - on the line for their freedom. Would you put your family’s safety and future at risk? They were so f*ckin brave. The song is brilliantly written, encapsulating all the history and George III’s madness into tight lyrics. And Groff’s singing and restrained actions are brilliant too. Spittle, intense stare, controlled movements until the end when he starts jerking his shoulders around, I suppose hinting at the fact that he was losing control of both himself and the quashing of the rebellion. Hamilton has so many wonderful songs and tremendous acting performances. But this one just might be my favorite.
Totally my favorite. I loved it from the start!
Karen, you hit the nail on the head in all respects. The bravery of the colonists to put everything on the line to gain freedom is truly breathtaking if one thinks about it.
Lin Manuel Miranda brilliantly wrote Hamilton in a way that captivates all that see it.
This has brought a new found appreciation for the struggle of the Colonists.
Regarding our adorable Groff, well his 9 minutes onstage has grabbed the worlds attention. He is a master!
Like you King George was a part of my education in Alabama but only because of his involvement in the Revolution. His going mad was a side note. More important were his relations with the colonist and especially taxation and how a massive tax on tea drove many colonist to say ENOUGH.
@@718vhs :
King George appearances on stage were the highlight of the play.
I really liked the “when you’re gone I’ll go mad” line because he literally goes mad. King George makes a few appearances in the show where he isn’t singing...he is great!
Also, that stare he gives through the performance, it’s so intense and it gives a sense of madness.
This was written in the style of a 60s British Invasion breakup song 🤣
The chorus is basically Abbey Road by The Beatles.
@whitecar56 I don't remember specifically. The bass line sounded like it came straight out of that album though.
Fun fact: The actor playing the King is also Kristoff in Frozen so you can listen to this and Lost In The Woods to compare his vocals.
Wait seriously
@@47ratsinahoodie Yup
@@47ratsinahoodie Yep! Jonathan Groff!
And Glee
Omg at the start of the animatic, I heard him singing to Sven
It was sheer genius. All his facial expressions and slight movements of the shoulders, just amazing. Not to mention his phenomenal vocal range! I paid a small fortune for tickets in Los Angeles and it was worth every penny. This musical is so much better than others it’s going to make it really difficult to top.
Another hilarious captured moment is when Jonathan recounts forgetting his lyrics while on stage in Spring Awakening. It's on Showbiz Stories channel. So funny!
In the book "Hamilton: The Revolution", Miranda says that he went for a drink with Hugh Laurie after filming their 2009 episodes of Laurie's series House, in which Miranda guest-starred. "I told him I wanted to write a breakup letter from King George to the colonies," Miranda writes. "Without blinking, he improv'd at me, 'Awwww, you'll be back,' wagging his finger. I laughed and filed it away. Thanks, Hugh Laurie." so this happened when House and Alvie went out drinking 🤣
We Americans did learn a lot about the American Revolution and Great Britain. In fact, one of my, history teachers taught us the Revolution from the British standpoint. (He was an American, but wanted us to have a lot of critical thinking, even as 12-year-old kids).
Did he mention it was a pretty minor irritation in the grand scheme of things and it was Parliament, not the King who made policies and enacted the laws? England has been a Constitutional Monarchy for many centuries.
This song also plays on the way the British use the word 'mad' vs. the way we Americans use it. Mad = Crazy vs. Mad = Angry
I believe Americans use it to mean "insane" also. But, to be fair, it's a more archaic usage in the American vernacular.
Someone already mentioned the weight of his costume but another fun fact-he came up with a walk that would help him balance the costume. It also happened to be very sassy. So sassy, in fact, that Beyonce made him teach her the walk when she came backstage once. 🤣 Also, another known stage "spitter" is Ben Platt. Watching him talk about the audience sitting in the splash zone during the very Dear Evan Hansen (which is a VERY serious show) is hilarious. 😆
One Broadway director and coach called this short performance a master class in musical theatre.
There are dozens of little nuances in this performance, the way he looks at people (not at the audience, just one person in the audience at a time), the way he goes from killing their family and friends to loving them, even the way he says everybody (which he changed part way through his time playing this character-it was more of a command to EVERYONE originally, to the current aside just to the cast). He is totally in control of his body during the performance, all the little ticks, the way he walks, dances, everything took time, though, and work and work to get it just right.
There are other videos of his replacements in the show on UA-cam, and you can watch them, and they just not quite as good.
Also the vocal range and precise control of his breathing throughout the song, all while controlling every little movement you mentioned above. An amazing talent.
I love this song too but I really enjoy when he periodically comes out and makes commentary throughout the show. He’s hilarious!
Lol “this is probably thoroughly taught in America.” My dude... no history is thoroughly taught here lol
US history is taught thoroughly, not the rest of history though, in my opinion.
@@mjwildy2359 In my experience, the U.S. history taught is color-coded according to the state and politics of where you are from. The history I learned in school while living in Louisiana is very different than the history my partner learned while growing up in Rhode Island. Certainly education can vary when state history is taught- it would be untenable to teach every state history to each child; however, general US history should not vary. History is a matter of fact and historical record, not a political opportunity to instill biased framing of those facts.
@@annalauramckowen6622 wait, what wasn't taught? the American revolution has been taught since like the 4th grade lmao
My U S school district was once so short on money they bought some textbooks on U S history written by Canadians because they were cheaper than the textbooks from the usual sources The title of the chapter on the American Revolution was titled "The Loss of the American Colonies: How England Let Them Slip Away"
Omg that’s amazing 😂 😂 😂
That sounds about right.
Hahahahahaha....that's great
Oh my god 😂😂
Too funny.
As a US citizen who's lived here my whole life, I can tell you our primary school and secondary school education never included reference to his madness. He was described as a tyrant, period. It was implied he treated all his colonies similarly. We just had bunches of feisty people who were terrific at communications, so they were able to foment a revolution against what most colonists saw as unfair and unreasonable treatment. There you have it -- about all we were taught about King George III. Of course we went into great detail about which laws the colonists particularly resented, but that doesn't address your question about what we were taught about King George.
They teach us WAYYYYY more turns out the king was taxing the colonists without the colonists agreeing at all they were taxed for owning tea!
its such a fun impressive villain song for an antagonist that never actually fights the protagonist directly
Jonathan Groff is just naturally a spitter when he sings, which has earned him the nickname “Groff Sauce” from LMM. The spitting did work well with the madness of this character, though.
I didn't learn much about King George other then that he went mad in American schools honestly. Mostly they focus on the founding fathers in my experience.
The founding fathers were greatly upset that the American colonies had no representation in Parliament. In fact it has been said that when Benjamin Franklin traveled to England to address Parliament he entered an Englishman, and exited and American, due to the harsh dressing-down he received there. When Massachusetts lost its right to self-governance which it had had from the very beginning, this angered all 13 colonies.
Also, King George III had declared that the American colonies could not expand westward, which also angered the colonists.
And the same argument could be made in the present day as relates to the 700 or so thousand residents of Washington, D.C. They have no Senate representation AND the ONE Representative they have in the House is not allowed to vote on Bill's and motions. How's that for equal representation for a population significantly larger than the total population of Wyoming?!
@@whaleymom76: DC was a good idea (the seat of the federal government should not reside in any single state, lest it favor that state's interests) executed very poorly (it's too big; nobody but federal office holders should even live there). The best solution I can think of is to cut out a smaller district that only contains the federal buildings (Capitol, White House, Supreme Court, Smithsonian, monuments, et cet) & the Congressional/SCOTUS/Cabinet residences, and then cede the rest of the land back to Maryland.
It's also a Beatles pastiche, making it... a British Invasion. ;)
Lin based the King George songs (musical style) on the early George Martin Beatles sessions.
I heard Lin say that in interviews as well. His homage to the Beatles.
I should first say that America's history classes range widely from county to county, state by state. Some go further into certain subjects than others. In my school, King George wasn't mentioned much. It was more focused on what was going on in America specifically than things that happened across the water. It was barely mentioned France helped with the revolution that I can remember. I'm not even sure they mentioned Lafayette. But they talked about more American heroes.
One of the reasons I hate history is that they mainly only talk about America(I live in America and is American) and like I wanna learn about France and Britain (bc I LOVE France and Brittian
@@AthenaC228 I had a different experience in the school system. I learned World History in 4th and 5th grade, 8th grade and 9th grade, World Government in 10th. Unfortunately, most of the word history learned was around Europe, Middle East, Northern Africa, and India. East Asia was hardly covered and that was where my interests lay. Going to japan and learning history, they expected you to know Chinese history and the dynasty's but it was never covered in America.
How could they not mention Lafayette? If you skip that, then you can't mention Charles Stanton and “Lafayette, we are here” when you get to WWI!
@@Pablo360able Get to World War I? We rarely did that. (For most of middle/high school we did US history over and over. We started pre-colonial and sometimes got to WWII.)
@@claudiamastroianni4300 but… but that's stupid. that's so incredibly stupid, why would any educators think that's a good idea? oh, right, the US educational system.
Groff was only 30 when I saw him in August of 2015 in this production . He’s pretty much immortalized along with the rest of the original cast .
I think what contributes to his appearance of madness is the fact he hardly blinks throughout the song.
American here and a native Texan. My school(s) in Texas taught plenty about King George III. My history class had at least an entire unit of my 8th-grade history book devoted to him.
Here in Texas, we learn Texas history in 7th grade, US history in 8th grade, Geography in 9th grade, World History in 10th grade, US Government in 11th grade, Civics and Economics in 12th grade.
Also, in case you were wondering, no I did not learn about creationism in any public school I attended.
Yes, Mr. Smith’s 8th grade Am history class at Beverly Hills Jr High school. Circa 1970-‘71.
Love watching you discover Hamilton song by song! Subbed and liked. One thing that I did read was that the King George songs were modeled after Beatles songs, very much a symbol of England, an “establishment” type of thing. And the rest of the songs were inspired by Hip Hop, very American and regular folks coming up from nothing, building something huge and lasting.
within the show it is a pallet cleanser as well as giving the audience a view from outside the bubble the rest of the show is in. The fact it hits so many different levels while doing so is probably the most impressive.
In my American History courses in elementary, middle, and high schools, the most we got on King George was just the fact he was king at that point in time, and that was barely mentioned.
As an American school child we learned about King George only as minor character who was the villain. In high school we learn more about him, his motives and madness, his over extension of British resources through all his wars and his refusal to take advice. We definitely learn about him. College (Uni) history courses are even more thorough, of course.
One reason why King George is so static is because his costume, especially the crown, is very heavy. The crown is hard to balance, even if one is not dancing.
So glad you listened to the whole song instead of interrupting it like many others have done when they post "React" videos.
When Jonathan Groff did King George III on Broadway, he had to learn how to balance the heavy crown on his head. The first crown he wore weighed 50 pounds, so he had to walk as if he is on a tightrope in a circus. As a result, he had to put all emotions in his face. One thing to look out for during this song is that Jonathan Groff is hardly blinking his eyes, and he is just focusing on one person at a time in the audience while performing it. The da-da-ya-das refer to the madness of King George III. When he sings about his loyal subjects were abandoning him in North America, Jonathan would purposely drink a lot of water beforehand backstage to make that large amount of spittle on his face.
The playwright, the composer, and the lyricist Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote and conceived all the songs for this musical, decided to make this song in the style of the early Beatles. Therefore, this style of music refers to the time of America's British invasion during the mid-1960s in which many British rock bands were going to America to perform such as The Who, The Rolling Stones, and of course, The Beatles.
I don't remember us focusing on King George much in school - it was more the Boston Tea Party (which was not really the main impetus for the Revolution, there were a bunch of others). But if you read the Declaration of Independence, it's basically a letter to King George and I think he is actually mentioned in it.
And the Boston Tea story were not even true. It had nothing to do about taxation. It was about smugglers greed. Of course, we only heard the glorious story our whole lives.
Miranda described this as a Beatles type of tune, light and fluffy talking about a couple breaking up with the idea that they will get together again, but with dark lyrics.
My absolute FAVORITE part of the musical. So happy for his nomination,. He deserves a Tony!
British here, I did American History twice (changed schools in middle of the school year) so it always stuck with me. Who knew I would end up living in US and becoming a citizen but it was wonderful to see places that I had learnt about in school in 1959/1960. Unaware King George was mad until many years later when I lived in Boston.
Yes, in US we learn about King George III all through primary and high school history classes. He is portrayed as mad and failing, but the British army and generals are portrayed as stealthy, clever and extremely formidable. I grew up in Virginia - one of the original 13 British colonies in N. America - so English history is important to our local identity, community and culture (i.e many of our cities and towns are named after British/Scottish royals and villages (Fredericksburg [Prince Frederick], Fairfax [Lord Fairfax], Loudoun [Earl of Loudoun], Prince William [Prince William] etc.) in addition to Native Indian names (Roanoke) and the first families of Virginia with English ancestors (The Lees, Masons, and Washingtons, Etc).
History Nerd joke:
JEFFERSON: "No, Ben, we cannot begin, 'King George is a chowder head.'"
I’ve heard that before... obvs it’s while writing the Declaration, but from what?
@@JasperJanssen British control of the (US) government
Depending on the region, but he typically gets a brief mention in our history books because of the whole taxation without representation deal, otherwise no we don’t get taught anything else about him
I so love this performance, and really enjoyed your reaction!
Brilliantly performed!
I just found your reactions to Hamilton and I’m working through them all. Thanks for making these!
I'm actually digging the more relaxed pace of your song by song experience of Hamilton; hope you keep it up!
Some perspective on how well George III is known in the US: the play _The Madness of George III_ was renamed _The Madness of King George_ for the film, because they were afraid US audiences would think the movie was the third in a trilogy and not bother because they’d missed the first two.
🤣😂🤣😂
US History teacher here. Loved the video and your insights. You are correct in your assumption that King George is not really covered here. The Revolution is primarily taught in the earlier grades and the emphasis is on more dramatic events like the Boston Tea Party and Paul Revere's ride. In later grades, students learn of more of the complexities of setting up the army, the hardships they faced, etc. But the British side of things is limited to more big picture things, such as "Why did the British increase taxes on the Americans in the first place?" (to pay for the French and Indian wars). The students get a more balanced view by the time they're in the teens and the British aren't portrayed as 'the bad guys' but its presented as a complex problem. But again, King George's personality (and madness) really isn't covered. I didn't learn about that stuff until college!
if his walk is an issue, the crown and clothes were heavy so it was the only way he could walk without problems.edit: the 'everybody' he said was usually sung in a light hearted way in a lot of the other play showings.
I teach history to 5th graders and we do Colonies and the American Revolution. King George III is one of my main characters.
What I enjoy about this musical is how he works in so many different styles of music and what that tells you about the characters. King George's song is 60s Brit Pop and uses the harpsichord as accompaniment which would be appropriate for the time both the 1960s and the 1770s! There was this huge revival of interest in performance practice and interest in how classical music would've sounded at the time that was the academic side to the folk movement. Then these different sounding instruments moved from the academic sphere of performance practice into folk music and from there into rock/pop music so you have harpsichords, organs, alto flutes, and the recorder among others making their way into the Top 40 radio. In the other sections it's not just rap, hip hop, and R&B it's subgenres. There is so much nuance in this show including things that are historical, contemporary, and so on it will be studied for years.
One of the reasons for so little movement was a practical one: the crown was initially so heavy that it was in danger of falling off if the ‘king’ moved too much.
I knew about ‘mad’ King George, but then again I was somewhat of a history nerd.
Ditto
Jonathan has said the reason he doesn't move is the crown was so dang heavy
As a child of the 60s american history class didn't dwell on King George..
If there’s any King we are taught about in history here in the USA I would definitely say it’s King George because he was in charge during the American Revolution. I also remember spending a lot time on Queen Elizabeth in history class but I wasn’t able to fully appreciate the monarchy until long after high school. Great job with this song and I often wonder how British react to it so cheers to that! Well done, Kenny from Philly
We learned the most about Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.
Song is a parody of the 60s British invasion pop songs by groups like the Dave Clark Five, Herman's Hermits, and early Beatles before LSD.
Part of why he wasn't dancing around is because the crown he was wearing weighed something like 20 pounds and he had to move slowly to keep it balanced on top of his head.
I only learned a little about King George in history class, we learned about the Boston Tea Party and Taxation Without Representation. The lessons were baded around the Continental Congress and about the cause of the war between American and Britain to gain our independence but not so much about the King at the time. I hope that helps
Jonathan Groff mostly stood still because the crown was extremely heavy. He talked about it in interviews.
I don’t remember learning anything about King George in American school. Just the actions by the British crown that led up to the American Revolution.
Ummmm....British "crown"....and WHO wore the British "crown"?
I was born in 1960, so my education was different from modern education. We learned about King George, but I don't recall being taught that he went mad. We were taught that he needed money, so he decided to tax his colonies. We were taught about the Stamp Act and the Boston Tea Party, and the "Redcoats" (the British soldiers) who occupied the colonists' houses without their permission. My impression was that King George was a greedy tyrant who refused to listen to reason. It was my understanding that the colonies tried and tried to reason with him, that most folks really didn't want to rebel against him. However, he made it intolerable.
I was born and raised in Virginia. In the United States we learn history different depending on what state you are in or what region you're in. I live in the area of Virginia where the colonies were settled so that would be Jamestown So there's a lot of British history that we do touch upon in-depth because the way we were taught history. And Virginia was the first permanent English colony. So yes we do learn quite a bit about British history.
My son is in 5th grade (11 years old) and since he is learning virtually, I have been able to be more involved than usual with what he is learning in history class (in the US it is called social studies). For the last 4 weeks his class has been focused on the American Revolution. King George has been a part of the history lesson as described through his demands on the colonists (such as the Intolerable Acts). I can tell you that I do not remember much about what I learned and retained in grade school about King George but this time around, every time KG3 is brought up, I think about Jonathan Groff singing this number from Hamilton.
I just love all of us Us citizens coming here to explain your king to you. 😭
Johnathan Groff is so talented and genius!
I loved hearing your perspective on this song - I think it's my favorite, but, like you, I think they are all exceptional. This character makes me laugh just by walking onto the stage! In my history classes, the Revolutionary War was told from the American Perspective, so we didn't learn much about King George. Most references were of "the British".
BTW, Alex Lacamoire arranged this for string quartet, rock band (with banjo), and adaptable keyboard that requires the keyboard programmer (or succesor) to be in the pit every performance,. That's because live theatre doesn't happen the same way twice.
How else would you do it?
One of the great moments of musical theatre
Another hilarious captured moment is when Jonathan recounts forgetting his lyrics while on stage in Spring Awakening. It's on Showbiz Stories channel. So funny!
George III is a footnote. The guy who happened to be king when we left
That was my favorite part of Hamilton Love it
As an American, I never really learned much of the background of King George. I didn’t even know until more recently that he was “The Mad King”.
We were taught only a little about King George as a person, but we were taught about what some of the reasons he acted as he did and how those actions impacted the movement and war for independence.
My Canadian husband howled when George the III turns up in the musical. :). He is wonderful and memorable.
I am obsessed with this song and with the King. I really think donny has this attitude, don't you?
No. King George (in this performance) has a mad kind of innocence wit occasional flashes of malevolence. The Don is all malevolence. Even his "humor" is designated to strike out at someone.
I was waiting for this one! One thing this play highlights very well without stating it outright is the Old World/New World comparison.
Most of the American characters rap at some point of the show, but British leaning characters like the king and Samuel Seabury (from Farmer Refuted) have a slower, older quality to their singing. You can immediately tell Samuel is singing in a method that feels centuries old, and the king's music is modeled after the Beatles. They also use classic theatre singing techniques (like Groff's facial movement on "can't go onnn~").
You might also notice the king's outfit is very heavy and detailed compared to the American actors. Everyone else has costumes that are representative of the time period, but adapted to account for dancing 8 times a week. King George's outfit is firmly kept in the olden days with his costumes taken straight from actual portraits of the real king.
This divide of Old vs New is done in such a subtle way, yet it feels obvious once you know about it. Word to not just Lin Manuel Miranda, but to Paul Tazwell and the other costume designers that made this possible!
A big reason Hamilton did so well was because with lowered educational standards in American schools in the past 20 years or so, people barely know this history. It was a hit because it taught it in a more engaging way than schools, which when they bothered to teach it at all, did a boring, crap job of it.
I mean....if history teachers could do this kind of teaching, there would be a huge increase in people wanting to become teachers lol
You do know Wiley, that Hamilton is not accurate of historical events?
@@constancepeterson6156 it's not meant to be. It's broad dramatized strokes. Far more than most kids were learning anyway.
Sksksjsk i really love the fact that he's also kristoff from frozen, like the contrast. I was mindblown when i learned about that. Any way love your reactions keep it up man
Beautiful performance. Thanks to dance teacher for all you do for the young people. Good job. Keep on keeping on. Let your light shine!!!
Thank you for sharing your perspective on the video. I was wondering if the UK could or would enjoy the joke and comedic silliness of the character. As far as what we (most people) learn, I don’t think most Americans know our own history well, let alone the history of other countries (kind of really sad). I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the character and song. Jonathan Groff and his spittle performances are comedically epic and awesome fun!
Different parts of the US pay more attention to the Revolutionary War than others. I grew up in central NY State where there are more soldiers from that war buried than anywhere in the country. I guess you could say although it's not a topic of everyday conversation, details of its history are emphasized in school. Also, there are a lot of forts from that period in New England, so there is more history taught there than say, Oregon, where I live now. Here my kids were taught more about indigenous people and the Oregon Trail than King George and the tea party and that kind of stuff. Also, where I used to live in Clinton, NY is Hamilton College, which is dedicated to Alexander Hamilton.
The reason that is his dancing is so limited is because the crown and costume supposedly weighed more than 50 pounds. A tuff haul, even for Jonathan Groff, 6 ft. +. But it was based on the one the actual King wore.
The line “I’m so blue” is a throwback to the fact that King George III had porphyria , which was a problem with iron processing in the body and caused madness. It makes your urine blue. See the movie with Nigel Hawthorne, The Madness of King George.
And Groff Sauce is always fabulous. See Spring Awakening.
I love this!! Continue with the reactions :D
King George is kind of there in US history when we learn about the Revolution (I swear it's taught thoroughly at least twice). He's not talked about as much as the Founding Father's, he's really the villan of the story, and placed in a poor light, very much as a tyrant. He's heavily talked about in regards to tarrifs and then glazed over when the Olive Branch Petition is mentioned, and again when the war starts and then ends. This is all my experience, of course.
In my experience as an American taking American history courses, King George III is taught about but not in any real depth. He’s more one of the catalysts for the American Revolution. That said, if anyone would ask an American who has no interest in history of any sort, I strongly suspect George III would be one of the few British monarchs they could name.
(I hear the comments now! 😄There are over 300 million of us; there are millions who love history here.)
He was wearing high heels and a crown that was very heavy. Also those robes were confining and had weight too.
I hear this song and literally go around singing it for hours...mostly the Da Da Da Dat Da Da...part but Jonathan Groff's performance is incredible. I'm in the US and I honestly don't remember learning much about King George in school but it has been a long time ago for me. I did see another reactor and another Broadway performer say something about the Da Da chorus part as well. They said that to them, it really does just epitomize how mad he was and that you can imagine he did walk around just making those random sounds in his madness. I don't think they were quoting it as fact but I can believe, as you said, that it probably was true. LOL To me, the animatic versions don't do much in replaying these scenes. Maybe it is because I am not from the anime loving generation. When I was younger, there were animation festivals we would go to see but they were mostly Wallace and Gromit, The Big Snit, etc. The animatic style reminds me of the Aha video for "Take on Me" from the 80s - yes, that is my generation but I can do without it for the purposes of these types of performances. Just my humble opinion! . :-p
American education of King George III is pretty much "he was the king at the time of the American Revolution'" and known as 'Mad King George' whose taxation of tea led to the Boston Tea Party. He's a minor character in our history.
We dont learn that much about king George, but a lot of other things in this time. the line "you cry in your tea wich you hurl in the sea when you see me go by" is a reference to the tea party, where a bunch of citizens threw tons of tea into the ocean in protest. So much so the it stained the water for weeks.
Another big reason that he doesn't really move or dance much in this song is because that crown is heavy. Jonathan Groff, the actor portraying the King, has actually talked about it. I believe the figure was something like 10 lbs which might not sound like a lot but it's on his head and looks like it has a high center of gravity. Imagine if he tipped his head too much and it started to pull him along lol.
I don't know if anyone has mentioned this already, but a big reason Groff was standing completely straight is because his costume was SO Heavy! The crown supposedly weighed something like 15 or 20 lbs, and the robes were really heavy too
Aw, the mad king. Butcher of men. Destroyer of families. Was obviously such a sweetheart!
Very 'old school pop' tune written to deliberately contrast the different 'young' lyrically packed rap/hip-hop style songs.
Gotta get the british invasion song in
@@sylvernale Indeed!
I’m obsessed with Jonathan Groff! I would love for you to react to his other songs ‘What Comes Next?’ And ‘I Know him’ Jonathan is wonderful!!!
American here, born, raised , and schooled in the suburbs of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania...I remember being taught about King Henry VIII and his six wives , his daughter Queen Elizabeth and then nothing until king Louis ,,I believe it was 16th whose wife was Marie-Antoinette. then a little bit of Queen Victoria and the Victorian era. King George was only mentioned briefly as part of the American revolution but just that he was king nothing else that I can remember. That is about all I learned until much later in life while looking things up on my own.
he didn’t move around a lot bc of how heavy the original crown was!
What he’s doing is picking individual members of the audience to stare at. It’s amazing.
After one show, Beyoncé told him she wanted to steal his walk. Then, as he tells it, the floor opened up and he fell into his grave.
Not sure if someone mentioned it, but just in case you didn't learn this in school: The "Boston Tea Party" of 1773 is taught heavily in American schools, when the colonists protested taxation without representation, and which led to the American Revolution. That's the reference at the beginning of the song to "You cry into your tea which you hurl in the sea when you see me go by..."
American history major here. The American Revolution is a HUGE part of our history study, but we don’t study King George very much. The focus is on the colonists and the fighting itself. If we want to know anything about King George, we had to look it up or hope for a teacher who’d touch on the British side of the war.
I personally didn’t learn about King George, however, I learned about the American Revolution and the events leading up to it, such as the different acts put out by Britain, the Thirteen Colonies, the Declaration of Independence, and the different battles in the Revolutionary War.
Johnathon is also in Frozen I and II he plays Kristoff/Sven
Another hilarious captured moment is when Jonathan recounts forgetting his lyrics while on stage in Spring Awakening. It's on Showbiz Stories channel. So funny!