Citing dangerous overcrowding and inclement weather, the powers that be have decided to make some improvements to the potentially treacherous lottery event before reintroducing it in the spring.

“We love seeing so many fans show up to participate in the Ham4Ham lottery and show,” Hamilton producer, Jeffrey Seller, said in a statement. “But we need to figure out how to safely accommodate our fans without blocking traffic on West 46th Street.”

Shortly after it began its run at The Public Theater, Hamilton has offered the drawing to fans who can’t afford or even access the $150+ tickets to the currently sold out run. The stage phenomenon garners, at minimum, 500 entrants per drawing: excited fans who, line, crowd and essentially dominate the slim street accessing the Richard Rodgers Theater.

An innovation made popular in 1996 by the cult-classic Rent, lottery, student rush, general rush and “standing room only” has become the poor man’s guide to Broadway.

Hamilton is just one of many Broadway productions offering an affordable digital lottery for what has become quite an expensive medium.  Kinky Boots made the switch this summer and after 18 years on top of the Broadway ticket want list, The Lion King announced in November that they would be offering an online lottery.  Introduced just in time for the holiday season, the lottery would make tickets for the musical, which generally average around $130, accessible to theatergoers at a reasonable price.

UPDATE:  As of 11 AM on Jan. 5, Hamilton has broken the internet!  Since opening the digital lottery at 9:30 AM, BroadwayDirect, the website that hosts multiple Broadway show lotteries, has read a “Service Unavailable” message.  Twitter is all abuzz, including Lin Manuel Miranda who has assured Hamilfans, while he excels at many things, IT is not one of them.  Hopefully the site will be up soon…cause we’re trying to get tickets too!

The post Hamilton Lottery Goes Digital in the New Year appeared first on Broadway Black.

From bastard orphan to Washington’s right hand man, rebel to war hero, loving husband caught in the country’s first sex scandal to Treasury head who made an untrusting world believe in the American economy, Hamilton is an exploration of a political mastermind. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Eliza Hamilton, and lifelong Hamilton friend and foe, Aaron Burr, all attend this revolutionary tale of America’s fiery past told through the sounds of the ever-changing nation we’ve become.

A lottery for $10 tickets began a few weeks ago to kick off the premiere. Since then, hundreds of people have shown up outside The Richard Rogers Theatre to stand in lines that stretch around the block in the hopes of winning a ticket.  Every evening, two hours before the performance, cast members come out to perform for the crowd in surprising ways.  For example, Renée Elise Goldsberry and Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda have come out and sung random songs as well as selections from the musical, answered questions using Les Mis quotes, and interacted with the crowd.  The buzz on social media for the lottery is growing and is becoming as much of a must-see as the musical itself.

At Monday’s #Ham4Ham, fans were treated to @reneeelisegoldsberry putting her own signature flow on George Washington’s song “Right Hand Man” with @phillipasoo on the beat! See the full video on our FB page!#HamiltonBway #YayHamlet #WaitForIt

A video posted by Hamilton (@hamiltonmusical) on Jul 21, 2015 at 6:01am PDT

Today at #Ham4Ham, #LinManuelMiranda answered fan questions using only quotes from Les Miserables!

A video posted by Hamilton (@hamiltonmusical) on Jul 18, 2015 at 9:01am PDT

Today’s #Ham4Ham entertainment brings us a role switch in the show’s first cabinet meeting. Here, #LinManuelMiranda plays Thomas Jefferson, @daveeddiggs plays Alexander Hamilton, and @cjack930 officiates! See the full video on our Facebook page.

A video posted by Hamilton (@hamiltonmusical) on Jul 17, 2015 at 7:05pm PDT

In case you don’t get to see Hamilton, have no fear; the cast album will be released this fall, executive produced by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter, two members of Hip Hop group, The Roots.  The New Yorker describes the music in Hamilton as “rooted in hip hop, but also encompassing R&B, jazz, pop, Tin Pan Alley, and the choral strains of contemporary Broadway.”

Hamilton has been well received in previews and will officially open on August 6.

The post #Ham4Ham: Hamilton Cast Puts on A Show Before the Show appeared first on Broadway Black.

We’ll be offering some great prizes, great opportunitites, and new news! You can find out all about that right here on our site later tonight at 11:59pm EST. However, in the meantime, just to give you a taste of Broadway Black Friday, we’re giving away 2 pairs of tickets, one pair is for the matinee(2pm) and the other pair for the night show(7:30pm) for Buzzer on Sunday April 19th at The Public Theatre.

Wanna know more about the show? Read about our experience on the Tracey Scott Wilson piece Buzzer. The show stars one of our new up and coming shooting stars Grantham Coleman, previously seen in Choir Boy at Manhattan Theatre Club, who truly won’t disappoint.

To win the tickets PLEASE READ IN FULL!:

1. You must follow Broadway Black & The Public Theatre on twitter and like the Broadway Black facebook page!

2. Tweet both @BroadwayBlack & @PublicTheaterNY accounts with the following: “We Are Broadway Black! #buzzerplay”

3. Once you’ve completed that task, COMMENT BELOW on this post: “DONE!”

***Make sure to pay close attention to your twitter timeline and mentions during Broadway Black Friday, when we annouce the two winners!

***Each winner will recieve a pair of tickets. It will not be up to you the time of day you get to see the show. No harm in requesting in the intial tweet tho. Simply request by adding “#Matinee” or “#Evening”

The post Follow Us & Win Tickets to Buzzer At The Public + Broadway Black Friday appeared first on Broadway Black.

It’s no secret that we have so much love for Tonya Pinkins here at BroadwayBlack.com and we told you she’s currently headed back to Broadway. She’ll be a part of a stellar ensemble cast that includes John Douglas Thompson, who recently just did an excellent Harold Loomis in Joe Turner’s Come And Gone for the August Wilson Century Cycle readings. Also among the cast of this classic story is Chiké Johnson and Tijuana Ricks. We wouldn’t want to miss it and we wouldn’t want you to miss it either. The John Grisham novel turned movie is the first of his novels to be adapted for the stage and starts previews September 28th, here is your chance to see the courtroom drama unfold right in front of you.

A TIME TO KILL is the incendiary story of a Southern community torn in half by an unspeakable crime. As the shocking news hits the public, small town America becomes the center of a media storm, where innocence is the victim, race is on trial and lives hang in the balance. Part courtroom drama, part suspense thriller, pure theatrical dynamite.

So here’s how you win:

1. Be following us on twitter (@BroadwayBlack)
2. ‘Like’ us on Facebook (BROADWAYBLACK)
3. Follow A Time To Kill on twitter (@ATimeToKillBway)
4. Tweet the link to this contest and mention @BroadwayBlack
5. Tell us IN THE COMMENTS BELOW, What black actor starred in this novel turned movie AND what was his last Broadway show???

This contest will be over before you know it. It ends Friday at Noon!
Win while you can still can! Good Luck!

And visit ATimeToKillOnBroadway.com for more information

The post Win Two Tickets To John Grisham’s A Time To Kill On Broadway appeared first on Broadway Black.

Set in Verona, Italy, ROMEO AND JULIET tells the story of two young lovers whose noble families are locked in a bitter feud. They try to defy the circumstances that forbid their love, with heartbreaking results. In this modern take on a Shakespeare classic, Orlando Bloom and Tony® nominee Condola Rashad are the star-crossed interracial couple; his clan, the Montagues, are white, while hers, the Capulets, are black. Joining Condola and Orlando in the cast are Tony-winner Chuck Cooper (as Lord Capulet), Roslyn Ruff (as Lady Capulet), Corey Hawkins (as Tybalt), Geoffery Owens (as Prince Escalus), Brent Carver (as Friar Laurence), Jane Houdyshell (as Nurse), and Justin Guarini (as Paris).

*To Win The Tickets: 1. Follow BroadwayBlack.com on Twitter —–>>> HERE 2. Follow Romeo & Juliet on Twitter ——–>>> HERE 3. Tweet this link to all your followers including a mention to @BroadwayBlack 4. Answer the following trivia question in the comments below and include your email address WHO WAS THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO PLAY JULIET IN ‘ROMEO & JULIET ON BROADWAY??? 5. Follow ALL Directions

*Must be in New York City on a Tues, Wed, or Thurs during the month of September THIS CONTEST IS OFFICIALLY CLOSED GOOD LUCK!!!

AND THE WINNER IS… OLIVIA WALKER (@Livvie_Baby)

The post Win Two Tickets To The Interracial Broadway Revival Of Romeo & Juliet appeared first on Broadway Black.

We sent out the following tweet:

OMG!!! We’ve hit 1000 followers!!! YAY!!!! IT’S TIME FOR THE GIVEAWAYS!!! You want a prize?!?!? RT THIS! Must be following us!!!

— BroadwayBlack.com (@BroadwayBlack) August 14, 2013

Well, 15 people did what we asked and RT’d the tweet and were already following us or started following us.
We then put the names in a hat and pulled out two.

*INSERT DRUM ROLL HERE*

1. The winner of a signed Playbill by 2013 Best Actor in a Musical Tony Award winner Billy Porter

is @Brosninga

2. The winner of a signed Playbill by 2013 Best Actress in a Musical Tony Award winner Patina Miller is @robynb12

CONGRATS TO ALL OUR FOLLOWERS FOR HELPING US REACH 1k ON TWITTER!!! NOW LETS GET TO 2K!!!

The post And The Winner Is: 1K Twitter Follower Giveaway appeared first on Broadway Black.