Before her death, former first lady Barbara Bush and husband George H.W. Bush were looking forward to the Houston leg of the Hamilton tour. The two had planned to see the show together, but sadly Mrs. Bush passed away on April 17. But last week the cast of Hamilton brought the production to the office of George H.W. Bush in Houston for a private performance.
PageSix reported that President Bush was thrilled by the show being reenacted in his office. The former president called the show “a complete joy” and tweeted his approval to Hamilton creator Lin Manuel Miranda.
“A complete joy to welcome the ‘HamFam’ — the cast and crew of @HamiltonMusical — to our Houston office for a special performance I will never forget,” he tweeted alongside pictures of the cast. “History never sounded so powerful.”
Miranda responded, sharing the tweet with his followers.
“The honor is ours, sir.”
President Bush has also been in and out of the hospital, battling a bout of pneumonia soon after the passing of his wife of 70-plus years. But Bush rallied and was pleased to welcome the Hamilton cast, the “Ham Fam,” who brought the show to him.
A complete joy to welcome the “HamFam” — the cast and crew of @HamiltonMusical — to our Houston office for a special performance I will never forget. History never sounded so powerful. pic.twitter.com/dL224SkMKn
— George Bush (@GeorgeHWBush) May 15, 2018
Jim McGrath, a spokesman for Bush said that the former president gave the show a thumbs up.
“After the performance, he declared it ‘powerful and wonderful’ — it definitely got a presidential seal of approval.”
People Magazine says that George Bush was freshly out of the hospital after a two-week stay. The president was released from Houston Methodist Hospital on the fourth of May. But McGrath adds that Bush is doing much better these days, and the private show boosted his spirits.
“He’s really doing great. Sharp, happy, and looking forward to hopefully seeing Hamilton and then heading to Maine after that by the middle part of next week.”
Bush and his wife Barbara were fans of musical theater, often seeing shows together. In the past, the cast of Jersey Boys stopped into the Bush offices during a Texas tour, according to McGrath.
“And when Kenny Singer with Broadway Across America — working with the terrific Hamilton team — suggested that something like that could maybe be arranged with Hamilton, no one was more enthusiastic than the 41st president of the United States.”
The honor is ours, sir. https://t.co/vT815vluaD
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) May 16, 2018
