Back to Hamilton: An American Musical (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
Hamilton begins his disastrous affair with mega-vamp Maria Reynolds. For the first major sex scandal in the United States' political history, Lin-Manuel Miranda gives us a 90s slow jam to end all 90s slow jams.
This record use to start with: “When I’m alone in my room, sometimes I stare at the wall,” which is an LL Cool J reference from “I Need Love.”
That reference is like 30 years old, so even non hip-hop heads would get it. However, I felt like it was the wrong laugh leading into the scene. That’s a moment where we see Hamilton leave his family and this new woman just comes out of nowhere. I don’t want people laughing at the top of that song… I wanted them to be like “Who is this?!” I want the audience at this point screaming in their heads “no!” along with the actors on stage.
So I took the LL Cool J part out for dramaturgical reasons.
This reprises Burr’s line from the beginning of “The Schuyler Sisters.” But instead of “someone in a rush,” which described Alexander when he was young and itching for a war, the line becomes “someone under stress,” which better describes Alexander in this critical period of his career.
The lyrics are also reminiscent of the verses of The Lovin' Spoonful’s “Summer in the City.”
Not only is Hamilton alone in the city at this particular moment, he is much more isolated in the second act in general. The revolutionary quartet has disbanded. Thanks to double-casting, his close friends (Lafayette and Mulligan) have literally been replaced by his political rivals (Jefferson and Madison). Hamilton is also changed by Laurens' death. Chernow writes:
The death deprived Hamilton of the political peer, the steadfast colleague, that he was to need in his tempestuous battles to consolidate the union. […] [H]e was more of a solitary crusader without Laurens, lacking an intimate lifelong ally such as Madison and Jefferson found in each other. On a personal level, the loss was even more harrowing. Despite a large circle of admirers, Hamilton did not form deep friendships easily and never again revealed his interior life to another man as he had to Laurens. He became ever more voluble in his public life but somehow less introspective and revelatory in private. […] After the death of John Laurens, Hamilton shut off some compartment of his emotions and never reopened it.
The historical Hamilton, however, was not alone when he began his affair with Mrs. Reynolds. Eliza and the children had not yet left to spend the summer upstate; Hamilton had to sneak her into the house when Eliza was still there.
And he does tell it—he gives a firsthand account in this song, and also later in the “Reynolds Pamphlet” itself.
This is notable because Hamilton rarely wrote about the painful experiences that shaped his life (and thus the musical). Our knowledge of his boyhood struggles, for example, comes from historical documents; his own writings never mentioned the gritty details outlined in the show’s opening number. It’s fitting that in this rare moment of brutal honesty, the narration switches from Burr, who voices an amalgamation of outsider perspectives on Hamilton’s life, to Hamilton himself.
This could also be a playful allusion to the following line in I Love the Dough, from The Notorious B.I.G.’s Life After Death:
But one of us cats ain’t playin' right, I let you tell it
This song originally included a reference to LL Cool J’s “I Need Love,” here:
When I’m alone in my room, sometimes I stare at the wall
On this particular night, I felt my conscience stall
The reference was removed before the show transferred to Broadway due to clearance issues. LL Cool J reached out to Miranda on Twitter, offering to help get the reference cleared and back in the show. However, Miranda does not overly mourn its loss, saying it was “a laugh when I really don’t need a laugh—I need them listening.”
Wow Alex, sounds like you really should have listened to the Schuyler sisters! It’s not like they don’t know a thing or two about work.
Hamilton has very different feelings for the two women: Angelica is longed for, while Eliza (the “wife”) is missed. “Take a Break” seems to have left him hot and bothered—his witty, sexy conversation with Angelica, and the charms of domestic life with Eliza, have left his priorities all confused.
This line also lets Hamilton excuse Maria Reynolds as a poor man’s substitute for the two women he really wants to be with.
Like many other words in this show, “break” has a double meaning. Many people see the obvious connection to “Take A Break”, in that Alexander needs to relax for a second and do something besides working. The other meaning of break is a lucky break. Alexander is working hard trying to push through this debt plan, and it seems like the one thing that can save him at this point is a pure stroke of luck.
Little is known about Maria Reynolds. She was from Dutchess County, New York and married James Reynolds when she was 15. (Her name was originally Mary Lewis – she changed her first name at some point.) When she met Hamilton, she was a 23-year-old blonde bombshell – a foil to Eliza, who was described as a “brunette with the most good-natured, lively dark eyes that I ever saw.”
An affidavit from Richard Folwell, Reynolds’s landlord’s son, reads:
Her mind at this time was far from being tranquil or consistent, for almost at the same minute that she would declare her respect for her husband, cry and feel distressed, [the tears] would vanish and levity would succeed, with bitter execrations on her husband. This inconsistency and folly was ascribed to a troubled, but innocent and harmless mind.
Folwell also accused her of being a prostitute, largely via circumstantial evidence:
Gentlemen left letters in her entryway, Folwell said, and “at night she would fly off as was supposed to answer their contents.”
This is also the one and only time the name “Maria Reynolds” is said throughout the entire show. Alexander introduces her as “Miss” rather than “Mrs.” as he himself did not discover her married status until later, so neither will the audience.
A.K.A. Peggy with the Good Hair.
The original casting call for Maria:
PEGGY SCHUYLER/MARIA REYNOLDS (dual role.): Mezzo-soprano. […] MARIA REYNOLDS: sultry, young, calculating. Affects the role of a damsel in distress to seduce Hamilton. Jazmine Sullivan meets Carla from Nine.
In the original Broadway cast, Maria was played by Jasmine Cephas Jones.
See the transformation from Peggy to Maria:
In the Broadway production, her dress is bright red. Not only is red traditionally associated with danger, sexual desire, etc., but throughout the show, Eliza wears largely cool tones (greens and teals), on the opposite end of the color spectrum from Maria’s apparel.
Chernow notes that Hamilton had a habit of helping women in trouble—perhaps because of his own mother’s situation. Chernow specifically cites the case of a widow who petitioned Congress for relief, since her husband gave up Canadian property to fight for the colonies. Hamilton wrote this to the widow:
“I shall enter upon the examination with every profession which can be inspired by favorable impression of personal merit and by a sympathetic participation in the distresses of a lady as deserving as unfortunate.”
According to Hamilton’s own account, Maria told him:
[…] that knowing I was a citizen of New York, she had taken the liberty to apply to my humanity for assistance.
This is also an ironic callback to “Helpless,” where Hamilton remarks that all he has, among a few other things, is his honor. After the events of the song, he certainly doesn’t have that anymore.
This shows that Miranda frames what follows as a “He said, she said” type of event. Since he tells the story now, it frames him in the best possible light. When he speaks, it seems like gospel truth, but when she speaks, the audience is led to believe she is deceitful because the very thing she says is prefaced by the line “She said.”
Hamilton later recalled her tale as such in “The Reynolds Pamphlet”:
With a seeming air of affliction she informed that… her husband, who for a long time had treated her very cruelly, had lately left her, to live with another woman, and in so destitute a condition, that though desirous of returning to her friends she had not the means.
[Hamilton] told [Maria] that her situation was “a very interesting one” and that he wished to assist her but that she had come at an inopportune moment (i.e., Eliza was at home). He volunteered to bring “a small supply of money” to her home… that evening.
Hamilton says he did not walk her home, but instead left his house later, alone, with that money in his pocket.
One of Hamilton’s major desires throughout the play has been to be placed in a position of respect and even authority. This is why he frequently pressed General Washington for a command. It is also why he became so infuriated when Washington acted in a paternal nature towards him. When Maria Reynolds addresss him respectfully as “sir”, this desire of his is satisfied. He must be especially pleased to be respected like this because, like the song states, he is “under stress” from a nasty struggle in Congress, where we can presume that he is not called by honorifics. This may explain why he, despite having just met her, gives her $30 (not exactly small change in those days) and is quickly seduced.
This is the real amount Hamilton paid her. $30 in 1791 would be between $700 and $800 today. Hamilton was likely feeling generous as he empathized with her story.
Hamilton lived on 79 South Third Street in Philadelphia, just down the street from the Treasury Department. Maria Reynolds lived at 154 South Fourth Street. It would have been a 4 minute walk.
Hamilton attempts to rationalize his actions here. He downplays his decision to walk her home to keep from crossing the line of what was acceptable for an unmarried man and woman to do together alone.
Maria is referring to her house, but the words she chooses echo Eliza’s more virtuous lines from “Helpless” (“Grab my sister and whisper ‘Yo, this one’s mine’”), repeated later in “Burn.” Lin-Manuel Miranda has even said that an early draft before he wrote Eliza’s “Helpless” was entitled “This One’s Mine,” making the allusion to Eliza even more blatant. Later in the song, Maria will borrow another motif of Eliza’s as well, “helpless.”
Here Miranda brilliantly condenses Maria’s seduction of Hamilton into three lines and seven internal rhymes:
said
head
red
led
bed
spread
said
In Hamilton’s own words, after he gave her the money, this happened:
Some conversation ensued from which it was quickly apparent that other than pecuniary consolation would be acceptable.
Not quite as juicy…
Maria’s “Stay?” and “Hey…” land on the sultriest of blue notes, the flat sixth — irresistible to our dear Hamilton.
Recalls the moment of hormone-heavy posturing at the end of “A Winter’s Ball” and the beginning of “Helpless.” There is certainly another surge of hormones happening here….
Throughout the show, “hey” is used as shorthand for flirting.
This entire section of the song is filled with tension, from the dissonant intro music to Maria turning red, to Hamilton’s awkward ‘Hey…’ After this point, the song takes on more of a chaotic and frustrating tone. There are more strange chords in the background and the ensemble overlaps with the lead singers more. The moment Hamilton gives in to Maria and to himself, everything goes to hell with the chords and ensemble. They’re almost smothering Hamilton’s and Maria’s voices. At that point, there’s only one short verse before James Reynolds enters.
Hamilton’s religious references are far between (especially compared to Burr, who uses religious imagery as a touchstone). Definitely a reflection of these guys' very different upbringings. That said, God comes up (ahem) a lot in this song. The next time he prays? In church, mourning his son (“Uptown”).
This is further evident in Hurricane where he states that “his prayers to God were met with indifference,” feeling that God had failed him, thus he relied on himself to turn his life around. It’s obvious that Hamilton’s religious stances have shifted over the years and most notably at points where his life seems to spiral away from his control.
The chord progression here recalls Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”, with Maria’s “woah” echoing the guitar lick.
The same chords also appear in “Right Hand Man,” “Stay Alive” (and reprise), and “Guns And Ships”—as well as the main theme from the James Bond films. There we saw Hamilton the action hero, here we see him falling into bed with the mission’s femme fatale.
The word “helpless” here references Eliza’s earlier song of that name, implying a parallel between the two women, at least in Hamilton’s mind.
This is another instance of Hamilton’s fatal flaw—an inability to say no to any and every opportunity presented to him.
In this instance, what Hamilton supposedly wants to do (go) and what he really does (stay). This is a divergence from his usual status, where he always speaks his mind and stands up for what he believes is right. In fact, Hamilton is very out-of-character in his affair with Maria Reynolds, not just in this instance, but also that he gives her time of day- not just focusing on his work. This could be considered just the effect that Maria has on him, combined with the stress he was under. Otherwise, one could also assume that Hamilton never thought against having the affair anyway, and is in fact still very much in control of his choice.
The ensemble takes on the role of Alexander’s conscience, urging him to leave (“Go! Go! Go!”) and repeating “No! Say no to this!”, just as we all do as we hear him break his promises to Eliza.
The ensemble taking over Alexander’s morality emphasizes the fact that Hamilton has lost control. It also foreshadows the disastrous implications of this affair. A viewer/listener may feel an embarrassment for Hamilton regardless, but the ensemble makes it clear that Hamilton is doing something that will turn out poorly, and the viewer/listener will sympathize with the ensemble’s cries.
He drifts off because on stage, our girl Maria goes in for the kiss. But it’s clear he sees what’s happening, and really doesn’t want to say no to this, given that he’s singing it before he’s even making out with her. Good job, buddy.
The ensemble takes on the role of Alexander’s conscience, urging him to leave (“Go! Go! Go!”) and repeating “No! Say no to this!”, just as we all do as we hear him break his promises to Eliza.
The ensemble taking over Alexander’s morality emphasizes the fact that Hamilton has lost control. It also foreshadows the disastrous implications of this affair. A viewer/listener may feel an embarrassment for Hamilton regardless, but the ensemble makes it clear that Hamilton is doing something that will turn out poorly, and the viewer/listener will sympathize with the ensemble’s cries.
Prior to the Broadway recording, the Off-Broadway version included Eliza singing a short line of “Helpless” and Angelica singing part of “Satisfied” while the ensemble sang “No! Say no to this…” during the chorus.
As he himself will note later in the Reynolds Pamphlet, and as Jefferson will gleefully quote in the song of the same name:
After this, I had frequent meetings with her, most of them in my own house.
A similar rhyme is found in this in the Gershwins' “I’ve Got Beginner’s Luck”:
This thing we’ve begun is much more than a pastime
For this time is the one where the first time is the last time
Hamilton’s affair with Maria did start in the summer, but his first communication from her husband was received on December 15. Hamilton responded the same day.
In reality, Reynolds' first letter to Hamilton read:
Its true its in your power to do a great deal for me, but its out of your power to do any thing that will Restore to me my Happiness again for if you should give me all you possess would not do it. god knowes I love the woman and wish every blessing may attend her, you have bin the Cause of Winning her love, and I Dont think I Can be Reconciled to live with Her, when I know I hant her love. now Sir I have Considered on the matter Serously. I have this preposial to make to you. give me the Sum Of thousand dollars and I will leve the town and take my daughter with me and go where my Friend Shant here from me and leve her to Yourself to do for her as you thing proper. I hope you wont think my request is in a view of making Me Satisfaction for the injury done me. for there is nothing that you Can do will compensate for it.
The music playing behind James' letter recalls the theme of “The People’s Court,” suggesting high-profile trouble for Hamilton.
Dual meanings here. It completes James' last line about fucking his wife, and also sets up Hamilton realizing he is in deep, deep shit.
The decision not to actually say fuck and rather drag out the “fuuuuuuu-” is the only time in the recording where something is bleeped out or censored other than in “The Adams Administration”.
Hamilton arguably says too much and writes too much altogether, so the decision to have him show restraint NOW of all times (after not showing restraint anywhere else in the song) is pretty important.
A cuckold is a man whose wife has been stepping out on him, Ashley Madison style. The word has connotations of foolishness and impotency, for… probably obvious reasons. At the time, being cuckolded was seen as a huge blow to your manhood, as a husband was expected to be able to keep control of his wife’s heart, and more importantly, her virtue. It was also seen as a strike against your own character if the person you took as your spouse was unchaste. Eliza would be slammed in the press in the wake of the Reynolds Pamphlet for this very reason.
The use of “sucker” may also be a play on words between James' position as a fool who has been cuckolded and to a Certain Physical Act. The word “sucker” can also refer to the fact that James Reynolds is a figurative leech.
The cadence of this line sounds like West Coast rap, could be a reference to an Ice Cube or Too Short song.
In reality, Reynolds was much more sly in his threats. His first letter mentioned no threat, just a promise (which he broke) to leave town. Afterward, (a presumably complicit) Maria would write Alexander to come see her when her husband was out and shortly after each, James would write asking for money (on the order of $30) without ever explicitly mentioning the reason, just Alexander’s promise to “be a friend” to him.
To add insult to injury, Reynolds rhymes “whore wife” with “your wife,” calling back to Eliza answering Hamilton’s “poor wife” with “your wife” in “That Would Be Enough.”
Per Chernow, in the years prior to meeting Hamilton, Maria engaged in actual prostitution:
Maria and James Reynolds lived on North Grant Street, where they occupied separate beds (or even rooms) while Maria dabbled in prostitution.
“Pay the piper” is an idiom about bearing consequences for past actions, and the specific delivery of “time to pay the piper” may be a nod to its use in Eazy E’s “Real Muthaphuckkin G’s”.
Maria expresses how despite knowing the wrongful nature of their relationship, she wants him to stay, and continue.
This line recalls the Jezebel stereotype which was created to depict women of color as direct opposites to “ideal” Victorian women—such as Hamilton’s wife, Eliza—who are faithful and demure. Jezebels were believed to be hyper-sexual women—insatiable, unworthy of love and immoral—who pursued men of high social standing (like Victorian “gold diggers”).
The Jezebel myth was used in defense of abuse and rape of black slaves by their white slave owners, to fully place the blame on the victims.
Although, as far as we know, the relations between Hamilton and Reynolds were consensual, Hamilton uses this song to shift the blame to Maria through this stereotype. Maria repeatedly addresses Hamilton as “Sir” to indicate their class difference, positioning herself as lower than Hamilton.
Even amidst his anger and betrayal, Hamilton can’t help but notice Maria’s state of distress and disarray, an implicit cry for help that pulls him further under her spell.
Of course, this isn’t the only time that Hamilton falls for a helpless woman—he meets and marries Eliza during a song dedicated to the word. But the pattern actually goes even deeper. In an interview, Lin recalled a story that didn’t make it into the musical, about when Hamilton and Washington went to confront the infamous traitor Benedict Arnold. His wife Peggy Shippen opened the door, topless and clutching her infant child in feigned hysteria. In Lin’s words, the two men were “so bedazzled by the topless lady that they let her go,” thinking her “a poor woman caught up in her husband’s schemes.” Of course, she was actually complicit in the entire affair. Lin sees this incident as indicative of Hamilton’s character, and a set-up to his behavior in this number:
Hamilton—brilliant guy, we establish that pretty well—but when it comes to a damsel in distress, his critical faculties leave him. So when Maria Reynolds shows up and says, ‘My husband’s been beating me and he’s been gone; can you walk me home?,’ the part of his brain that goes ‘This is a terrible idea’ just doesn’t talk to him.
Now, just as with Arnold’s wife, Hamilton faces a disheveled woman pleading innocence of her husband’s scheme. Clearly, he hasn’t learned his lesson.
Her assertion that she doesn’t “know about any letter” would stand up a lot better if Hamilton had actually mentioned receiving one. It certainly sounds like she knew about the scheme all along. (Alternatively, he might just have skipped that part in the retelling.)
The real Maria Reynolds wrote Alexander this note two days before he received her husband’s letter:
I have not tim to tell you the cause of my present troubles only that Mr. has rote you this morning and I know not wether you have got the letter or not and he has swore that If you do not answer It or If he dose not se or hear from you to day he will write Mrs. Hamilton he has just Gone oute and I am a Lone I think you had better come here one moment that you May know the Cause then you will the better know how to act Oh my God I feel more for you than myself and wish I had never been born to give you so mutch unhappiness do not rite to him no not a Line but come here soon do not send or leave any thing in his power.
The delivery of this line is harsh and angry—Hamilton is feeling betrayed and set-up. In the Off-Broadway version the tone is more embarrassed and uncertain; Hamilton doesn’t know what to do with a crying woman.
It seems as if Maria was looking for happiness in all the wrong places. She married James Reynolds young and met Hamilton in 1791 at 23 years old. Her naivety is reflected in this line in comparison to the two older men.
Not necessarily, if he hadn’t then continued the affair and then gone public about it. The Reynoldses didn’t ruin Hamilton’s life; he ruined it himself in publishing “The Reynolds Pamphlet.” Eliza says the same in “Burn”: “In clearing our name, you have ruined our lives.”
However, as Eliza points out in that song, she is concerned with their fate as a couple and as a family, while Hamilton is focused just on himself and his own damned reputation. This is probably the most selfish show of hubris in this entire Ashley-Madison-worthy affair.
Lin notes in Hamilton: The Revolution (p. 178):
This used to be ‘How could you do this?’ Tommy Kail suggested the change, and it’s a good one—Hamilton’s realization of his own culpability in this situation is far more compelling than blaming Maria.
In his delivery of the line, we hear Hamilton’s horror and guilt at his own actions.
On stage, Maria is being her most seductive and handsy. Even though Hamilton was just defiantly shouting “I don’t want you,” he trails off as Maria changes his mind for him. Hamilton is not thinking with his brain here, and clearly in no position to say no to this:
Again, Maria’s adulterous seduction is compared to Eliza’s pure love in “Helpless.”
Also, here we see ambiguity as to whether Maria is a willing participant in this con or might also be a victim of her husband’s. She would go on to divorce him, and her attorney in that divorce was none other than Aaron Burr.
On stage, Maria is being her most seductive and handsy. Even though Hamilton was just defiantly shouting “I don’t want you,” he trails off as Maria changes his mind for him. Hamilton is not thinking with his brain here, and clearly in no position to say no to this:
There’s possibly a bit of a play on words here: by choosing to “pay” for Maria by buying off James Reynolds, he also “pays” by sacrificing his reputation.
On stage, Maria is being her most seductive and handsy. Even though Hamilton was just defiantly shouting “I don’t want you,” he trails off as Maria changes his mind for him. Hamilton is not thinking with his brain here, and clearly in no position to say no to this:
Contrast this to Eliza’s plea in “That Would Be Enough,”
Let this moment be the first chapter / Where you decide to stay.
Earlier, during “The Farmer Refuted” Hamilton says “Don’t modulate the key and not debate with me.” Here Maria modulates the key, and Hamilton capitulates.
It is pretty ironic that Hamilton is calling from help from God in this time of stress, because as mentioned in “It’s Quiet Uptown,” he hardly ever prays, and was not particularly religious at the time. He only does so when he feels helpless and out of control, such as this moment and after his son’s death. However, the big difference here is that Hamilton actually is in control of this situation. He calls out to God to help him resist temptation, but it’s his own self-restraint that fails and ultimately causes him to fall from grace.
It is pretty ironic that Hamilton is calling from help from God in this time of stress, because as mentioned in “It’s Quiet Uptown,” he hardly ever prays, and was not particularly religious at the time. He only does so when he feels helpless and out of control, such as this moment and after his son’s death. However, the big difference here is that Hamilton actually is in control of this situation. He calls out to God to help him resist temptation, but it’s his own self-restraint that fails and ultimately causes him to fall from grace.
These are the only places in the show where Hamilton describes himself as truly out of control. We’ve seen his impulsiveness elsewhere—shouting at Washington, flirting outrageously with Angelica and then immediately transferring his affections to her sister, blowing his top in a Cabinet meeting—but in all those situations he appears confident and full of righteousness. Here, according to his own narration, he’s plagued by doubts, but unable to stop himself from doing what he knows is wrong.
Of course, given that it is his own narration, he may be playing up his “helplessness” to win a bit of audience sympathy. It’s not terribly effective, as evinced by the horrified tone of the ensemble warning him away.
He’s also appropriating Eliza’s “helpless” motif here, which just makes things worse. We know who’s really helpless in this situation, Hamilton, and it’s not you.
Maria insisting that Alexander is leaving her helpless is a call back to Eliza’s song “Helpless”, and is an example of parallelism in Alexander’s life and relationships, It’s also meant as a juxtaposition, as Eliza’s love empowers Alexander to be safer and better in his job while Maria’s love endangers his job and renders him as helpless as both women.
Is tha really so, or is that only his wishful thinking? In the first time, she tried to seduce him, so of course she looked inviting, but as Burr said “I’ll let him tell it”, this may be HIS point of view (maybe as he published them) of the events, rather than what actually may have happened.
From Chernow:
At this point [after paying Reynolds], Hamilton tried to terminate the shabby affair, which formed such an odd counterpoint to the splendor of his public life. Briefly, he ceased all contact with Maria. This frightened James Reynolds, who saw future income fast fading away. On January 17, 1792, he wrote to Hamilton and urged him to visit the house and regard his wife as a “friend.” Suddenly, he was no longer the wronged spouse but a philanthropist concerned for his wife’s welfare, not a grief-stricken husband but a shameless pimp for his wife. It is hard to believe that at this juncture Hamilton did not abruptly end this hazardous affair.
The stage direction preceding this section is simple, and speaks to Hamilton’s lack of control:
They kiss. It escalates.
Hamilton and Maria’s exchanges of “Yes, yes!” here are deliberately in the style of cries of passion.
The stage direction preceding this section is simple, and speaks to Hamilton’s lack of control:
They kiss. It escalates.
Hamilton and Maria’s exchanges of “Yes, yes!” here are deliberately in the style of cries of passion.
The stage direction preceding this section is simple, and speaks to Hamilton’s lack of control:
They kiss. It escalates.
Hamilton and Maria’s exchanges of “Yes, yes!” here are deliberately in the style of cries of passion.
The stage direction preceding this section is simple, and speaks to Hamilton’s lack of control:
They kiss. It escalates.
Hamilton and Maria’s exchanges of “Yes, yes!” here are deliberately in the style of cries of passion.
It’s interesting to note that this wording, two negative words expressing a positive sentiment (the simple phrasing would be ‘I say yes to this’), is strikingly indirect for Hamilton. There’s a deliberate obfuscation of his actions by hiding them in misleading language – in contrast, he’s spent most of the play up to now being extremely direct with his words, even to the point of abrasiveness. There’s an underlying sense of his shame in this repeated phrase, which won’t even properly name the deed itself.
This same question was posed to Hamilton in “Right Hand Man” when Washington asks Hamilton to join his staff. Hamilton’s acceptance of the offer gives him the “shot” that he’s been waiting for and jump-starts his political career.
Whereas here, the “So?” posed and Hamilton’s answer triggers the ending of his political career via the ensuing scandal.
Later, in “We Know”, Hamilton says the same words to ask whether Jefferson, Madison, and Burr will tell everyone about his sex scandal. They reply that the people won’t know what they know, just as Hamilton said that nobody needed to know. Him saying this line at the end of “We Know” suggests that then as now, he knows the problem will not be extinguished, only temporarily solved.
Nod to “Nobody Needs to Know” from the musical The Last Five Years, in which Jamie cheats on his wife, Cathy, with another woman.
