‘Hamilton’ cast plans on doing good deeds in community during show’s run in Wichita

When the cast of “Hamilton” sets down for a two-week run, as it will in Wichita beginning Tuesday, it cares as much about acts of social justice as it does acting on stage.

Lencia Kebede, who has played Angelica Schuyler in the Founding Fathers musical on tour since the summer of 2019, describes herself as a “leader, project manager and innovative social justice organizer,” which pairs well with the onstage and offstage work of the “Hamilton” cast.

“The most obvious parallel between the two is an internal body of ‘Hamilton’ that we started during the pandemic called Ham4Progress,” she said from a tour stop in Appleton, Wis. “It’s a social justice group that we use for education and for outreach. As soon as we opened that, I was very sure my skills and passions were going to be best used.

“Overall, I knew what the show stood for, and I knew what the brand was, which was very enticing for me when I started,” she added. “I knew there’d be a lot of opportunity for community service and outreach, and I knew it was something really important to the show. It absolutely has proven that to me since I joined.”

“Hamilton” – winner of nine Tony Awards, the Pulitzer Prize for drama and the Kennedy Center Honors – touches down at Century II for 16 performances from Tuesday through June 18 at Century II to conclude the 2022-23 Broadway in Wichita series.

Kebede said the cast will go to shelters with donations of canned goods and/or toiletries. During the pandemic, Ham4Progress worked virtually on voters rights, trying to get audience members to register to vote.

“Human rights, civil rights, racial justice, socioeconomic justice,” she said. “Really about people and equality – equal treatment, that’s where my heart lies.”

The Los Angeles native said her fellow cast and crew members feel the same way.

“Everybody is so passionate, and it’s really uplifting to be in a workspace that has people that care about other people aside from the ones who are in the theater with us,” she said. “So many people volunteer their time and want to get involved with the initiatives involved to celebrate the many cultures ‘Hamilton’ represents in terms of their actors and underserved and underprivileged communities where we visit.”

It fits in well with the theme of the show and its production, where non-white performers played many of the historic figures.

“I think the main takeaway is that anyone can do anything,” she said. “Especially being a group of color playing traditionally white historical figures from American history, I think it preaches this idea of empowerment, personal empowerment, that I think is fantastic and applies to anyone anywhere, but specifically to the needs of people of color.”

Kebede first heard the “Hamilton” cast album sometime while at LA’s Occidental College, where she graduated in 2017 with a double major in diplomacy and world affairs and politics, while being active in the college theater program.

“People got so excited and obsessed with the music, and when I finally saw it in Los Angeles when one of the tours was there. It was just word of mouth, the popular trend at the time,” Kebede recalled. “I was so enthralled by the details of the story, mostly the way the ensemble was able to paint such an incredible and detailed scene. I immediately felt attached to the specificity in which the story was told.”

Watching it for the first time, she said she didn’t initially picture herself being on stage.

‘I don’t know if this is my cup of tea, but I’m a huge fan,” Kebede said were her thoughts at the time. “That changed pretty quickly after.”

“Hamilton” currently has three companies touring North America (two of them will be closing soon, but the current coming to Century II will roll on), as well as London, Australia, Germany and talk of a tour cast for Asia.

When she was given the role of Angelica, eventually the sister-in-law of Alexander Hamilton, Kebede reached out to others who were currently or had previously played the role.

“It’s so wonderful to hear other peoples’ experiences,” she said. “Everyone is very open and wants to support each other. It’s a really unique work environment in that sense.”

Their best advice? Speak up for yourself.

“If there’s something you need, voice it and most likely the company will be able to support you in what you need,” she said. “The company takes care of its employees to the nth degree and are very open in conversations about the needs of their employees.”

Like Wichita, many of the stops on this leg of the tour are cities that have not hosted the musical pop-culture phenomenon.

Their response?

“Basically awestruck,” Kebede said. “Sometimes audiences are so enthralled by the spectacle that is the show that they are silent. The show is sensory overload, it’s a phenomenon, so getting to play a market for the first time offers an opportunity for that inspiration, that empowerment. People get overwhelmed with joy watching something they’ve been waiting to see unfold live in front of them.”

The cast can feel the spirit of the audience from the stage, she said.

“It motivates us to the hundredth degree, watching people feel this amazing story, this amazing show, this amazing spectacle,” she said. “By every means it is beautiful. The energy is electric.”

A veteran of productions including “Hairspray” and a national tour of “Rent,” Kebede said “Hamilton” is among the most demanding productions for its performers.

“It requires a lot of physical, mental, vocal, emotional focus to perform a show like this with this level of depth and this many moving parts,” she said. “I think a lot of us have built great stamina. We’ve done this show for a long time, but it requires a lot of sacrifice outside work. You can’t go to that extra dinner with friends or go have a drink at night sometimes.

“In order to perform this show at the level we perform it at, we have to take care of ourselves,” Kebede added. “That is unique to a show like ‘Hamilton’ and it shows. Everyone values their health – physically, mentally, spiritually – because they know that translates to a good, quality show.”

Kebede said she’d like to continue playing Angelica indefinitely.

“As long as my spirit can handle it,” she said. “I am obsessed with this show and it is so wonderful to do it every night.”

‘HAMILTON’ BY BROADWAY IN WICHITA

When: 7:30 p.m. June 6-8 and 13-15; 8 p.m. June 9 and 16; 2 and 8 p.m. June 10 and 17; 1 and 7 p.m. June 11; 1:30 p.m. June 15; 1 p.m. June 18

Where: Century II concert hall, 225 W. Douglas

Tickets: $49-$149, from BroadwayWichita.com, Century2.com or 755-7328