A small crowd watched their live interview in the coffee shop and applauded when they were done.
The two actors then walked outside to participate in a special event that saw Hamilton’s main High Street closed by police so Mayor Pat Moeller could read a proclamation.
Posing in front of the city’s famed and visually dramatic statue of Hamilton in the middle of High Street, the two bantered with dozens of onlookers while posing for pictures at the base of the sculpture.
Utomi mimicked the Hamilton statue’s pose for some photos joking at one point — as his hand pointed skyward — by calling out “taxi!”
Moeller was joined by a group of local high school students as they gathered around the two actors.
“We are very proud of the heritage of Hamilton being named after Alexander Hamilton,” Moeller said. “And it’s fun, exciting and an honor to have you actors — you artists — here in our city.
“You have created a buzz right here, right now.”
The mayor presented them with a city proclamation and also promised them bottles of Hamilton’s internationally acclaimed water, which comes fresh from Southwest Ohio’s massive aquifer and has won numerous awards for taste and quality.
“You’re going to be singing so much better because of our water,” Moeller joked.
Stovall thanked the mayor and said “it’s very humbling for the two of us to stand here.”
“Being a Midwestern boy myself, Ohio is the heart of this country. And it’s really lovely to come to a town of this size that clearly has maintained its integrity. We’re excited and humbled,” he said.
Utomi followed, saying “it’s an honor to tell this story and it’s an honor to get this proclamation.”
“Thank you for your warm welcome from everyone here in Hamilton,” Utomi said.
Stovall then said “we’re going to stop blocking traffic now” as the onlookers applauded.
The city and its advocates are using the musical to invite the nearly 63,000 who will be watching the musical during its run in Cincinnati to pay a visit to Hamilton. That invitation is being extended through a two-page ad in the pamphlet, Playbill, that is handed out to audiences before performances.
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