Daveed Diggs ’04 draws upon experiences at Brown for starring role in Hamilton
‘Brown, which everyone told me was this crazy liberal school, felt very conservative to me’
Daveed Diggs, a member of Brown Class of 2004, has made a splash on Broadway with his captivating portrayal of Thomas Jefferson and French general Marquis de Lafayette in the hit musical, Hamilton.
The musical, which won a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album earlier this week, is based on the life of Alexander Hamilton and has the public scrambling for tickets. To many critics, it is one of the most important and valuable cultural productions that the stage has seen in decades.
To portray the role of a wealthy Thomas Jefferson, Diggs acknowledges he draws upon his experience spending time around wealthier students at Brown.
“There was a lot of money, and it was hard for me to relate to that in a lot of ways,” he said.
He also heavily credits his sense of family and togetherness that his parents fostered in him as a child.
“I felt so loved and taken care of, and that’s a huge part of the reason I’m able to do what I do,” he said. “I’m aware that not everybody gets that feeling of ease walking through the world that I have. It’s not due to money, but it’s something I think I use a lot for Jefferson.”
At Brown, Diggs competed in sprints and hurdles, winning the Outstanding Freshman Award in 2001 – and his athletic prowess shows as he glides across the stage. Though he credits choreographers for the gracefulness with which he leaps six feet in the air during the show, there is no doubt that Diggs uses his experience as a former member of the Brown Track and Field to his advantage.
Off the track, Diggs was involved in Brown’s theater arts program, and was a member of a Brown rap group called Soul Cypher. In a conversation with Boston.com, Diggs commented on his time with Soul Cypher, saying: “We had some newbie kids in there, too. We were bad at what we did, but, you know, we got to play some shows.”
Diggs uses his fluid rap abilities, especially noted in the show’s “Cabinet Battle #1” number. Listen below.
When asked to comment on his experience at Brown, Diggs noted it wasn’t always easy, and that he was somewhat surprised by the campus culture.
Coming from a California upbringing that he described as “more liberal than most,” Diggs said: “So I think even Brown, which everyone told me was this crazy liberal school, felt very conservative to me.”
After graduating from Brown, Diggs spent a period of time couch surfing in New York City – sometimes spending the night in the subway – while attending open casting calls, he told the New York Post.