Mark Bennett: Hometown played leading role in Michael Natt's path to "Hamilton"

Of course Michael Natt was ready when the stage manager walked in and asked an unforgettable question of the 24-year-old standby actor from Terre Haute.

“Are you comfortable going on as Hamilton?” she asked Natt.

Michael Natt back stage.jpeg

Michael Natt, shown back stage, handles a standby role with the “Hamilton” Angelica Tour company, and was called into duty for the lead role earlier this month. It marked his debut in the Alexander Hamilton role.

Hamilton — as in Alexander Hamilton, one of America’s Founding Fathers. As in “Hamilton” the musical, wildly popular ever since songwriter-singer-actor Lin-Manual Miranda’s handiwork debuted off-Broadway and then on-Broadway in 2015. As in “Hamilton” one of the hottest tickets in theater.

Comfortable?

“I said, ‘Absolutely. Let’s do it. Let’s go,’” Natt recalled telling the stage manager of the “Hamilton” Angelica Cast Tour production company on Wednesday, Aug. 21. "Hamilton" on Broadway has won a Pulitzer Prize and 11 Tony Awards, and now two touring companies — by its Angelica and Philip casts — are taking it across the country.

The Aug. 21 performance in Arkansas was Natt’s debut in the lead role as Alexander Hamilton. The opportunity came early. Natt had been told his chance to play the signer of the Constitution would happen on the following Saturday.

But when the tour’s lead actor couldn’t perform that Wednesday, Natt got the call for the matinee show. Natt’s wife, Tarah, and his mother, Cathy, were able to attend that performance in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Then he got called for the evening show, with just a 14-minute advance notice. And then again. Even more family were able to watch it unfold.

Natt knew what to do onstage. After all, he and the Angelica Tour’s cast rehearsed for eight hours a day for six weeks in New York City prior to the launch.

Still, getting to step up to the main role was big for Natt.

“It was nice to get three reps in a row that I could get constant notes on,” Natt said in a Zoom interview Thursday morning. “Because, a lot of times, in my position as a standby, you might not touch a role for three, four months. And me, I’m going to end up learning and covering four different [role] tracks in this next year. So, it’s like you have to be ready at any moment.”

The key is preparation, Natt said.

Michael Natt in Hamilton lead role.jpeg

Terre Haute’s Michael Natt (left) portrays Alexander Hamilton, a Founding Father of the United States of America, in the “Hamilton” Angelica Tour production in Arkansas.

There’s also an element of courage, too. Natt showed plenty of that in one of his many performances with the Community Theatre of Terre Haute. This week, Natt remembered playing Dr. Frank-n-Furter — the mad, transvestite scientist — in the CTTH’s 2016 production of “Rocky Horror Show,” the live dark comedy play that preceded the cult movie “Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Natt was 16.

He recalled that performance as one of his favorites, yet most fearful, “especially with me being straight, and taking on that role, and as a kid.”

He was apprehensive about how peers would respond but, as Cathy Natt recalled, he got some surprising support, including at the moment Michael walked on as Frank-n-Furter. The cast onstage had to pause because of the long, boisterous applause.

“I thought that was an amazing moment for a 16-year-old,” his mom said.

Michael compares that evening on the Community Theatre stage with his debut as Alexander Hamilton. “It was like, ‘Oh, wow, these people really want to see this,’” he said.

Grounded in family, faith

Eight years later, Natt’s an up-and-coming actor in one of two “Hamilton” companies touring the coasts individually. He’s got a wife and two children back in their Terre Haute home — 2-year-old John Thomas and 6-month-old Emersyn — and audiences that like what they’re seeing.

“It’s funny whenever you’ve got people who will come to you and be like, ‘I’m one of the sponsors for the production, here at this venue, and I’ve seen the show 13 times. This is my 14th time seeing it, and you guys are right up there with everybody else that we’ve seen,’” Natt said. Another compared Natt’s delivery to that of Miranda, the originator.

Cathy Natt with Michael at debut

Cathy Natt stands beside her son, Michael Natt, before a performance of “Hamilton” by the Angelica Tour company in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Natt, a 24-year-old Terre Haute native, debuted in the lead role on Aug. 21.

“Their reactions are so generous and so fun,” Natt said.

Yet, he’s remained well grounded, Cathy said, because of his Christian faith and the support of his wife and young family.

His path to acting, signing and performing began two decades ago. Michael was a 4-year-old kid, tagging along to his sisters’ dance recital. As his sisters Cierra and Courtney and their fellow dancers prepared backstage, Cathy guided Michael to the stage to sing country artist Tim McGraw’s song “Live Like You Were Dying.”

Acapella, as in just his voice.

“And he didn’t miss a single word,” Cathy said. “And everybody there was just like, ‘He’s 4.’”

As a Hoosier Prairie Elementary Schooler, Michael performed in “Cat in the Hat,” guided by teacher Melissa Sawyer. He performed in the Children’s Theater of Terre Haute, the Community Theatre of Terre Haute, out-of-state forums and eventually at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, where he graduated in 2022. Among his CTTH directors were Sandra Groves and Sara Solooki. Natt’s roles included Tom Sawyer, Col. Tom Thumb and his local-stage finale as the Donkey in “Shrek.”

Cathy said his Tom Sawyer and Tom Thumb parts carried special significance for a young, multi-race actor.

“Being cast as Tom Sawyer in Terre Haute was a big deal,” Cathy said. “And also playing General Tom Thumb in ‘Barnum’ — who was a real person, who was Caucasian — says a lot about the directors in this community who were willing to cast [Michael] in those roles.”

It took a village

Now, he’s acting alongside performers from a range of places, trained in schools such as Julliard in New York and Berklee in Boston. “And Saint Mary-of-the-Woods,” Natt added proudly, after rattling off a roster of the cast members’ alma maters. Together, they present musically the story of Alexander Hamilton, his part in the American revolution and backstory of early USA politics.

The production’s North America Tour involves two separate companies — the Philip Cast and the Angelica Cast. For anyone curious about the differences between the groups, and the Broadway hit production, Natt offers one of his favorite boyhood TV series, “The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers,” as an example.

“There were a bunch of different ‘Power Rangers’ teams. But every team has a Red Ranger [character]. Every team has a Blue Ranger and a Yellow Ranger and Green Ranger,” Natt explained. “That’s how my mind sees it, having been a ‘Power Rangers’ kid growing up. It is so cool.”

Natt’s fully immersed in this moment, but also acknowledges that beyond “Hamilton” he’d welcome acting roles in film and television. “Hamilton” can open doors.

“You’ve got people from ‘Hamilton’ that have gone on to win Tony Awards, that have gone on to star in movies, star in feature TV shows,” Natt said. Anthony Ramos, for example, is in the cast of the new movie “Twisters.”

“It is wild the opportunities that ‘Hamilton’ opens,” Natt said.

His years in Terre Haute also gave Natt momentum.

“It takes a village. And the village got me here,” Natt said. “Terre Haute got me here. Danville, Illinois’, production got me here. My mom, my family, my wife. Portland, Oregon, got me here.

“And I tell you what, a bunch of no’s got me here; a bunch of roles that really I wanted but didn’t get,” Natt continued. “Because I learned something every time. I guess my message is, ‘Thank you’ for the village that it took to get me to where I am. Because everybody played a part. Some positive — mostly positive — some not, but I learned from that.”

He’s enjoying this. A lot. It’s what he’s always wanted to do.

“Absolutely. I’m having a blast. It’s my dream job,” Natt said, smiling broadly. “It is just amazing that at 24, I’m able to live it out. And I’m just excited to see where God takes me.”