David Park as Thomas Jefferson in Hamilton performing "What Did I Miss?" Photo by Joan Marcus.
In the fall of 2015, Hamilton the Musical had just opened on Broadway and David Park saw the original cast perform after he won the Ham for Ham lottery. The experience was unlike any other Broadway show he had seen. He laughed, cried, and described it as similar to a concert.
Although he didn’t usually stage door for shows, Park met Lin Manuel Miranda.
“Lin was signing my playbook and I said ‘Keep this show open for a while because I’m going to be in it someday,” Park said.
Now, he portrays Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in the Angelica National Tour.
He recalls how meaningful it was to see a cast of people of color telling the story of the founding fathers through hip hop and pop, the genres he listened to growing up.
While training in musical theater at school, he thought his options would be limited to four shows that had Asian roles.
“When I saw Hamilton, I was like oh this is why I’m here. It was such a raw experience because I didn’t know musical theater could be like that,” he said.
The message he took away from the show was that you can tell a story with any type of characters through any medium whether it's high school theater, or hip hop as long as you’re telling a story with real characters, truth, honesty, and vulnerability.
His audition process started his last semester of college. For the first appointment, he tried out for Hamilton, Laurens/Phillip, and King George. A couple of callbacks later, he made it to the final few which was very encouraging to him.
Afterwards, he auditioned for the show every six months for the next three years. He remembers trying out for every male role except George Washington. In February of 2020, he was called in to audition for Lafayette/ Jefferson.
“That was the first time I’d been called for just one of the principal roles. I kind of felt it in my heart, this is it. I think they found a place for me. I’m going to give what I know how to give. That ended up being the audition that I booked Hamilton,” he said.
Theater was then halted due to the pandemic but Park believes “the timing happened the way it was meant to.”
For Park, it’s an honor to play a part that made an impact on him because he’s cognizant he is making an impact for kids of color, especially for Asian kids.
“I want to represent for people that aren’t aware that they can do this. That there’s a space for them in this industry because I didn’t grow up thinking there was. That’s what means the most to me to play an iconic character as a Korean American,” he said.
Tyler Belo as Hercules Mulligan, Jon Viktor Corpuz as John Laurens, David Park as Marquis de Lafayette, and Edred Utomi as Alexander Hamilton. Photo by Joan Marcus.
Portraying a revolutionary war hero in the first act and a flamboyant president in the second, he feels like he is doing two shows every night.
“Marquis de Lafayette is all heart. He’s here to serve a country that’s not even his and he’s willing to die for it. I think that’s really powerful and beautiful,” he said.
In fact, Lafayette has the most streets in America named after a foreign person. According to Park, it may be because of Lafayette's huge impact in the Revolutionary War.
He notes Jefferson is his favorite character in the show but not as a historical figure. Through his portrayal, he enjoys leaning into all of the things that made Jefferson stand out and he describes Jefferson as living in his own world.
The Sons of Liberty as the end of "Yorktown." Photo by Joan Marcus.
Park admits he still gets emotional sometimes at the end of “Yorktown.” When he saw the show on Broadway, it was one of the moments that was incredibly touching and moving for him.
The rehearsal process came with its own set of challenges. Since the show was already running, he learned both roles in a room with the resident director, the resident choreographer and the dance captain. There was tape on the ground to mark formations and no turntable.
The choreographer and director guided him by telling him where other actors would stand and where he should stand in relation. At the time, Park remembers he put a lot of pressure on himself because it was his dream job.
“Doing the show in the room by yourself is one thing but doing the show onstage with the whole cast full out is another thing," he said.
Park has been touring with the Angelica cast for a year and to this day, he likes to keep the material fresh and try new ideas.
An example of this is at the end of “We Know,” when Jefferson exclaims “My god!” as he uncovers Hamilton’s secret affair and reads about the amount Hamilton paid which was over 100,000 dollars.
He thought about Hamilton being accused for pulling money from the country when instead Hamilton was paying to keep his affair quiet.
“I realized one day that there is nothing in the script that says how to say it. That’s the first sex scandal in American history. I looked at him and said the line like I was disgusted, shocked and amazed,” he said.
It’s due to his creativity in line delivery and performance choices that Park shines in his role as both Lafayette and Jefferson.
Park is very grateful for Tyler Belo who plays Madison and Mulligan. He feels lucky that he has someone to lean on during the show since a lot of the roles like Alexander Hamilton can be isolating.
“The Mulligan/ Madison role, especially Madison, is a track where he and I move together very closely,” he said.
Hamilton is a musical that is riddled with musical references from hip hop to pop but Park’s favorite has got to be the line he says in “Cabinet Battle 1” which pays homage to the Notorious B.I.G. : "And if you don’t know now you know, Mr. President.”
The Hamilton Angelica Tour performs at the Broward Center until Dec 11. Photo by Joan Marcus.
From winning the Ham for Ham lottery to achieving his dream role, Park’s experience has come full circle now as he signs playbills for fans. He even got to meet two fans recently that cosplayed as Thomas Jefferson.
“I know what it's like to be a fan of something to really care about it and be invested. To be a part of something that means that to someone else is a very moving and humbling feeling,” he said.
Although Park began performing in musicals when he was 21 years old at his community college, his love for musical theater began before then. Looking back, he realized he was introduced to theater through movies like High School Musical, and Rent.
When applying to colleges, he was drawn to Pace University’s theater program which at the time was known as the Island of Misfit Toys.
Unlike other theater programs who tended to cast their upcoming classes with roles such as leading man and ingenue in mind, Pace’s mission statement was to embrace all different kinds of students pursuing musical theater.
“Pace’s program was just like how can we find the most interesting actors and actresses? When I went there I got to do a lot of shows and I loved the training I received,” he said.
He notes students can often limit themselves to pursuing one thing. He suggests trying different hobbies, going to the park, and living your life. According to Park, what makes a great actor is bringing a lot of truth to your performance and the only way you can bring truth is if you’ve lived a lot of life and experienced a lot of things.
“Find as much joy in your life as possible. Life is going to make sure to find all of the other emotions too. You’re going to find a lot of sad, a lot of hurt, a lot of dark times, but if you’re always seeking joy then you’ll find it. You’ll have a really well rounded palette of emotions in your heart and spirit and you’ll be able to bring that. No one wants to see a fake person on stage, you want to see real people on stage,” he said.
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