Arlington Heights native manages 'Hamilton' productions
You've heard of “Hamilton,” the musical about our Founding Fathers that took Broadway by storm. And by now, you know the name Lin Manuel Miranda, who played the title character in the original cast.
Odds are, you saw the Schuyler Sisters sing “America the Beautiful” at the Super Bowl. So you might be surprised to learn that one of the key people involved in the most successful musical to ever hit theaters doesn't have one line in the play. She doesn't sing one note.
Yet, without her — or the efforts of more than 100 other production employees — “Hamilton” might not have been the huge success it is today.
Meet Kaitlin Fine, the associate company manager for the Chicago production of “Hamilton.” She's an Arlington Heights native, an alumna of Rolling Meadows High School and Northwestern University, a Cubs fan, and a former actress.
Her job is to make sure that every night the show goes off without a hitch.
“Every day is different. I handle everything from making sure the cast is present and healthy, to dealing with budgeting, accounting and payroll, to tickets and special event planning,” she said.
“I enjoy working with people and solving problems. Watching the show come together is like solving a puzzle. It's very rewarding.”
While Fine was a student at South Middle School in Arlington Heights, she participated in Setting the Stage, a local theater group that teaches all aspects of musical production.
She majored in theater in college. During her senior year, she found her calling as a company manager. She preferred it to acting because she felt a greater sense of control over her career.
“I remember running around and knocking on doors, delivering my headshots to people in New York, and I realized that this wasn't for me. I wanted to be on the other side of the door,” she said.
Fine admits that she wasn't completely aware of all aspects of the job before doing it for “The Last Ship,” a musical that ran for 105 shows in New York.
“You really do need to learn everything. Not just your job, or even your department, but all aspects of the stage, administrative, marketing and the press associated with the show. There's a lot of moving parts,” she said.
Fine said working on the set of a struggling musical gave her a better perspective for the success of “Hamilton,” and she's glad to have dealt with more difficult situations than difficult actors. She recalls the day the online lottery for Broadway's “Hamilton” malfunctioned and accidentally rewarded 70 people tickets when she had only 20 to give out.
“I gave away a lot of T-shirts to angry people that day,” she said with a smile.
A much happier memory is when she traveled to Washington, D.C., with the New York cast to watch George Washington (played by Christopher Jackson) perform the song “One Last Time” for President Obama.
In Chicago, Fine, with assistance from more than 50 backstage crew members and 30 onstage actors, puts on eight shows every week. Every night is sold out, and each ends with a standing ovation for the actors.
While the audience applauds wildly for the stars who play Hamilton and Burr, what might never cross their mind is how much their hair and makeup, their costumes, the lighting, and the sound played a part in the performance.
But people like Fine are secure in their role without the need for applause.
“I just love what I do,” she said.
She also shared this advice with young theater enthusiasts: “If you're interested at all, try it. The blessing and curse of theater is that it's ephemeral. If you don't like it, it's over in a couple of months, but, if you do, you could find yourself in an amazingly awesome community of smart, tolerant, accepting weirdos forever.”