Ten Duel Commandments
Producers
One, two, three, four
[FULL COMPANY]
Five, six, seven, eight, nine…
[BURR/HAMILTON/LAURENS/LEE]
It’s the Ten Duel Commandments
[FULL COMPANY]
It’s the Ten Duel Commandments
Number one!
[LAURENS]
The challenge: demand satisfaction
If they apologize, no need for further action
[COMPANY]
Number two!
[LAURENS]
If they don’t, grab a friend, that’s your second
[HAMILTON]
Your lieutenant when there’s reckoning to be reckoned
Number three!
[LEE]
Have your seconds meet face to face
[BURR]
Negotiate a peace…
[HAMILTON]
Or negotiate a time and place
[BURR]
This is commonplace, ‘specially ‘tween recruits
[COMPANY]
Most disputes die, and no one shoots
Number four!
[LAURENS]
If they don’t reach a peace, that’s alright
Time to get some pistols and a doctor on site
[HAMILTON]
You pay him in advance, you treat him with civility
You have him turn around so he can have deniability
[COMPANY]
Five!
[LEE]
Duel before the sun is in the sky
[COMPANY]
Pick a place to die where it’s high and dry
Number six!
[HAMILTON]
Leave a note for your next of kin
Tell ‘em where you been. Pray that hell or heaven lets you in
[COMPANY]
Seven!
[LEE]
Confess your sins. Ready for the moment
Of adrenaline when you finally face your opponent
[COMPANY]
Number eight!
Your last chance to negotiate
Send in your seconds, see if they can set the record straight…
[BURR]
Alexander
[HAMILTON]
Aaron Burr, sir
[BURR]
Can we agree that duels are dumb and immature?
[HAMILTON]
Sure
But your man has to answer for his words, Burr
[BURR]
With his life? We both know that’s absurd, sir
[HAMILTON]
Hang on, how many men died because Lee was inexperienced and ruinous?
[BURR]
Okay, so we’re doin’ this
[COMPANY]
Number nine!
[HAMILTON]
Look ‘em in the eye, aim no higher
Summon all the courage you require
Then count
[MEN]
One two three four
[FULL COMPANY]
Five six seven eight nine
[HAMILTON/BURR]
Number
[COMPANY]
Ten paces!
[HAMILTON/BURR]
Fire!
About
Hamilton, Laurens, Burr, and Lee recite a versified version of the code duello while preparing for a duel.
Title and style pays homage to “Ten Crack Commandments” by The Notorious B.I.G.
On the song and its inspiration:
Kail, the director, explained, “We needed to set up the duel between Hamilton and Burr—because you know Hamilton is going to die—so the groundwork of that, structurally, made a lot of sense to us. But having it be something so loved by hip-hop fans was also a way of saying that these folks from long ago were doing the same things that Biggie was talking about fifteen years ago.” Miranda nodded. “It’s a song about illegal activity, and how it works,” he said. “And we’re both stealing the structure from Moses.”
The company performed a modified version of the stage choreography for a #ham4ham performance.
Hamilton’s own account of the proceedings of Laurens’s duel with Charles Lee can be found here.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 3.My Shot
- 10.Helpless
- 11.Satisfied
- 13.Wait For It
- 14.Stay Alive
- 15.Ten Duel Commandments
- 16.Meet Me Inside
- 18.Guns and Ships
- 21.What Comes Next?
- 22.Dear Theodosia
- 23.Non-Stop
- 24.What’d I Miss
- 26.Take a Break
- 27.Say No to This
- 32.One Last Time
- 33.I Know Him
- 35.We Know
- 36.Hurricane
- 38.Burn
- 39.Blow Us All Away