Maria Reynolds is a character in Hamilton and is portrayed by Jasmine Cephas Jones.
Biography[]
In "Say No To This", she is portrayed as helpless, apologetic, and confused. She begs Hamilton to stay with her because Reynolds would abuse her and her daughter Susan. After he walks her home, she seduces him and convinces him to sleep with her, starting a secret affair that lasted for a month before her husband, James Reynolds, found out. When he found out; however, he blackmailed Hamilton to pay him so that the scandal would be kept a secret. This started their affair, which was from 1791 to 1792.
She is portrayed in "Say No To This", participating in the affair above.
She stands in the background of "We Know" and "Hurricane", where she then hands Hamilton the pen he uses to write the document detailing their affair (and the subject of the next song) "The Reynolds Pamphlet".
The reason why Maria did not divorce Reynolds earlier is because he threatened to take away and put up their daughter, Susan, for adoption. With the help of Aaron Burr, she managed to obtain a divorce from James (in addition to becoming her daughter's legal guardian and providing her with an education) and remarried two more times that are known.
Trivia[]
- She is the second youngest character played in the musical after Philip Hamilton and the fourth youngest (if we count the mentions) after Angelica Hamilton, Theodosia Burr Alston and, again, Philip Hamilton.
- It is mistakenly believed that Maria had some connection to the Schuyler family due to the novel by Tilar J. Mazzeo, Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton. There is no reliable source that Maria was related to the Schuylers, so it is very likely that Mazzeo added it to add drama to her book.
- She was a child for almost the entire first act. To give you an idea, she was 4 years old at the end of Alexander Hamilton (song) and 14 at the beginning of Non-Stop.
- She married James Reynolds by her father's arrangement at age 15. She had her first and only child at 17.
Notable Casting Changes[]
Vassar Workshop[]
- Presilah Nunez originated the role.
Broadway[]
- Jasmine Cephas Jones originated the role until December 8th, 2016.
- Alysha Deslorieux took over on December 16th, 2016.
- The current cast member is Aubin Wise
Chicago[]
- Samantha Marie Ware originated the role.
National Tour[]
- Amber Iman originated the role.
West End[]
- Christine Allado originated the role.