Overview

• During a June 19 appearance on Watch What Happens Live, Anthony Ramos said Madonna kept her iPad in her face throughout a 2015 Hamilton performance and joked she could have left if she wasn’t engaged.
• Ramos’s account reinforces long-standing speculation after Lin-Manuel Miranda tweeted in April 2015 that he barred a celebrity from going backstage for texting through Act 2.
• Jonathan Groff previously described seeing Madonna’s illuminated phone screen from the stage, adding that her device glow was unmistakable to performers.
• Madonna’s publicist has repeatedly denied she was ever banned from backstage, noting she was invited multiple times and even made a generous donation after the show.
• The renewed spotlight on the incident comes as Madonna gears up to release her Veronica Electronica EDM remix album and the original Hamilton cast celebrated its 10th anniversary reunion.