NEW YORK (AP) - Ever since the historical musical "Hamilton" began its march to near-universal infatuation, one group has noticeably withheld its applause - historians.

Many academics argue the portrait of Alexander Hamilton, the star of our $10 bills, is a counterfeit. Now they're escalating their fight. Renowned writer Ishmael Reed has chosen to fight fire with fire - collecting his critique of Lin-Manuel Miranda's acclaimed show into a play.

Reed's "The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda" is an uncompromising take-down of "Hamilton," reminding viewers of the Founding Father's complicity in slavery and his war on Native Americans. Reed is part of a wave of "Hamilton" skeptics - often solitary voices of dissent - who have written journal articles, newspaper op-eds and a 2018 collection of essays, "Historians on Hamilton."