www.fastcompany.com: If narrative convention counts for anything, the story of Be More Chill should have been over a long time ago. The sci-fi musical opened at a regional theater in New Jersey in 2015, ran for about four weeks, and closed after receiving a mixed response from critics, including a lukewarm review in the New York Times, which described its teen-centered plot as formulaic and its comedic efforts as having a “whiff of the stale about them.” Typically, a low-stakes show with scant marketing resources would not have had much of a life beyond that.
7 comments:
The article starts off by stating the fact that the musical, Be More Chill, was not doing so well. Audiences did not connect with the story line and other news platforms gave “lukewarm” reviews. The cast and crew of the show were ready to let the show die down- but the loyal fans refused. In turn, a group of high school students were the life of the show. They broadcasted the music and advocated for the show due to the fact that they knew the amount of potential this show has. Eventually, the cast recording was posted on spotify and other platforms and started to gradually gain interest in audiences. I find it really admirable that these students believed in this musical and brought it to people’s attention. Not everyday does an off-broadway and underground show get this much attention- and it’s all thanks to their fans. By spreading the word and constantly keeping their community aware of this musical, they were able to bring it to a larger audience.
Underground Musical to Broadway—
I have heard a couple songs from Be More Chill, but I have not listened all the way through the cast album or encountered the online community. That said, after reading this article, I kind of want to see it, which, in a way, proves the articles point; more exposure to content increases interest, not replaces it. I think that has massive implications for producing and marketing shows in coming years, some of which might not be understood yet. The fact that Be More Chill was not just bolstered by its social media exposure but actually revived from closing is striking, and it might demonstrate the power of social media even more than Hamilton, which is arguably the most prominent example of this phenomenon (after all, thousands of people have listened to or even memorized the cast album and followed Lin Manuel Miranda and the cast on social media, long before they ever see the show). This makes me think that social media coordinators could become the linchpins of marketing for plays and especially musicals of the future.
For much of the history of the entertainment industry, professional reviews and award shows limited what shows became popular. Be More Chill demonstrates how social media has changed the way that shows sell. It gives word of mouth an incredible amount of power. I remember first hearing about this show in the summer of 2016. The popularity of this show, I believe, began and was elevated by the introduction of Heathers to Broadway. Heathers was an easy sell as it profits off of the nostalgia of movie fans, and the young people it represents. Be More Chill, however, consists of a very young demographic almost exclusively. Social media gave them a voice when they otherwise would have had none. Dear Evan Hansen only reinforced the popularity of teen centered musicals focused on mental health issues. While Be More Chill was definitely brought back to life by dedicated fans online, I feel that the popularity of similar musicals which had a wider target audience is what is truly allowing this show to flourish three years later.
I think that the story of Be More Chill not only speaks the the power of social media, but just how important it is to tell the diverse stories to the audiences that will listen. Just yesterday the associate director of Hamilton, Patrick Vassel came to speak to us and gave us the advice to "share your stories'. With shows like Hamilton and Be More Chill, the theater community is hearing stories that have never been told so truthfully, bringing audiences that relate to our world and educating audiences already here of a different perspective. This just reminds me that a show telling a different story needs the right audience to connect to and that will help the audience that doesn't relate, see it's importance.
While I have never listened to or seen Be More Chill, majority of my theatre department in high school has. They talked about the show endlessly, and loved the quirky, relatable plot it delivered to them as high schoolers. I even had one friend who drove to Baltimore two days in a row and waited upwards of 14 hours for a ticket to the Maryland Theatre Ensemble's production of Be More Chill. The article is totally correct - this show snowballed so much success from social media and the original production’s fans spreading the word. The soundtrack obviously touched parts of people’s own experiences, and with this added sentiment of personal relation, the show was an automatic hit. I am excited for Be More Chill’s cast and production team, as their rapidly growing popularity is absolutely incredible. They must be excited to share their art with the fans who have spent so much time imagining it online.
Be More Chill ending up on Broadway is something for the history books. I first found out about this show probably a year ago from the hit song Michael In the Bathroom. The video has millions of views and for musical theatre that is crazy high numbers. The reason this show is so successful is truly the fans. They have been the reason why this show was even picked up for Off-Broadway. The album is on Spotify and has millions of listens. Social media really changed and Be More Chill is a direct reaction from positive social media. Over the summer there were talks of this going to Broadway and I was unsure how it will do. Selling out a house of 300 compared to 1000 is very different. I assumed that everyone who wants to see this show will have already seen it. And just like the article said the NY times does not give it a good review and it didn’t for Off-Broadway either. The big thing the Times said was that social media really changed the game for this show, and they are right. I’m excited to see the journey this show will go on.
I have never actually seen Be More Chill, or heard the majority of the soundtrack, but I think I can relate to many of my peers by saying that the song "Michael in the Bathroom" is what caught my attention when it came to this musical. It's a song that definitely extremely relatable to the high school - college student population. This age group is very good at spreading literally anything on social media like wildfire, so it's not surprising that they brought this musical into the light. I think Be More Chill has some great messages to spread to the theatre community, but I'm worried it will stop with college students. I don't think this is a musical that many older theatre goers know about or would be interested in. I think it would be beneficial if they did see it, but I'm not sure if the social media spread will be as effective on older generations.
Post a Comment