BE MORE CHILL (Broadway) Reviews

[gleek4114]

VotePeron said: "The fact that The Prom was received better than this literally boggles my mind"

Because The Prom is actually really great...

[goldenstate5]

<<edited by BWW staff>>

I don't think Be More Chill is a particularly great musical, but I think it's charming and the songs are catchy. I get why teens have latched onto it. (though I think the bathroom song is massively overrated) It's a bubbly little show with a good heart despite some questionable decisions. (the love interest character I swear is a reject from Spelling Bee) The way y'all are trashing on it you'd think the producers ran over your dogs. The fanbase can be annoying, granted, but that's not a good enough reason to sneer over it so harshly.

Re: the Brantley review, he trashed it last summer and so what a shock? He trashed it again. If the producers didn't know this going in then they deserve to fail. The show has received positive reviews elsewhere, and I don't think we're in a world where the NYT particularly spells doom for the show. Ironically, The Prom's premise literally starts off with a scathing NYT review solely killing a show immediately, and itself received a positive review in the NYT and look how it's doing? Not so hot. Certainly worse than BMC is fairing. 

This is a show that kids will drag their parents to on trips this summer to NYC. It will get a tour. It costs very little to run every night. Let the kids have their fun, the rest of us can enjoy Kiss Me Kate and Hadestown. The only real downside is that this kills any chance it ever had for a Best Musical nom, which they would've certain cherished the chance to be on national television. I'd be amused if the Tonys just had the musical open up the show instead to get that youth demo.

[Braniff Forever]

I saw the final technical dress rehearsal and I went to opening night. I’m not sure what exactly they changed between the two performances I saw, but, I’m telling you, it was better the second time. I really enjoyed it, and I was not bored. I’m late 40’s, and I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. Other musicals I liked, were Fun Home, Hamilton, Color Purple, She Loves Me, Falsettos, DEH, Band’s Visit, The Light in the Piazza. I list those, so you can see what other things I really liked. I would put this show in the bottom category of those shows I liked, but I still think if you liked those shows, you will like BMC. Give it a chance. I believe you will be really surprised!!

[dramamama611]

Nearly every person on these boards gives the shows they see a "chance". People eat their words on here all the time about a show. No one thought The Prom would be any good, but look how many here ended up loving it. (NOt me, I got way too bored with the predictability of it).

Im seeing it next month. Do I expect to love it? Not really. But I might.

[disneybroadwayfan22]

I don’t even know why they sent Brantley to the show if the NYT knows he hates it. He already had his review. Was Jesse not available?

[dramamama611]

Because Beantly is the number 1 guy. And most people dont pay any attention to off bway reviews. And he could have changed his mind.

[After Eight]

WayTooBroadway wrote:

"Stans will be the death of musical theatre."

Wrong tense. And stans have nothing to do with it.

[haterobics]

disneybroadwayfan22 said: "I don’t even know why they sent Brantley to the show if the NYT knows he hates it. He already had his review. Was Jesse not available?"

That's not how it works. Once a reviewer is attached to a show, they continue to review it as it tracks from regional to Off-Broadway to Broadway. 

Nor is the Times trying to make sure a show gets a positive review by not sending someone who dislikes a show.

[haterobics]

goldenstate5 said: "It costs very little to run every night."

There is no Broadway show that costs very little to run every night. Once it is on Broadway that is automatically untrue, since they have to rent the theater.

[kellyiswicked]

goldenstate5 said: "...The only real downside is that this kills any chance it ever had for a Best Musical nom, which they would've certain cherished the chance to be on national television. I'd be amused if the Tonys just had the musical open up the show instead to get that youth demo."

I'm not sold that they're out of Best Musical nomination contention - there have been shows that Brantley didn't enjoy before that still got nods. A recent example is Something Rotten! which he panned and still got a bunch of nominations in a year with some strong competition. Now this isn't exactly an apples to apples comparison (obviously, extremely different audiences / shows / situations), but it does illustrate that Brantley is not the be all, end all. Plus, they may benefit from weak competition. 

[WhizzerMarvin]

This has been an incredibly weak year for both musicals and plays (a few exceptions notwithstanding).

I think Be More Chill still has a great shot at receiving a Best Musical nomination, regardless of what I personally think about the show, which is not much at all.

Tootsie and Hadestown seem the two likely locks, with The Prom a decent shot. Unless Beetlejuice was magically reworked since its DC run, Be More Chill is the obvious fourth slot.

[BdwyFan]

I think Ain’t Too Proud will get the fourth slot.

[CT2NYC]

Based on critics' reviews alone, if Frozen could get a Best Musical nomination, Be More Chill certainly can.

[Jordan Catalano]

Be More Chill will almost certainly get a nomination, for thee ratings alone, hoping its fans stay up past their bedtime to watch them perform.

[MrsSallyAdams]

I liked last summer's teen production in Chicago and the clips of the 2015 Jersey production. Clips from this one feel like the Rent film. It's nice to see original cast members but the show will play better if it lasts long enough to cast younger replacements.

[BJR]

SomethingPeculiar said: "I would be shocked if the NYT ever did a joint-review again, after the b!tchyKongreview (which got some industry blowback)and the unbalanced favoritism towardsOklahoma."

Reviews don't have to be balanced. They're opinion, not journalism. 

[quizking101]

Question: I looked in the thread and also on Instagram but I want someone to confirm. Are they doing the stage door at the FRONT of the Lyceum now instead of that tiny non-descript area on the next block?

[Wick3]

Yes they do autographs from the front now. 

[BJR]

Jordan Catalano said: "Be More Chill will almost certainly get a nomination, for thee ratings alone"

The nominating committee is made up of Industry people and doesn't usually care about ratings. And CBS wiped out that rule you have to be a nominee to perform, anyhow. 

That said, I don't try to predict these things. But I think CHER SHOW has a better shot at that last slot, unless BE MORE CHILL is a huge hit. 

[CT2NYC]

BJR said: "SomethingPeculiar said: "I would be shocked if the NYT ever did a joint-review again, after the b!tchyKongreview (which got some industry blowback)and the unbalanced favoritism towardsOklahoma."

Reviews don't have to be balanced. They're opinion, not journalism."

SomethingPeculiar wasn't talking about the opinions being unbalanced, but, rather, the joint review format, which was able to pack 2 unqualified raves into a single review.

[Mike Barrett]

I can't see BMC getting a nom for best musical, especially after those reviews. Everyone forgets about Aint Too Proud, a decently reviewed show, I know not loved by people on here but I can't see it not being the 4th nominee, especially over this and the Cher show. Not surprised by the reviews however, I think all the reviews should be summed up as "This wasn't made for us", cause it wasnt. Mean Girls and The Prom at least have something to offer the adults, this show doesn't seem to. Its not a knock against it, its just what the show was designed for. 

[Lot666]

Cfried said: "New York Times panned it.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/10/theater/review-be-more-chill-joe-iconis.html"

No surprises there; same old Brantley, <<edited by BWW staff>>. I'm glad I bought a ticket, because I virtually always disagree with him and would have missed out on many great shows if I'd let him influence my decisions.

[haterobics]

Mike Barrett said: "I can't see BMC getting a nom for best musical, especially after those reviews."

A review is one opinion. Nominations are based on different people's opinions.

[Mike Barrett]

haterobics said: "Mike Barrett said: "I can't see BMC getting a nom for best musical, especially after those reviews."

A review is one opinion. Nominations are based on different people's opinions."

Thanks for explaining that to me! The general reaction from people over the age of 21 has not been positive for this show, which is who makes up the tony voters. If this got a 5 star rave from the NYT I bet more people would not only see it, give the show potential financial boost, which would all help it potentially get towards the tony noms. 

[Kad]

It's a bit soon to be determining whether a show like this in a fairly middling season will make it to a Best Musical nomination. If there's good will toward an underdog show and more animosity toward jukebox musicals, then it may work out. 

I will say, though, that there just does not seem to be particularly much interest in this show among industry folks. And it certainly remains to be seen how its status as a viral hit among a subset of teenagers will actually sustain it, particularly in the face of less-than-compelling reviews. There are cats that have more viral recognition among a wider population than this show. 

None of this is a commentary on the quality of Be More Chill, but rather the facts: it's a show with middling reviews that is hanging its hat on the fact it is a limited viral hit among a younger audience group that has no income of its own.