Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical

[Alex Kulak2]

Has anyone listened to the songs people have been posting on TikTok for the fake musical based on Ratatouille? Some of them are honestly pretty good.

[JBroadway]

For a bunch of young people playing around on social media, they're VERY good. Genuine kudos to all of them! I think it's a really fun social/artistic experiment, and most of them are doing a good job with it.

But most of the songs are pretty first-thought and simplistic, the kind of stuff that's frequently written for Broadway musical adaptations, but not the good ones. It's interesting because the big song that (seemingly) kicked this one off, "Remy the Ratatouille" is very obviously meant to be a tongue-in-cheek play on vapid -- but catchy -- musical theatre songs, and then it snowballed into this. 

Again: I'm not actually criticizing these people. They're just having fun and being creative, and they're doing a great job of it. They aren't professionals who have been hired to write a cohesive show, and they shouldn't be judged as such. But people have been throwing around a lot of hyperbole about its quality, and the idea that it might become a real musical, and so this is just my two-cents on that. 

[darquegk]

I think the idea is "this is where you start" as a creative. You flex your muscles on silly little tasks like this, and the seed of creativity grows from there.

[hearthemsing22]

Maybe as a fun, online production-yes. I could see that being fun. But as a fully staged production where humans AND rats have to interact (as opposed to shows like The Lion King where humans never appear), the underground world of Remy....I try to be as open-minded as I can with shows. I really do. I was a big fan of the Spongebob cartoon and went into the show totally open-minded, no judgement. But this...I just...no. One step too far. 

[Alex Kulak2]

hearthemsing22 said: "Maybe as a fun, online production-yes. I could see that being fun. But as a fully staged production where humans AND rats have to interact (as opposed to shows like The Lion King where humans never appear), the underground world of Remy....I try to be as open-minded as I can with shows. I really do. I was a big fan of the Spongebob cartoon and went into the show totally open-minded, no judgement. But this...I just...no. One step too far."

Someone actually made a scene design that was really clever, using a two-level set to differentiate between the human world and the rat world.

[Alex Kulak2]

hearthemsing22 said: "Maybe as a fun, online production-yes. I could see that being fun. But as a fully staged production where humans AND rats have to interact (as opposed to shows like The Lion King where humans never appear), the underground world of Remy....I try to be as open-minded as I can with shows. I really do. I was a big fan of the Spongebob cartoon and went into the show totally open-minded, no judgement. But this...I just...no. One step too far."

Someone actually made a scene design that was really clever, using a two-level set to differentiate between the human world and the rat world.

[John Adams]

The few videos I've seen, I like. They're cute as heck; first drafts.
I especially liked the logo design of the rat made of sliced vegetables on a fork, with the wisp of steam in the shape of a chef's hat. I also like the songs, "I Smell a Rat" and "Anyone Can Cook".

I don't know if this guy (Blake Rouse) is part of the Tik-Tok musical, but I like his "The Rat's Way of Life" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjU_p3uvlkU
There's something about his vibrato that I think is a perfect fit for Remy.

RE: Humans and rats interacting in a production - I don't see how or why that could possibly be an issue. The imaginative solution that would make us all go, "Oh, YEAH! That works!" just hasn't been physically realized... yet.

[JBroadway]

John Adams said: "RE: Humans and rats interacting in a production - I don't see how or why that could possibly be an issue. The imaginative solution that would make us all go, "Oh, YEAH! That works!" just hasn't been physically realized... yet."

Beautifully said. That’s why people hire artists: because they have the imagination to do things that people on message boards say can’t be done. There have been so many “unstageable” adaptations that proved to be stageable, and it’s usually those overcome obstacles that end up being the most exciting parts of the staging. Necessity is the mother of invention! 

One correction: as someone above said, one person on TikTok ALREADY DID come up with a model set showing one way to do it, and it’s actually very smart! 

[Jordan Levinson]

I praise you, my ratatouille, may the world remember your name...

I can't get this darn earworm out of my head, even if this idea doesn't evolve into something bigger. I can't remember ever getting so excited at the prospects of a Disney musical, albeit via a running gag on social media. This is one of the best things to happen in the tragedy that has been 2020. Even if this "musical" is a short-lived joke, I will surely remember Remy's name, just like with Alexander Hamilton.

 

[JBroadway]

Yikes, OF COURSE Ken Davenport would try to jump on this! He posted a video on TikTok saying he wants to produce the show on Broadway. From the comments, it looks like these poor kids are getting really excited and have no idea that Davenport is a sleaze-ball. 

I'm sure Davenport would like nothing more to take credit for the first TikTok-generated musical. The official billing of the show will be "Book, Music, & Lyrics by....TIK TOK USERS!" and then he'll proceed to not pay any of them for their work. Or better yet, he'll get THEM to pay HIM for the exposure of getting their work included in a real-life Broadway musical. 

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/VIDEO-Broadway-Producer-Ken-Davenport-Wants-to-Produce-the-RATATOUILLE-Musical-in-Latest-TikTok-20201125

 

[Sutton Ross]

Ken is so smarmy, I just can't.

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

JBroadway said: "Yikes, OF COURSE Ken Davenport would try to jump on this! Heposted a video on TikTok saying he wants to produce the show on Broadway. From the comments, it looks like these poor kids are getting really excited and have no idea that Davenport is a sleaze-ball.

I'm sure Davenport would like nothing more to take credit for the first TikTok-generated musical. The official billing of the show will be "Book, Music, & Lyrics by....TIK TOK USERS!" and then he'll proceed to not pay any of them for their work. Or better yet, he'll get THEM to pay HIM for the exposure of getting their work included in a real-life Broadway musical.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/VIDEO-Broadway-Producer-Ken-Davenport-Wants-to-Produce-the-RATATOUILLE-Musical-in-Latest-TikTok-20201125

"

There are million reasons why Davenport shouldn't produce this. The first being that Disney would likely never allow a commercial producer, but especially him, to create a musical based on one of their animated features. His TikTok also had an "I'm a middle-aged man but think I'm being very young and hip" vibe to it. I bet he' already trying to change these kids for advice on how to produce it.

[disneybroadwayfan22]

"Rah-TAT-ouille."

[Alex Kulak2]

I also wanted to add that Andrew Barth Feldman was BORN to play Linguine.

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Alex Kulak2 said: "I also wanted to add that Andrew Barth Feldman was BORN to play Linguine."

He actually did sing one of the "songs" that Nathan Fosbinder wrote for the "show" - check it out!