The show is an eyeful even before it begins.
Still, tourists wanting BIG production values will get their money’s worth. The big challenge for Nickelodeon will be to lure the cartoon’s traditional fan base, the majority of whom may not be frequent theatergoers.
But there’s also a generosity of spirit here that, together with the playful visual imagination and the extremely likeable, racially diverse cast, proves hard to resist. There’s a certain whiplash effect, to be sure, in jumping from Bowie/ Eno gloom rock to bubblegum pop to country to gospel to more conventional show tunes. It stands to reignite the old debate about the infantilization and theme-parkification of Broadway, with a patchwork score by a multitude of popular music artists that will rankle purists. Its message of friendship, community and land-mammal inclusivity is pretty much that of every second other Broadway musical these days. That said, this is a show devoid of politics, unless you count a quick reference to tidal warming. (Take that, Scott Pruitt!) And in 2013, conservative outlets praised the show for its positive contribution to the national debate about job creation, while liberals called out the hypocrisy of the right for co-opting a convenient new hero in their war against the poor. Tut-tut.) In 2011, climate-change denialists slammed an episode for pushing a global-warming agenda. (SpongeBob is a fry cook at the Krusty Krab. ‘ Nuff said.) The following year a Republican senator lashed out at SpongeBob and other cartoons for promoting junk food and fueling the childhood obesity epidemic. (SpongeBob and his starfish buddy Patrick do often hold hands while watching TV, and their octopus neighbor Squidward Q. In 2004, a right-wing Christian group labeled it pro-gay propaganda, claiming it coerced children to embrace homosexuality.
Spongebob squarepants the musical series#
Since debuting on Nickelodeon in 1999, the series has generated more than $13 billion in merchandising revenue, while frequently becoming a magnet for political controversy. But whether it wore me down like coral erosion or grew on me like algae, the show’s unstinting commitment to anarchic plotting, goopy sentiment and bonkers ADHD juvenilia had me grinning like an idiot, even before I got knocked in the head with an inflated plastic orb (lawsuit pending) during the crowd-pleasing closing number.īesides, where else do you see celebrity audience members like Ben Platt and Lucas Hedges posing for selfies with a giant female puffer fish while a trio of skate fish, outfitted as punk skater dudes, natch, rock out to a raucous Aerosmith tune called “Bikini Bottom Boogie?” Respect. And for much of the show I was dazed by the sensory overload of Tina Landau’s acid-trip production while groaning at its fusillade of cornball aquatic puns and absence of musical cohesion. While the cartoon is beloved of children, stoners and children who grew up to be stoners during its two decades on air, I confess I had never been drawn to linger long in Bikini Bottom, the character’s underwater home. That’s what comes cascading down on the audience during the ebullient finale of SpongeBob SquarePants, a splashy $20 million bid by Nickelodeon to add a new monster tentacle to its lucrative animated media franchise - giving the yellow porous one his very own Broadway musical. Bubbles, streamers, confetti or beach balls? Duh, all four, obviously.
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