The Spongebob Musical that BROKE Broadway...

[@tinalandau3102]

Who ARE you?!!!!!! This is AMAZING! How'd you know/find all THIS?! Oh, and mostly: thank you.

[@WaitintheWings]

Hi! I'm Brendon :D I'm so happy to hear you say that I got the information correct haha it took a lot of research that's for sure! But if anything, thank you for bringing the "vice/not vice" technique into everything I do! I was having a meeting this morning where I referenced you and that technique!

[@seanhorace925]

Oh my goodness. You're THE TINA LANDAU Director of SpongeBob the Musical?! For reals?

[@ANNELAMANNA]

Tina, SpongeBob was my family's first Broadway show! We absolutely loved it and were so sad that we didn't get a chance to see it a second time. We're looking forward to seeing it on tour and on Nickelodeon! Side note: my 9 year old daughter and I were in NYC for a callback audition (we were freaking out already just because of the callback) when we ran into Ethan on the street, literally as we were about to walk into the audition. It was amazing luck to for her to get broken legs from Ethan right before her audition - we had been singing the SpongBob Musical Soundtrack on our drive to NY that morning! My kids 4 kids LOVE doing community theatre and since we saw SpongeBob, we've been back for several shows, but SpongeBob the Musical will always be out first! Thanks - it was fantastic!

[@tinalandau3102]

@@WaitintheWings Hi, Brendon! Thanks, again. Also, fyi, the "Vice" notion was something I learned of originally from Anne Bogart, and we write about it in THE VIEWPOINTS BOOK. Many thanks again!

[@tinalandau3102]

@@seanhorace925 I think so.

[@cactuskaktus6734]

Wait, a big corporation not wanting to take a beloved pop culture icon and milk it for money? Instead focus on the creative process and only green light it if it brought something new to the table? What?

[@SorowFame]

I think that the Nickelodeon executives were briefly replaced by their counterparts from the mirror dimension.

[@senabea]

Im sure stephen hillenberg also played a hude role in that at the time, RIP

[@xxMpEGxx]

in Squidward Voice: "The FUTUURRRRRE, the FUTUURRRRRE, the FUTUURRR...."

[@murmurcub]

Stephen must be proud.

[@TacComControl]

Spongebob is basically a critical mass property. No matter what it does, it'll make money. So the execs were pushing for something they could use to keep it evergreen, keep it in the news, keep it making headlines. Honestly, it wouldn't have mattered to them if the broadway show tanked, all they needed was a reel of the show on stage being played by real people and they'd have all they needed to keep the property fresh in the minds of consumers.

[@michael24taggart]

Suddenly, I'm thinking of that line from The Producers: "How could this happen? I was so careful. I picked the wrong play, the wrong director, the wrong cast. Where did I go right?"

[@DussyBestroyer69]

Spongebob the musical in a nutshell

[@tcrpgfan]

But in this case, they were trying to avert disaster. Where they went right is in making sure everyone, from the artists writing the music to the background characters had a hand in the creative process.

[@scorpioninpink]

I love that Musical.

[@SRLovesPandas1]

Springtime for Bikini Bottom

[@EricLeafericson]

@@SRLovesPandas1 Sung by Plankton

[@chrisbcpack]

i have never seen a broadway actor who embodied their character as much as ethan did with spongebob

[@bluexbeanlyn]

elizabeth michaelson and it was his debeut!

[@ForumcoldiArchon]

Agreed. Patrick wasn't as good though. He did a good presentation of his stupidity.. and the look was good - yet the voice kinda made it not fitting at all. Could have gone for a deeper voicerange.. it doesnt have to be on spot, yet it felt too off. I felt the biggest carrier for the musical was the original Narrator and the original soundeffects for moving etc.. These carried the musical to what it is. It made even Patrick feel perfect. And I found it great that so many original VAs participated.. I mean some of them are Broadway actors anyway.

[@pandaking9000]

And I raise you Chris Mcarrell as Percy Jackson in the Lightning Thief musical.

[@theswampus670]

he even looks like Tom Kenny.

[@87bees68]

I agree, it's kinda weird to watch Ethan play Joel Grey and more serious characters now but I'm excited he's expanding

[@Wandervenn]

I adore how Landau took this seriously and really went deep to understand it and why Spongebob worked as a show. I wish we had more people like her making shows and movies.

[@SieMiezekatze]

Spongebob show is brilliant , I am 24 and my little sister 6 and we both can enjoy it for different reasons

[@rainyday6512]

I know what led to the success 1. The cast 2.The story 3.the music 4. I can go on forever

[@ThatLonelyMeatball]

Baberaham Lincoln go on

[@rainyday6512]

Fine, 1.The set 2. The choreography 3.the ensemble 4. All the amazing songwriters 5. Tins Landau (The director) 6. Pearl’s voice 7. Ethan Slater 8. The cast’s amazing talent There ya go Edit: I forgot about Gavin Lee

[@revaslatts8011]

@@rainyday6512 I agree with every single point. Especially the one about Pearl. Her voice was like heaven!

[@excelll3332]

Baberaham Lincoln Do not forget about the sound effect guy He was beautiful

[@rainyday6512]

Excel Okafor oh yeah, I forgot what an artist he is

[@deeelmore4560]

ah yes the two genders, batman and powerpuff girl

[@merrittanimation7721]

I know this is a joke, but humanity would be far more ahead if that was really the case. I wouldn’t mind it, to be honest.

[@sonjabichler6288]

Boy i watched both

[@mchikos]

Haha i thought the same thing

[@ChiccaJinju]

@@sonjabichler6288 so did you used to wear two pj at the same time? even if you watched both shows you still wear one pj at the time sooooo....

[@nuclearcatbaby1131]

I identify as a powerpuff bat.

[@chrisbcpack]

sponge deserved every one of those 12 tony nominations

[@Iluvmarkiplier]

elizabeth michaelson they got spongerobbed for SURE

[@spookyhamilton2732]

Agreed! My only thing is, he said they tied Hamilton in nominations but Hamilton was nominated for 16 and won 11? I’m confused XD

[@libnnyann]

@@spookyhamilton2732 he said they almost tied

[@LatteSR]

who is tony,

[@LatteSR]

oh hell yeah

[@erinidum]

"A beautiful collage of creativity." *shows all the Junji Ito-inspired moments but neutralizes it with Handsome Squidward*

[@Probablylani]

I hope, like Beetlejuice, they find another theatre to perform at.

[@nemesisomega236]

Here here

[@amityislandchum]

The Beetlejuice musical is rather... meh though.

[@LastNameBravo23]

Lani Alvarado it's having it's LA premiere in March!

[@mathunit1]

@@amityislandchum Shit taste confirmed.

[@adrianam7834]

sharksandsheep You’re right

[@davissmedley5937]

Who else agrees that “When the Going Gets Tough” is one of the best villain songs in musical history?

[@emmabuckaloo69]

10000%

[@revaslatts8011]

I second that, David!

[@nicksimons7391]

really? i always thought it writing was kind of cringey but the performances are great in it. to each their own i guess !

[@LaroTayoGaming]

1000000%

[@Arthur-do6hq]

Yep, cant stop listening to it

[@kizuuwu7563]

I was prepared to laugh at a failure and cry over how they slaughtered my childhood hero I wasn't prepared to laugh at their jokes and cry over how beautiful that screenplay was

[@WardNightstone]

i listedn to the Sirius XM broadway channel i remember how my mind was blown the first time i heard one of the songs and looked at the ID saying what it was from

[@Bhargos]

Yea, what gives? Now I'm just bummed out that I missed it.

[@LunaSkye64]

@@Bhargos if you have paramount+ in your area there’s a Pro-Shot of the full musical

[@ninanavarrete]

@@Bhargos There is a DVD recording of one of the shows. My sister got it for my for christmas. I don't know where she bought it from, but you could probably find it somewhere.

[@mollymcdade4031]

I will continue to rant and rave about this show and just how perfect all the cast are. In my head Gavin Lee IS the humanised Squidward, I can’t imagine anyone else.

[@WaitintheWings]

I agree!

[@mollymcdade4031]

Another day, another migraine...

[@fruitbasketcase..]

the national tour's squidward was fantastic as well

[@leaheddleston8322]

ikr?!?

[@87bees68]

I think it's telling when the actor says he'd play the character for another 10 years if given the opportunity, and was open to the national tour until they announced they wanted non-equity actors for the tour. Gavin Lee has a history of portraying fun characters (Bert from Mary Poppins comes to mind) so seeing him choose this one to be devoted to really shows his belief in the show's greatness

[@marcomotroni]

They really did strike gold with Ethan Slater. He is one of the main reasons the show was so well-received imo.

[@lorelimojica2101]

he's so genuine !

[@ViperliciousOG]

As soon as I saw his face in the video I knew who he was going to play ahah I can only imagine the rollercoaster of excitement/hype/nerves he experienced from the moment he opened that .PDF! I wish him all the best

[@RaeneeDaySimProductions]

“Eventually crying when they break into Best Day Ever at the end.” BITCH SAME

[@RaeneeDaySimProductions]

I went with my cousins (6, 6, and 10) and me the 25 year old is the one in tears lol

[@WaitintheWings]

I really cry too much during awesome moments lol Don't even get me started on how many times I cried during the Depeche Mode concert I went to a few years ago hahaha

[@osakaskuam]

I've only seen that single part on KZbin, without any context whatsoever, and I felt like crying out of emotion. That's why I'm here.

[@879SCSP]

I remember almost tearing up at the finale when they sing "best day ever" and then instantly thinking to myself, "wait, a SPONGEBOB musical is making me feel like this???"

[@Chopsparillo]

22:00 actually this was the plot of a SpongeBob episode many forget about it I forget the name but basically, a volcano is gonna erupt and destroy everything but the episode takes a different route from the play and decides that a sacrifice of the most depressed person must be made to appease the volcano, of course, everyone looks to Squidward then it turns out that it was only his house that was needed and the day was saved.

[@nataliavelasquez1927]

I REMEMBER THAT! Vaguely but omg I remember that terrifying me as a kid!

[@ThatGuyCanmanNC]

King Chops ah I remember that one.

[@vinylcomets]

The episode was titled Sponge-Cano. I remember watching that episode on tv and I was kinda surprised that the musical had a similar set up to it

[@WaitintheWings]

Ah, I see! Thank you for bringing this episode into my life and for bringing this fact up! I stopped watching new spongebob episodes around 2011 so that could be why it fell off my radar. You're awesome, King chops! Thanks again :)

[@grammarpolice2714]

Bruh, I just watched that episode today!

[@PaolaMartinez-cb4ml]

I can't believe I actually watch a 39 minute video about SpongeBob the musical. I liked it.

[@WaitintheWings]

I'm so happy you made it through! Lol it's a beast

[@Bruhbruhbro47]

Im a little embarrassed myself 🤣

[@moonieland]

I had seen the teasers and everything for this musical but I didn't know that Stephen Hillenburg actually HELPED with the musical, so I ignored it because I feared it was going to be another cash grab by Nickelodeon... but I'm so mad I didn't try to watch it in the first place. This musical was great to bring back old school Spongebob and make me feel like maybe everything wasn't going to be awful. So I watched the entire show and I fel in LOVE. I never expected a SPONGEBOB musical to become one of my favorites. BFF is actually a song that me and my best friend sing together often. This show has heart and it made me so happy. Not to mention the cast is diverse AND amazing.

[@ileanabriannemari]

Also, David Bowie and Brendon Urie? Y e s The cast and the special effects? Perfect af.

[@oscargill423]

I always thought that the SpongeBob Musical cast had StarKid vibes: joking around, recording and posting videos of them being hilarious and silly behind the scene, not worrying about doing it right, just about having fun. This video reinforced my view. More than I ever I wish I could see the musical.

[@PianoDisneygal10]

Nailed it. Not only that, but like the whole show is a sanitized Starkid while losing none of the heart of the source material (and the flair that Starkid would put into it if they had done a show like this).

[@arbyswitch5580]

Who else is here because the algo knows they're devouring Wicked content so it produced the Ethan Slater deep-cut lore

[@spermbob]

Me...

[@Bobert27]

What if you Wanted to go to heaven But god said "Not vice"

[@Nugcon]

F

[@tyshco2969]

u c k

[@celery8059]

“Understandable, have a nice day”

[@karenrichardson4999]

Hysterical comment and....thought provoking....!

[@NoFirstNoLastName]

It’s kinda crazy how this musical is connected to the trajectory of two (probably already failing let’s be real) marriages, one of the largest dating scandals, the casting of one of the most successful film musical of all time and one of the funniest memes. And none of that has anything to do with SpongeBob itself…

[@maddietillem6778]

I was so lucky to see the show live. It was amazing. How Ethan Slater can basically BE SpongeBob while singing flawlessly in a million different styles, and doing backflips all over the stage is beyond me. It was the most fun thing I've ever seen, which is rare these days. We so often find things that are thought-provoking and complicated, which I love, but it's nice to be able to forget about the complicated things in life and just have fun. It was such a shame that critics didn't see it the same way, they didn't see how genius it is to have fun. I truly wish more people had taken their chance on the show.

[@ukulelepopstar1019]

I just want to thank you for mentioning David Zinn. I feel like no one ever gives designers credit but David not only made a tony award winning set, he also did the costumes. So thank you for giving credit where credit is due.

[@therandomperson5447]

"What went right?" They actually cared about it and put effort into it. 'Nuff said.

[@lianaflores]

fantastic video, this channel is ridiculously underrated! :))

[@WaitintheWings]

You're so sweet! Sharing the videos really helps!! :)

[@christophermarabella5683]

SpongeBob is Immortal, Hillenberg knew that. It transcends just a cartoon, he's a representation of keeping your inner joy and child like spirit when you grow up. It appeals to grown ups and kids. I'm so happy to see this went well, here's to another 20 years of SpongeBob!

[@gilly_axolotl]

Watched the musical today and his undying optimism and compassion literally made me feel anew

[@marcdimartino9118]

Well said.

[@katecastreviews4639]

You know it's a big topic when it starts with a news reel montage. Once again, you approached this topic excellently, and really dove deep into how this bizarre concept managed to work. Even if it sadly didn't run for very long. I always respected the show from a design standpoint and it was cool to hear you go into it in such detail. This might be a weird comparison, but it kind of reminds me of the Lion King. Stylized enough so you recognize the characters ad environment, but not hiding the actor underneath. And instead finding a middle ground to get the best emotional reaction. I've only heard like, two songs from this show though. So maybe I'll finally take the plunge and give the rest of the show a listen!

[@WaitintheWings]

Haha this is true! I cant overuse the news clip shtick too much lol. Thank you for the kind words and I thought the same thing Lion King wise! The Taymore comparisons never end haha

[@ryancrucena755]

I noticed that they were so proud of their kelp. It was cute how they kept bringing attention to it. I kinda felt bad for the coral on the other side of the stage ;-;

[@spicy767]

RELEASE THE BROADWAY SONGS ALREADY NICK The show was not promoted very well, when I asked about the show, the response isn’t “I love that show” it was “There’s a musical?” I’ve seen more ads for the Henry Danger “musical” episode in one day then I’ve seen for all of the Spongebob one.

[@ilovebeingprecious]

SXO TV there’s an album of the Original Chicago Cast

[@jagp135]

ilovebeingprecious sorry but the original cast recording is terrible. Barely any of the actors sound like their characters and the sound is terrible

[@ezelfrancisco1349]

There’s a Henry Danger musical?

[@AbStar_xx]

I adore this musical but sadly it's unlikely I'll get to see it in my country anytime soon

[@WaitintheWings]

That's so sad! Where are you at?

[@AbStar_xx]

Australia. It takes years and years for shows to come out here and the federal arts department just got axed. An example: Matilda was written by Tim Minchin. A national treasure. It took five years to come to Australia.

[@WaitintheWings]

@@AbStar_xx That's horrible! Well if it makes you feel better, maybe by the time that Spongebob makes it to Australia, The Wiggles will finally make it to America so I can finally mosh to Toot Toot Chugga Chugga Big Red Car. 😂

[@AbStar_xx]

@@WaitintheWings haha well hopefully our useless Prime Minister will be out soon and the arts will finally get the respect it needs. It's all about sport here and I'm the only performer in my family. True story, when I was about four I saw the wiggles live at local high school and got a Dorothy the Dinosaur tail personally signed by Murray the red wiggle :)

[@WaitintheWings]

@@AbStar_xx God, I wish I was Australian. 😂 How cool that you can just casually say that hahaha

[@pikaace]

I'll always remember when they showed Spongebob at the Macy's parade. I had already heard of the show and fallen in love with the album and designs, but my mom was still skeptical. So I had her watch the presentation at the parade, and the SECOND Ethan showed up on the screen as Spongebob and started doing his thing, she just said 'Oh...he's PERFECT.'

[@metaman9952]

Unfortunately a Sneak Peak of this musical being live recorded which I saw as an ad received a lot of hate. One of the comments said a person had a trashy opinion for actually liking it.

[@WaitintheWings]

Well, everyone's entitled to their opinions (shrugs). If you like it though then that's all that really matters. No one can take that way from you! :)

[@jonathanjoestarwithpluck4930]

I saw that as well. It’s unfortunate, but I have a feeling if any of those people decide to check in for the live televised version they’ll change their tune. Spongebob the Musical has a strange way of changing people’s minds. I guess that’s the true testament to how good it is.

[@printerdisk905]

I want Landau to make a Fairly Odd Parents musical, with all the magical stuff that happens in that show and all the magic that goes through her brain, I think it would be amazing!!

[@yuri-tang7885]

All I know is if Landau did end up making a Fairly Odd Parents musical, it would end up being 100x better than the live action reboot. I would pay with ALL of my none existent money just to see that musical.

[@cesararana261]

But they’re just one person that might ruin it. Elmer Earl Hartman the forth aka Butch Hartman.

[@SunyiSideUp]

IP is really not that hard of a concept. It's just intellectual property. Everyone knows what copyright is in the KZbin community. Basically, at it's core, it protects artists from having their ideas stolen. It only gets completely when you get into, like, Disney.

[@WaitintheWings]

Exactly! Thanks SunyiSideUp! :)

[@mickeyrube6623]

Seriously, I was wondering why he took the time to explain it. IP stands for intellectual property. It’s pretty self explanatory.

[@ddsjgvk]

@@mickeyrube6623 IP is not I pee?

[@tbalpha2295]

Hero of Kush damn I thought that was what it meant too

[@Kensie2559]

There are still people that dont understand the concept or purpose of IP and copyright. Sadly it is still necessary to explain

[@ktw5574]

One of the best parts of this musical is the fact there were different people working on the songs, hence the fact that the genres range. The cast is diverse and unbelievably talented, the stage, props, and costumes are unbelievably eye-catching and creatively beautiful. It's something anyone of all ages can enjoy, much like the earlier seasons of the show. The SpongeBob Musical is one of my top 3 favs, and Bikini Bottom Day and Best Day Ever give me such nostalgia-

[@niccotango1382]

For a second I thought that the "unlikely inspiration" was the director getting high

[@andriealinsangao613]

Me too! 🤣🤣🤣

[@BerzerkVideos]

I had to stop the video at 22:16 to ask myself "Am I really looking at Brendon Urie in a video about Spongebob?" And yes. Yes I was.

[@TheRobadobs]

but there isn't a spongebob episode called doodlebob, there's Frankendoodle from season 2 and Doodle Dimension from season 11, which the clip is from

[@skyllarrk]

TheRobadobs Tell em Joey

[@revaslatts8011]

I saw Frankendoodle. Wowza, that was a good one.

[@Nugcon]

lmao

[@PanTastique]

I don't know why, but hearing Spongebob's cartoon footsteps live on stage accompanied by the actor just made me laugh out loud. :")

[@maxleunig4072]

Y'know, I was just watching this at first to get excited for the new TV recording of this show, but now I realise just how much of a miracle this show is. Like, before I thought it was great (not Sondheim great, but just ..... great), but now that you've emphasised how much of an actual, non-exaggerating creative triumph of theatre this show is, you've made me remember why I love both Spongebob and theatre in the first place. You just earned a new subscriber, mate. Keep up the good work!

[@WaitintheWings]

Max, you're awesome! It really was a great example of creativity and ingenuity. Welcome to the run crew!!

[@chargremlin1072]

I was one of the many skeptics going into this musical, but I gave it a shot. my family got tickets to it, and I purposefully went in absolutely blind. I'm very proud to say it is still, to this day, in a three-way tie with Great Comet and Hadestown as the number one Broadway show I have ever seen. I'm an absolute nerd for set design, as I did stage crew/theatre tech for roughly eight years in a row growing up. every. single. bit. of the scenery was magical. it's incredibly vibrant and fun and inspiring and creative. the show literally envelops you. I'm so glad it got that Tony (though it undoubtedly deserved more accolades)! the music was so, so good as well. I still listen to it! four years later!! and the costume design is top-notch. I feel that even though it did get critical praise, it's not super well-known. so when you did a video on it, I absolutely had to watch, even if it's almost three years old at this point. it definitely had that indie feel, which I found to be something indescribable until you mentioned it in this video. it was also absolutely fun for anybody of any age. of course I saw many little kids excited to see their favorite characters, but there were plenty of adults and even older people, too. I remember waiting in the lobby before the show opened and being so amazed at how many different kinds of people were there. my 50 year old father, who did not grow up with SpongeBob, obviously, was the most enthused out of my family! this show was so special and magical. I feel like it closed much too soon, but I also don't know if it would have lost its allure with time. perhaps I'm glad we will never find out. I know they did a professional recording of the show and aired it on Nickelodeon (I also watched that, of course!) but I hope they release it in an accessible form for people to enjoy to their hearts' content. I know it obviously won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I feel like so many people have to see how marvelous this show was. (whoops! went on a bit of a rant there lol. as you can tell, I love this show to death)

[@SlashManEXE]

Gosh, I remember the initial announcement and when everyone was dunking on the first photos on social media. There was a tremendous expectation and plenty of people wanted any excuse to hate it, but it defied the odds. I'm surprised by the integrity of Nickelodeon to only sign off on a certain quality that was unanimous.

[@henrikhendrickson2375]

"ma-caw-bray" hurt me in a way I didn't expect.

[@samlibutti]

Same as ha-medge

[@kidspretzellover]

bruh this show is seriously the world to me, it makes me so happy and i fell in love with the actors and characters. i cried so hard when it closed. but next you gotta do shrek the musical, that show surprisingly is super good :)

[@WaitintheWings]

It's on the lineup! :) We'll have to put it up to a vote on our Patreon though probably :D Happy you enjoyed!

[@eji]

It really shows that Landau was the right director for the job, I really appreciate the care and consideration she seemed to have taken in all the aspects involved in the show.

[@SaltRatz]

This musical was absolutely amazing. I loved the songs and designs, as they weren’t annoying and bad compared to what was Phineas and Pherb live. It was really clever, funny jokes, great and catchy songs, as long as many great references to the original show, actors, and movie! No wonder Stephen approved the project! (And he was there for the premiere in 2017, as the source material was also created that year.)

[@theangryholmesian4556]

Phineas and Ferb live had so much potential since the original cartoon is amazing. But no. So glad the SpongeBob Musical turned out as amazing as it did!

[@jkawatski1]

I appreciate your short speech at the end about the value of creative play. I am 70 and have been working in theatre since I was a teen. It is all about collaborative play with director and cast playing hard to make a memorable show!

[@TheMauriceQuintel]

This was a fantastic video Brendon. And thank you so much for the ending conclusion about actors having fun and not worrying about profit or awards. I tell my bf that every time he's in a show. I know for me, when I am in a show, if I'm telling my part of the story well and it's so natural and authentic, people will take notice. Also saw the SpongeBob Musical in OKC last week on opening and closing and it was the best thing I ever saw because of every single actor, not just the main leads, just enjoying themselves and having fun. I would definitely want to be a part of that show if given the opportunity to.

[@WaitintheWings]

Thank you so much Maurice! What role would you want to play? -Brendon

[@Lexii0224]

Not this showing up on my recommended after the relationship dropped😭😭😭😭

[@paultumaliuan9356]

"They can't be making a broadway musical about us!" "But they are! And they're using... ... ...*actors*

[@Valeriefesben]

Can we also talk about the song no control from the musical? For a musical based off a children’s show that song is actually really dark

[@sokkvabekkr5973]

and its also RIDICULOUSLY good!!

[@gokuwrightattorneyatlaw5227]

That song is amazing but I prefer the Television musical version it just sounds more cool and engaging to me

[@hannahthomas9507]

... and now they’re making a bee movie musical

[@WaitintheWings]

Is this...is this real? Oh my god, it's gonna *bee* magnificent! 😂

[@hannahthomas9507]

Wait in the Wings 😂

[@WaitintheWings]

@@hannahthomas9507 I hope it's all in the style of Jazz lol

[@hannahthomas9507]

Wait in the Wings if it isn’t then there are some problems lol 😂

[@WaitintheWings]

@@hannahthomas9507 "Picture La La Land...but with bees" -Quotes from the pitch meeting

[@DangStank]

“Old episodes...Scenes like this, from doodle bob” *shows the lame doodle bob sequel*

[@AndrewK]

I knew very little about this, but it's really cool to learn more! Thanks for the superchat and stopping by the stream today! If you don't mind me I'll just be enjoying!

[@WaitintheWings]

Awesome! I'm stoked you enjoyed it. Thank you for the tips. I updated the cover on the main page thanks to you! :)

[@andreamarvin9817]

Totally off topic but seeing the director, Landau, I was stuck by just how unusual it is to see a professional woman not fully made up. Especially when I was interrupted by a literal makeup add. It’s refreshing actually, and made me realize I absolutely have been desensitized to peoples actual faces. I think that’s why I like indy stuff. She’s my new favorite director.

[@bellarose6765]

When I saw this live on TV I love the color and the music but I didn't know the dialogue was so heartfelt and amazing I love this play so much

[@HeartandSeoul23]

I will continue to rave about this show until it gets the revival it deserves. This was the most fun I’ve had at the theatre ever. The cast was so talented(Gavin and Ethan deserved those Tony’s so bad). The story was so beautifully done and the set was so creative that I wanted it in my bed room and the songs were so lit and fun. It was everything everyone loved about Spongebob. It was Fun.

[@nasserino3194]

How tf did I not know sooner

[@grammarpolice2714]

*How

[@kiaramclintock7427]

Grammar Police 😂😂

[@petroskonstantinou3901]

Wait, YOU KNOW SOONER?! I HAVEN'T HEARED OF HIM IN YEARS!

[@nasserino3194]

@@grammarpolice2714 thx

[@scoutsleftnut13]

I'll never stop being amazed at how squidward's legs look so real

[@chessknight4497]

now, bring Invader Zim on Brodway and I've seen everything

[@Baseiscc]

Chess Knight that could be amazing

[@punnyarts]

Who do I need to ask to make this happen?!

[@randomguy6679]

That could work

[@Clay-qq5vb]

When I was in New York for the first time, I was around 13 years old. We were staying right next door to the Palace Theater, and we had an extra night so we decided to get rush tickets for the show. My dad was skeptical. He didn’t want to go, he almost just stayed at the hotel. By the end, his mind had changed. It was truly one of the greatest shows I’d ever seen, and that’s saying something. Thanks for this video, I love watching this show get the recognition it deserves. I took down my playbill I had on the wall and kept smiling while I flipped through it.

[@kxm7802]

I just saw it yesterday and it was amazing 10/10! Everyone had an amazing voice and the songs are really well written and it’s really funny!

[@ariannaandjordan]

This is one of my favorite shows of ALL TIME!! Thank you so much for covering it. I was supposed to see it on its tour, but because of the virus, it got cancelled. Thank you for talking about it and allowing me to bask in its glory. :’)

[@sugar-freedaddy5105]

I've never heard of you before, but holy *angry dolphin noises*, this was a damn good quality video.

[@meredythwithay5187]

When I first heard that they were making a Spongebob musical, I thought it was the worst idea ever. Fast forward to years later when I saw it and screamed with the rest of the audience when Patrick said "Is mayonnaise an instrument?"

[@internetuser528]

My parents didn’t let me watch spongebob

[@WaitintheWings]

I understand that sentiment. I had to sneak watch Teletubbies all the time! 😂

[@internetuser528]

Wait in the Wings they thought it would “influence” me

[@Carelesshilton]

Loser

[@SonicXtreme99akaCreeperMario]

Get revenge

[@alatuzn]

Missing In Nevada my parents did the same thing! They thought it was inappropriate. Thankfully, my non-English grandma watched spongebob without sound so I could call my friend to hear the audio

[@MysterySteve]

My favourite news broadcasts are when you can see all the chrome tabs they used for their background pics.

[@waterlemonandfriends]

local news stations are treasure troves for those kinds of technical mishaps. I love watching the weather report and all it says is "sample text"

[@akmaldanial67]

10:12 SpongeBob is officially a sea sponge, not a dish/kitchen sponge.

[@biankah]

that clip is actually from the show. the show itself makes fun of the fact that he looks more like a kitchen sponge than a sea sponge :U

[@justanotherredheadattheend955]

It really is the opposite of Turn Off the Dark. What sank that show was a lack of cooperation, no one wanted to be the one to compromise, and ultimately NO ONE INVOLVED ACTUALLY CARED THAT MUCH ABOUT SPIDERMAN. But Spongebob was just born out of...creative honesty, and passion. They were willing to take advice, be original, and strike a lovely balance between staying true to the characters and thinking outside the box. Love, and effort, and enthusiasm, OOZES OUT OF EVERY PORE 👏 And it’s so nice hear such a sincere, happy production tale after the Spider-Man debacle, where pretty much everyone walked away sad and exhausted. ....also a brief gush on how perfect it is to have Plankton wear an eyepatch. Not only is it a crystal clear villain trope, but it is a perfect adaptation of his original design.

[@fiercethundr_]

I found an uploaded copy of the show earlier today. I watched for a minute before I clicked off without a second thought. But then I found this place... halfway through, I went back and I saw everything you explained. This really was amazing elaboration on what work went into this new leg of 🧽 spongebob. Good job sir

[@DiegoAlvarezBeltran1993.]

This show struck gold from beginning to end, I think. I legitimately think this deserves a Tony, if it hasn't won anything.

[@Kahtisemo]

Fun fact: Spongebob the Musical was nominated for 12 Tony Awards! (Which the vid mentioned) But I think the reason it only won the one was because it had the misfortune of coming out the same year as The Band's Visit, which I thiiiiink also had 12 and won everything it was nominated for?

[@jaihdendover4282]

10:12 spongebob is actually a sea sponge who just resembles a dish sponge. The creator said the only reason he has a square shape is to emphasize his nerdiness. Hes a yellow tube sponge to be exact.

[@An0nym0usly_Neutral]

"Sounds like a lot of hoopla to make over a little Krabby Patty." Me: OH GOD THE NARRATOR GOT ABSORBED IN THE HOOPLAS'!

[@turtle1661]

i was able to see it on Broadway a couple times and I've been watching the TV special of it over and over, and i just want to say that it's an amazing musical! everyone in the cast is great

[@Im_Number3]

I was in a small town run of this, it was so fun the whole cast loved it- we were interested watching it. We even got a talk from THE Gavin Lee himself. It would have been better if our mics worked!

[@noirnova]

Holy shit dude, you're such an underrated youtuber! I hadn't even realised that you had below 1k!! I felt like I was watching a huge, generic popular channel but I couldn't be more happy to be wrong! Keep up the good work, dude!

[@WaitintheWings]

Lol yep! Definitely not a huge and genetic operation . Just one guy with a microphone and no sleep from researching. Thanks for the kind words and be sure to get everyone to subscribe!!

[@theothertonydutch]

My mom thought he was called "Spongy" and later she thought he was called "Spongeboy". One does not simply correct my mom.

[@supernerd1643]

I was one of the biggest nay sayers for this show when I heard about it. But when I actually saw and heard it, my mind was so blown with how amazing and deep it actually was. The fact that the script was derived off our town totally makes sense, especially SpongeBob’s monologue before the volcano goes off. It sounds similar to Emily Webbs monologue before she passes on to the next life.

[@rsalbreiter]

I took my daughter because she loves SpongeBob, we both loved it and we still listen to the soundtrack and sing the songs

[@selectedshipper8282]

Here are some of my favourite of the tweets shown: “Like Plankton is literally two inches tall Like Plankton the lil animated guy, not Wesley. Wes is like 5’9 or something idk I googled it” (32:11) “TWO SHOWS TODAY THAT MEANS YOU CAN WATCH US SAVE BIKINI BOTTOM TWICE” (32:16) “Gavin Lee invented tap dancing” (32:18) “How much muscle has Spongbob built from flipping patties? A lot probably cause those biceps on Ethan are WILD” (32:28)

[@jielyx9784]

I really liked all the props and effort put into it. I especially like how the cast interacted with the setting like spongebob climbing the volcano, or banging the rocket to get everyone's attentions or playing with the stretchy sofa. The entire musical is just filled with creativity.

[@bradpoer]

Beautiful work! My new favorite channel as both a theatre professor (for non-theatre students) and a video essay/doc geek. Bravo, my dude!

[@tvoltage]

"It goes without saying the real world and the cartoon one play by different rules" Proceeds to spend the next minute describing how the real world and the cartoon one play by different rules

[@WaitintheWings]

I had to remind myself so I don't try to drop a safe on anyone 😂

[@bigathegamer3067]

I had the pleasure of watching the Spongebob Musical live in Philadelphia and even though it wasn't the New York Broadway cast, the cast that was in the Philadelphia show did a fantastic job. Hell even i sat next to this girl who was apparently the best friend of the guy playing Spongebob himself.

[@sarahlarsen6233]

I gifted my friend tickets to this show for her birthday and we went together. We cried and laughed through the whole show. It was truly the best Broadway production I’ve ever seen.

[@MondoMiami]

So you gifted her ONE ticket and used one yourself. Stop making yourself a hero.

[@redactedimage]

The fact that I had a chance to see this musical performed live and lost it due to COVID and quarantine will always be one of the biggest disappointments in my life

[@raedroid1703]

I love this show! It got me laughing, crying, and I loved every song that played in the musical!

[@markdavidofficial4274]

I played guitar in the pit orchestra for a community theater production. I still haven’t seen the show, despite knowing it inside and out. Musically, Tom Kitt’s arrangements are just genius!

[@hayhay6634]

I love this musical so much, it's sort of my happy place (listen to the soundtrack at least a couple times a week, watched the bootlegs a million times, seen the show live 3 times) it always puts a simile on my face when nothing else can, so glad this video is realy digging deep into what makes it great!

[@WaitintheWings]

I'm happy you enjoyed It!

[@sourdemon]

Same!

[@allisonwalker-elders6319]

"we live in interesting times" really hits different in 2022 huh Brendon

[@vivalanina]

I was really surprised watching the nickelodeon 2019 special, they tackled so many hot topic issues that were relatable for adults. Feeling under appreciated at work wanting that promotion, how government loves to act like they hear people's issues without doing anything about it, people attacking science as a solution to the world ending, money or leaving behind others in a crisis as a solution to natural disaster. Politics and the media being at war. Some people isolating themselves and drinking it away, others giving into cult like crowds and beliefs. Racism being brought up twice, and presented two different ways with pirates and "air breathers". "Outgrowing" your friends when you grow in success. All presented with humor and whimsy I was so impressed!

[@pokemonfanthings4444]

9:10 this clip is from a modern episode called “Doodle Dimension” (season 11 I think). It is the second appearance of Doodlebob.

[@t4t4all]

9:10 that’s from a later episode that had doodlebob reappear! you can tell by the cleaner (and toonier) art style! great video tho!

[@SpeciallyShirly]

The lack of appreciation for the amazing talent that is Tony award winning choreographer Christopher Gattelli in this video is upsetting me

[@NelsonStJames]

It's kinda' weird that The Pee Wee Herman Show never got brought up once in anybody's mind, because Paul Reubens had kinda of already laid the template for how a Sponge Bob character would be in real life since that's sort of what he'd been doing since 1981.

[@The1Fau]

I was so confused when I heard that spongebob had a musical and assumed it was a cash grab but out of curiosity and love for musicals and spongebob I watched it and fell in love. The musical wasn't enough for me and I begun to search behind the scenes stuff too and learned so much interesting facts about this musical and the hard work put in it to make it work. It goes to show that with enough hard work even a old time franchise like spongebob can still live strong in other media

[@afreerobin5939]

God I don't know how to describe how much this musical means to me? I remember way back this got first announced, but we saw no more than a couple pictures of the characters lower face. I think I was like, "huh. I mean I'd watch it." And that was it. Cut to the pro shoot, released on KZbin a bit before Christmas. I watched it out of boredom and was simply blown away. I mean, it was crazy how much this musical grabbed me by the heart and didn't let go. I loved SpongeBob as much as any kid born in the 90's, but it wasn't like, I Have to watch Spongebob or I'll die, you know? But this musical....The perfect blend of nostalgia and refreshing new stories! I just, literally I can't think of what to say to this! I can listen to the soundtrack all day, and pick out any little song for how I feel. This musical helped get me through some deep depression. The lyric, "In The World Renowned" especially got to me. (In planning on getting a tattoo of it) It really helped me see that, while there can be some Super Shitty stuff going on, there's always gonna be beautiful things to. What's so wrong with seeing every day as the best day ever? Then, maybe a month or two before C*vid hit. The musical came to where I live. I strong armed my dad into going with me. It was truly, truly some of the best hours of my life. I was smiling the whole time, and eventually, crying and smiling. Even my dad, who's pretty neutral about musicals, said he loved it way more than he was expecting to! I'm so grateful I got to see this in person. I'd see it again in person in the future if I could. I even started writing more fanficiton for the musical! And started to like my writing again! Okay. I could on on forever. But I'll stop here. Thank you for making this, and thank you to every single person who worked on this musical.

[@MrMousetang]

This is one of those essay video that always goes on tangent and ended up explaining origin of the universe before catching up with the main topic

[@DoYouReadSutterCane]

Was a bit disappointed that my favorite band's (They Might Be Giants) contribution only got the briefest of mentions. Fun Fact: This isn't the first time they had been involved with musical theatre. Co-lead singer John Flansburgh starred in a short lived off-Broadway musical called "People are Wrong!", on which his wife, Robin Goldwasser, was a co-writer

[@DoYouReadSutterCane]

Oh also absulutely fantastic video as always

[@WaitintheWings]

If only I had more time, I could've dove into all of the artist! Sadly, not enough time in the day haha

[@WaitintheWings]

@@DoYouReadSutterCane That really means a lot to me and makes the long nights worth it :)

[@rainyday6512]

There was also “Panic at the Disco”