Everyone Calm Down, It's Time to "Be More Chill"

Jeremy Heere (played by Will Roland), a teen longing to reach the top of his high school's social ladder, ingests a microcomputer that gives him advice on how to become popular.

Hold on to your vintage tees and Red Mountain Dew, because “Be More Chill” has officially come to Broadway! Musical theater fans are currently rejoicing across the nation, but why is a previously-unknown musical generating so much excitement?

According to The New Yorker, “if you fed ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ and ‘Mean Girls’ to the ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ plant, with a few Xbox games as a digestif, ‘Be More Chill’ is probably what you would get.”

As a longtime fan of musical theater, I can say with complete certainty that The New Yorker has provided one of the most accurate descriptions of the show to date. “Be More Chill,” despite being only in its infancy, brilliantly unites teenage angst, retro references, classic Broadway ballads, and ingenious sci-fi elements to create the ultimate millennial/Gen Z theater hybrid. Although the show initially received tepid responses from critics, the musical’s rapidly-growing fan base quickly seized the controllers from critics’ hands, launching the production to the top of the musical theater leaderboard in only a few short years.

Broadway, in its infinite desire to “be cool,” must have ingested a SQUIP (a microcomputer that enables the show’s characters to become popular) of its own, because “Be More Chill” is making its New York debut during previews on February 13, 2019. While I am a firm believer that every “Broadway Baby” should be free to form their own “Best Musical” rankings, I am also a firm believer in greatness, so you can bet that “Be More Chill,” at least for now, will be sitting pretty in this Broadway fan’s hall of fame. But who knows, maybe it’s the SQUIP talking?

To go see “Be More Chill” and ingest a SQUIP of your own, visit the Lyceum Theatre for opening night on March 10, 2019.

(LU)