Stephanie G. Mathis Inspired by hit Netflix series Bridgerton, produced by Shonda Rhimes, Bridgerton: The Unofficial Musical won the Grammy over productions created by established figures such as composer and producer Andrew Lloyd Webber, among others.
Read more: Netflix’s ‘Bridgerton’: A romanticized portrayal of Britain at the dawn of modernity
Musical theatre albums typically circulate as the official cast recordings of staged musical theatre performances including full orchestrations. In this case, Barlow and Bear began their collaboration over Zoom and performed all of the roles together.
Their collaboration didn’t end there. Throughout creating The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical, Barlow and Bear played to other fans of the show via TikTok: They rehearsed their songs, interacted with fellow performers, and contributed to the thriving creative fan culture for which the video platform has become known.
In this sense, The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical was an unusual musical theatre adaptation without theatre. They didn’t even need a live performance.
Well before the Grammy win, the album earned a top 10 Spotify debut and over 10 million streams in its first two weeks. Their songs continue to be remixed into collaborative videos with more than 329 million views.
‘Burn For You’ Music Video – ‘The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical’ by Barlow and Bear, YouTube.
Not the first TikTok musical
The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical was not the first musical adaptation to emerge on TikTok. In 2020, during pandemic shutdowns, an online fan base of the Disney film Ratatouille began creating, sharing, and developing Ratatouille tribute songs — like an ode to Remy the Rat by one user given a (digital) orchestral treatment by another user — until this swelled into a Ratatouille musical TikTok community.
Eventually, leaders of the theatre and digital media production company Fake Friends, Michael Breslin and Patrick Foley, adapted the collective project for an online performance.
The performance featured actors Andre De Shields and Tituss Burgess in its online cast with music from several TikTok creators.
‘Ratatouille the TikTok Musical,’ YouTube video.
With Disney’s permission, Ratatouille the TikTok Musical streamed for two performances in January 2021, raising over US$2 million for the Actors Fund.
Not bad for a show that began as a 15-second song and only ever appeared online.
As Zachary Pincus-Roth, features editor for the Washington Post, raved, “The most exciting theater is now a figment of our imagination.”
Cross-platform appeal
This imaginative approach to digital musical theatre creation, as seen in the Bridgerton adaptation is likely to continue. The reaction to the Grammy win was mixed among theatrical performers and critics, but most agreed that an award-winning musical circulating exclusively online was a significant change in how theatre is created.
