TikTok musicals started gaining popularity during the pandemic with “Ratatouille the Musical” in 2020. Following this was “The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical,” which earned producers Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear a Grammy for Best Musical Theater album in 2022. More recently, “EPIC: The Musical” was released on TikTok in December 2022, and now has more than 10 million streams.
These musicals gained such recognition that TikTok commissioned “For You, Paige,” an official 2022 Broadway musical by Daniel Mertzlufft, creator of “Ratatouille the Musical.”
“Sometimes, I just can’t believe the stuff people come up with,” said Julia Maren, junior theater major. “TikTok really helps get people’s ideas out there.”
NSU Theatre Technical Director Calypso Hernandez finds that TikTok has been beneficial for the overall music and theater industry.
“I honestly think TikTok helps theater a lot because I heard the song from a musical from 20 years ago becoming popular,” said Hernandez.
People have used songs from “SIX,” “Hamilton,” “Beetlejuice” and other musicals for their own TikTok sounds.
“In my opinion, part of the reason why ‘Beetlejuice’ was so successful after the pandemic was because Presley Ryan, the understudy for Lydia, had a TikTok account and filmed behind the scenes,” said Maren.
If students are interested in pursuing a career in theater, Hernandez encourages them to post their own TikTok musicals. “TikTok is a great way to get recognized. Lin-Manuel Miranda or another producer can see your video and if they think the show has potential, they can pick it up and make a whole production,” said Hernandez.
TikTok also has the benefit of posting videos from 60 seconds to three minutes, compared to theater productions that can last 3 hours with 15-minute intermissions.
“TikTok videos are very short, which appeals to the short attention span that people have now,” said Hernandez.
Hernandez finds TikTok musicals a helpful pathway for up-and-coming theater students and hopes that it leads them to an immersive space on stage. “Plays are more immersive, and I feel like TikTok doesn’t have the quality where you’re in a space with people and feel like you’re in a show,” said Hernandez.
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