Very few people actually care, in the scheme of the world - BMC fans and people here - that's about it. It's not the Tony Awards fault that the show is floundering. It happens, not all shows succeed.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
I will say that in complaining about it being a shaft (an argument I can't agree with), they did get a lot of people talking about their show. So if complaining was just a way to generate more noise, then well done, I suppose. We'll see if it translates to ticket sales. I have my doubts.
Be More Chill got free promotion, while other struggling shows had to pay tens of thousands of dollars for their casts to appear in performances that won't get half as many views as 3 celebrities parodying BMC will, especially after this "controversy".
If anyone deserves to be upset about this, it's a show like Prom or The Cher Show. They were actually nominated for Best Musical, are losing money every week, and still paid for a performance, but aren't getting Twitter shoutouts from Lin, James Corden and Josh Groban today.
Like a firework unexploded
Wanting life but never
knowing how
Be More Chill did NOT get free promotion, as no one in the general public watching that segment had any way of knowing that wasn’t an original song, or what show it is from.
This is like saying the pizza Ellen ordered at the Oscars the other year for the ceremony received free promotion - no one knows where the hell that pizza came from.
Was it credited during the closing credits last night? I'm not sure if the other performances are but if it wasn't okay that's scummy.
That said, it's threads like these that make me want to come to BMC's defense because boy some of y'all are just like, really really aggressive in hating this show. Sheesh.
Joe Iconis was credited. (Well, according to another poster.)
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
To be fair, though... whatever's being said online is being missed by an entire theatergoing demo. I like to use my 70-something parents as a gauge, since they regularly see shows and are consistent ticket-buyers, but don't spend any time reading about theatre online... and are definitely not on Twitter. And they had no clue whatsoever that the bathroom song they enjoyed at the Tonys last night was a parody of Be More Chill until I told them. (And even then I'm not sure they got it.)
I realize this is anecdata, but I do think they represent a large segment of the ticket-buying audience who loves shows but doesn't know or care about internet buzz.
I haven't seen a single article about the Tonys that didn't highlight the parody and name Be More Chill. It IS getting free promotion."
But you were also looking for articles about the Tonys. Based on the ratings last night, I doubt anyone was looking up to see reviews of the show last night, or care enough to even make the connection the next morning. That's why a mention should've been done in the moment, with the audience that actually cares.
"Hey little girls, look at all the men in shiny shirts and no wives!" - Jackie Hoffman, Xanadu, 19 Feb 2008
Okay so... as classy as his response to this whole parody situation is... that good fate is lost when I find out that he was Instagram storying during Anais' acceptance speech for Best Score. A big "WE LOST!!!" in text while he and his wife make faces. You can delete it from your story all you want Joe my boy, but guess what... Saveig.com has got you covered.
https://saveig.com/mrjoeiconis/
I don't care who you are, I don't care if you lost. You do NOT disrespectful to your peer like that making faces on your damn phone during their speech.
Scarlet Leigh said: "Okay so... as classy as his response to this whole parody situation is... that good fate is lost when I find out that he was Instagram storying during Anais' acceptance speech for Best Score. A big "WE LOST!!!" in text while he and his wife make faces. You can delete it from your story all you want Joe my boy, but guess what... Saveig.com has got you covered.
https://saveig.com/mrjoeiconis/
I don't care who you are, I don't care if you lost. You do NOT disrespectful to your peer like that making faces on your damn phone during their speech."
Joe & his wife were seated in the last row of the auditorium in a half row occupied by film equipment. Their show was blatantly snubbed of all nominations that it easilycould have received, and he knew there was no way he was possibly winning. On top of this, he had just been blindsided by a full length BMC parody. Calm down, buddy. He treated the Tonys with about as much respect as they gave him.
^You do know that not every agrees with your sentiment, right? I dont think it deserved any noms at all.
But he didnt dis the Tonys, he dissed another ARTIST. If he felt the way you suggest, he should have stayed home. (And Im not saying he did.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
Lest we forget that this is the same musical who had a cast member boohoo about Andrew Rannells calling people who go to BroadwayCon geeks. He went so far as to doctor a headshot with the word “cancelled” on it.
JudyDenmark said: "To be fair, though... whatever's being said online is being missed by an entire theatergoing demo. I like to use my 70-something parents as a gauge, since they regularly see shows and are consistent ticket-buyers, but don't spend any time reading about theatre online...and are definitely not on Twitter.And they had no clue whatsoeverthat the bathroom song they enjoyed at the Tonyslast night was a parody of Be More Chill until I told them. (And even then I'm not sure they got it.)
I realize this is anecdata, but I do think they represent a large segment of the ticket-buying audience who loves shows but doesn't know or care about internet buzz."
As another data point, I see shows regularly and do follow the theatre community online, but since I have absolutely no interest in Be More Chill, I honestly had no idea this performance was a parody of anything until all the discussion today. My parents were also watching and like your parents, don’t follow theatre online either, and I’m sure didn’t know this was a parody. Really, all they needed to do was show a flash of the BMC marquee at the beginning or end of that segment or something along those lines to suggest this was not just a song made up for the Tony’s and it would have been fine. Without any context, it just seemed like a very random musical number. Who would have guessed that the day after the Tony’s, the show everyone would be talking about would be BMC?
In hindsight, it would have been easy to show the theater marquee or cut to Joe Iconis in the audience. But then people would complain (rightly) that to the average person who isn't familiar with Be More Chill doing so still wouldn't explain that the song they performed was a parody of a song in the show. The only way to do that is to announce, hey, this parody song is based on a song from the show BMC. However, it was highly unlikely that they would have given that kind of free promo to BMC.
It would have been a nice gesture to tell Iconis that this was going to happen. But was it necessary? No. If NPH or Hugh Jackman returned to host the show and they rewrote the lyrics to Hello, Dolly are they obligated to tell Jerry Herman? If they wanted to rewrite Journey to the Past to be about Golden Age shows the year Anastasia opened were they obligated to tell Ahrens/Flaherty?
Basically, it could have been handled with more consideration for the feelings of the cast/creatives of BMC but they were under no obligation to do so and if they feel slighted, it's on them.
Andres_123 said: "people are upset it didn't get any credit and no mention of be more chill."
Like James starting by saying "I'm going to start singing a parody of a song called Michael in the Bathroom from the musical Be More Chill, which is nominated for one Tony tonight and isn't performing... here is my version:"
Vintage Snarker said: "In hindsight, it would have been easy to show the theater marquee or cut to Joe Iconis in the audience."
The only people who would know who Iconis is also knew what the song was from? In fact, a lot of people who know the song might not even know he wrote it?
The people whining do...that would only have enraged them too....they want to be enraged. Joe is very present, on social media, at the show and very personable.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.