A 2007 Disney Pixar animated film is coming to Broadway, sort of. “Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical” debuts January 1 and will be available for streaming for ticket holders all weekend.
The online production will feature Wayne Brady, Tituss Burgess, Kevin Chamberlin, Ashley Park, and Adam Lambert.
Quick refresher, “Ratatouille” is about a rat who dreams of becoming a French chef, and after relocating to Paris, he pairs with an unlikely culinary partner to create dishes in a famous restaurant.
The project started as a quirky viral effort started by a user’s love of the film, and sharing her singalongs. Fans shared passionate 60-second odes on TikTok this fall.
The thousands of participants, many with Broadway credits of their own, created their own songs, dances, makeup looks, set designs, puppets and Playbill programs, according to the New York Times.
The effort grew and thanks to support from crowdsourcing on TikTok, the musical production became a reality thanks to Seaview Productions, a theater and film production company.
The musical will now stream for 72 hours beginning at 7 p.m. ET Friday, January 1 and running through Monday. Tickets start at $5 and proceeds will benefit The Actor’s Fund, created to help out of work performers during the pandemic.
According to the production’s official website, the actors and staff involved in the production will be paid.
“We have partnered with many of the original creators to create Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical, and these creators are being credited and compensated. We're excited to work with this talented, diverse team to make the best show possible. They're the Remys, making it all happen. We're just a bunch of Linguinis,” the website states.
"The impact of this pandemic on the performing arts and entertainment community is unprecedented. Pre-Covid, it was already challenging for arts professionals to make ends meets due to the episodic nature of the work. But today, the livelihoods for so many people who work on Broadway, in film, television, dance and music have simply vanished," Joseph P. Benincasa, president and CEO of The Actors Fund told CNN.
The production is appropriate for all ages and is supported by Disney. “They are excited to see fans engage with Disney stories, and they applaud and thank all of the online theatre makers whose work on Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical will benefit The Actors Fund!” the production website reads.
