Be More Chill,  a musical that recently came to Broadway is an adaptation of the book by the same name, written by Ned Vizzini. The plot adaptation is by Joe Tracz and songs are written by Joe Iconis. The entire original cast soundtrack was posted on a couple different media platforms, including Spotify, and went viral, especially with teenagers. It then traveled to an off-Broadway theater for a summer before advancing to an actual Broadway show this winter.

The play is about a high school boy named Jeremy Heere who is your average loser. He has one friend and has to face the trauma of being a geek in a place full of people who are constantly judging others because of their own insecurities. However, an opportunity soon emerges to fix all his problems and it’s called a squip. A squip is a super intelligent quantum computer that comes in the form of a pill. It’s supposed to travel to your brain and instruct you on how to achieve your goals, in Jeremy’s situation, becoming cool enough to date a theater kid named Christine Canigula.

From a general standpoint, it seems like your average teen love story where some relatable adolescent is facing a problem bigger than himself, but then again, who doesn’t love a classic. What makes Be More Chill different is not only the quirky sci-fi aspect of it, which makes for some funny one-liners in the show, but it is the overall emphasis of the desire to be someone different than yourself. The plot and purpose itself might very well be a bit cheesy, but it presents the topic of self-hatred in an engaging, yet comical way.

The cast, including Will Roland starring as Jeremy, played their characters well and accurately, but Will’s portrayal drew a lot of attention. Roland’s nasal voice seems to be controversial; as a lot of people didn’t seem to enjoy it, but in my opinion, it was really genuine to how a teenage boy would sound. His little habits like pulling at his shirt, or the stammering, or the occasional, but not emphasized, voice cracks really sold his character. Like in the book, the ticks are played off really well. Another actor, George Salazar, seems to be a fan favorite because of his song “Michael in the Bathroom” that talks about the betrayal that his character feels when Jeremy ditches him for a cooler crowd. Honestly, all the praise for him is earned as he plays his character, Michael Mell, with great emotion. Many of the people in the theater cheered and cried when the song started.

Despite the good things, the show wasn’t perfect. A lot of the critics are right when they say it’s cliche and currently a large amount of Broadway plays center around high school, and it seems like more of a money-making plot than a genuine want to relate to the younger generation. But, none of this is to the fault of the actors who performed the songs amazingly.

Besides the flaws, the play, when analyzed, actually makes a pretty interesting commentary on depression and insecurity plaguing the youth of our society. The desire to want all the answers to our problems in a pill, and the emphasis on the fact that it isn’t that simple.

There have been many interpretations of hidden meaning in the play. Some think the play is a metaphor for being gay and the squip is suppressing who Jeremy truly is. Others think that it is referencing drug use where people take the pill in order to feel ‘more chill’ or fit in more. Some even believe the play is addressing suicide and the idea that everything will go away in one swallow. I don’t know if there was hidden meaning behind it, but the acknowledgment of self-hatred and the idea that someone needs to work to fix their problems is important for the teens to hear. To know that it’s okay to be vulnerable.

    It was a very entertaining show and this seems to be the popular opinion as it has broken house records for the Lyceum Theater in only one week. Be More Chill was definitely worth the money and a trip to the city to see it’s phenomenal actors, pretty sets, and the feeling of a classic teen romantic comedy.