Full disclosure: Emojiland is a social media and influencer marketing client of YesBroadway.
by Brookelynn Mason
After an impressive production at the 2018 New York Musical Festival, Emojiland is back for an official Off-Broadway run. You might have a knee-jerk reaction when you hear that there’s a musical about emojis, but I’m here to tell you that your opinion will change from eye roll emoji to rainbow heart emojis seconds into the delightful Emojiland.
We can’t stop freaking out about this show, and here are five reasons why:
1. The Music. All of these songs could be stand alone megahits. No lie, “Work Together” is the lesbian bop of the decade. “Princess is a Bitch” will be on every Girls’ Night Out playlist for the next few decades. “A Thousand More Words” will be every belting soprano’s go-to audition song and competition piece. We’re all salivating as we wait for that cast album from Broadway Records that drops February 28!
2. The Talent. Y’all this cast is STAAAACKED with Broadway favorites like Ann Harada, Josh Lamon, Lucas Steele, Max Crumm, Natalie Weiss, Felicia Boswell, and more. There’s belting for days. Crooning to make your heart weep. Real genuine moments that make you forget these personified emojis aren’t actually real. Gravity defying acrobatics from icon Lesli Margherita involving a whole floor to ceiling stripper pole...did I mention it’s wild?
Photos: Jeremy Daniel
3. The Absurdity. The show knows it’s strange...and IT WORKS FOR THEM. Emojiland uses this ridiculous concept as a social commentary device. About fifteen minutes into the first act you’re going “wait a second, wow this got really real all of a sudden, why am I crying about emojis?” The constant dichotomy of “everything is bright and cheery” to “this is dark and dangerous” is a perfect representation of the very real issues faced in the show.
4. Speaking of social commentary... The show tricks you into thinking it’s just a good old bit of fun. What you need to know is that it tackles some serious issues in a way you would not expect: government corruption, xenophobia, greed, police corruption, etc. This is also probably one of the only shows in existence where there is lesbian representation where the lesbian-ness of the characters isn’t even mentioned at all. The characters simply exist in as real and authentic a space as possible.
5. The Production Design. There are so many nuances to the design of this show. Smize sings a song about being depressed, and the tulle under her otherwise glaringly bright yellow skirt (hidden, but an essential piece of her outfit) is blue. Nerd face, Smize’s perfect match, is accented with green hair and some green lighting throughout the show (yellow + blue = green!). Business man levitating gets progressively more bling’d out the more he extorts Princess and Prince. It’s wild. Oh, and that scenic design? Just WAIT until you walk into that theater. It feels like you’re literally walking into Emojiland!
Pro tip: go follow the show on social media at @emojimusical. We’re not biased at all when we say we think the content is pretty good on that account! :-P
Emojiland runs Off-Broadway through March 19.