The Viral Willy Wonka Experience Is Inspiring a New Musical

The unlicensed Willy Wonka experience is already being crowned one of 2024's wildest moments, with the Glasgow pop-up event breaking the Internet last month. The pop-up experience, which misrepresented and even added a few elements to Roald Dahl's beloved source material, prompted a wide array of reactions online. That social media frenzy has led to a number of surprising tributes — and apparently, that will include a forthcoming stage show. On Thursday, Willy Fest: A Musical Parody was announced, an upcoming musical satire that will be inspired by the Willy Wonka ordeal. Willy Fest: A Musical Parody, which is produced by Kraft-Engel Productions, is targeting a launch window of late 2024.

The creative team for Willy Fest: A Musical Parody will include Riki Lindhome (Garfunkel and Oates, Another Period), Tova Litvin & Doug Rockwell (High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, Julie & The Phantoms), Alan Zachary & Michael Weiner (First Date, Once Upon a Time) and Daniel Mertzlufft (Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical, Grumpy Monkey: The Musical).

What Is Willy Fest: A Musical Parody About?

As breathlessly covered in worldwide press, this misguided event morphed into a viral nightmare a la Fyre Fest, where guests were greeted by a creepy warehouse, overpriced tickets and sad Oompa Loompa wannabes. Children were reportedly left in tears, the police were called, and the debacle was ultimately canceled, leaving organizers and guests with a bitter taste in their mouths and wallets. 

"From Broadway to street corner pop-ups, audiences have become obsessed with immersive experiences that enable them to be a part of the story," Zachary and Weiner said in a statement. "But it takes a special kind of magic to devastate children and adults alike – and it feels like the only way to find meaning in this chocolate-less catastrophe… is to sing about it."

"This could be Waiting For Guffman but with scam artists" Lindhome echoed.

"When the inspiration for a parody has a con artist, ChatGPT, a mysterious wedding and crying children, it's hard to resist," Litvin and Rockwell added. "Who wouldn't want to write a musical about an experience that goes from joy, to fear, to why the f*** am I here?"

"Sometimes imagination isn't so pure and creators can find themselves woefully overselling and grotesquely under delivering," added Mertzlufft. "The stakes are high, the characters are ridiculous and the emotions are all too real – the perfect storm for a musical!" 

"While it is quite common for there to be writers' rooms in television, taking that approach with theatrical songwriters is fairly unique and likely to produce amazingly satirical and unexpected results," Richard Kraft of Kraft-Engel Productions, explained. "If Ed Wood and P.T. Barnum got into 'environmental experiences' fueled by a million dreams and zero dollars, it might turn out like this. While most see nothing but wreckage in a disaster of this magnitude, we all think it screams out: MUSICAL!!"

What do you think about the first details surrounding Willy Fest: A Musical Parody? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!