The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals

The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals is a horror comedy musical with music and lyrics by Jeff Blim and a book by Matt and Nick Lang. The show is the first installment in StarKid's Hatchetfield series. Loosely inspired by 1956 horror film Invasion of the Body Snatchers, it is the 11th stage show produced by StarKid Productions. The show follows Paul, an average guy who “doesn’t like musicals,” as the citizens of his town are gradually overcome by an alien hive mind that makes them sing and dance as if they are in a musical.

The show ran from October 11, 2018 to November 4, 2018 at the Matrix Theater in Los Angeles, California. A recording of the musical was uploaded to YouTube on December 24, 2018, which has since amassed over 8 million views as of May 2024.

Like other recent Starkid musicals, funding for the show was done through Kickstarter. The project raised US$127,792 through 3,419 backers out of its $60,000 goal.

Act 1
A group of singing "zombies" addresses the audience, setting the scene in the small town of Hatchetfield and introducing the main character, unremarkable everyman Paul Matthews. They proclaim that "The apotheosis is upon us!" ("The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals").

Paul works at an office with his coworkers Bill, Charlotte, and Ted. Bill invites Paul to a production of Mamma Mia! at the local Starlight Theater, but Paul declines. He heads to the local coffee shop, Beanie's, to see Emma Perkins, a barista he has a crush on. Emma is forced to follow Beanie's' new Cold Stone-inspired "tip for a song" policy, and she and Paul bond over their shared dislike of musicals. As he leaves the shop, Paul is hounded by a Greenpeace advocate about donating to save the planet. During their argument, an approaching storm forces them to take shelter.

The next day, Paul encounters a group of people, led by the Greenpeace girl from the day before, singing and dancing ("La Dee Dah Dah Day"). Paul heads to work and Bill recounts that a strange meteor struck the Starlight Theater the previous night. Their boss, Mr. Davidson, calls Paul into his office, and Paul runs away after Mr. Davidson sings a song ("What Do You Want, Paul?").

Paul rushes to Beanie's and tells Emma that he fears the world is becoming a musical. Emma, unconvinced, is called by her coworkers Nora and Zoey to perform the Beanie's tip song ("Cup of Roasted Coffee"). Nora and Zoey continue singing and dancing after the song ends, and the shop's customers join the baristas in song after drinking coffee contaminated with a mysterious blue substance ("Cup of Poisoned Coffee"). Paul and Emma flee the shop and head into an alleyway where they find Paul's coworkers, who tell them that the entire town has been infected.

Charlotte calls her husband Sam for help, but he has been infected. Sam and two other police officers attack the group ("Show Me Your Hands") until Ted hits him over the head, knocking him out and exposing his brain, which is bright blue. Emma proposes that they seek help from her eccentric biology teacher Professor Hidgens. They follow her and take the unconscious Sam with them.

The group arrives at Hidgens' fortified home on the edge of town. Hidgens believes that the behavior of the townsfolk is the result of an alien invasion brought to Earth by the meteor, and restrains Sam. Hidgens leads Paul, Emma, and Bill off to get drinks, leaving Charlotte and Ted with Sam. They argue, and as Ted leaves, Sam wakes up. He convinces Charlotte to untie him ("You Tied Up My Heart"), then kills and infects her.

Meanwhile, Emma and Paul grow closer, and they discover that Paul's hatred of musicals was inspired by seeing Emma perform in Brigadoon in high school. Emma tells Paul that she hates living in Hatchetfield and left after graduating high school, but returned due to the death of her sister. Their conversation is interrupted when Sam and Charlotte enter and attack the group ("Join Us (And Die)"). Hidgens shoots and kills them both.

Bill receives a call from his daughter Alice, saying that she is trapped in the choir room at Hatchetfield High School. Paul goes with Bill to rescue her.

Act 2
Paul and Bill search for Alice at Hatchetfield High. They find her and her girlfriend Deb already infected, and Alice tells Bill that she blames him for her death and has always resented him ("Not Your Seed"). The infected group kills Bill, then corners Paul, determined to make him suffer for his defiance. Before they can kill him, the soldiers of the US Army arrive. They chase Alice and Deb off and knock Paul unconscious.

Paul wakes up and is greeted by General John MacNamara, who leads a special unit of the US Army that deals with the strange and paranormal, called PEIP. MacNamara has been ordered to kill any survivors, but tells Paul that if he can rescue Emma, they are both welcome to join PEIP on the rescue helicopter.

Meanwhile, at Hidgens' compound, Hidgens determines that the aliens are a hive mind that communicates through music. Emma theorizes that the meteor acts as the hive's central brain and that destroying it would end the invasion. Hidgens, however, embraces the hive's unity as world peace, and sedates Emma. She wakes up tied to a chair with Ted as Hidgens deactivates his house's defenses and reveals he has a passion for musical theatre. Intending to draw the hive's attention, he performs the opening number of his musical Workin' Boys, a show glorifying his own undergrad experience (“Show Stoppin' Number”). The zombies arrive and join him in song, and Hidgens, believing them to be his old college friends, allows them to tear him apart.

Paul arrives to rescue Emma and Ted and they head for the pickup site, but one of the infected attacks Paul. Ted abandons the others and continues to the pickup site alone. There he finds the army waiting, but is shot and assimilated by an infected General MacNamara ("America Is Great Again"). Paul and Emma manage to escape to the helicopter, but the pilot reveals herself to be Zoey, Emma's infected coworker. Zoey attempts to shoot them, but Paul kicks away the gun. The helicopter crashes, and Emma is injured. She tells Paul to leave her and destroy the meteor to end the invasion. Paul arms himself with grenades from the helicopter and leaves.

Paul enters the Starlight Theater and is confronted by a group of the infected. They encourage Paul to express his feelings through song. His proximity to the meteor infects him, and he fights for control. He manages to pull the pin on a grenade and throw it at the meteor ("Let It Out").

Two weeks later, Emma is recovering in a hospital in Clivesdale and is placed in witness protection with the help of PEIP. She is told there are no other survivors, but she will be escorted to her new life by someone she knows. Paul enters, and reveals that he has been infected. He and the rest of the infected implore her to join the hive, and Paul announces, "The apotheosis is upon us!" ("Inevitable").

As the cast take their bows at the end of the show, Emma realizes she is trapped on stage and cannot escape. She cries and begs the audience for help until the cast drag her backstage at the end of the curtain call.

Characters

 * Paul Matthews, a guy who doesn't like musicals and is unsure of what he wants in life. He has a crush on Emma, and frequently visits the coffee shop she works at as an excuse to see her.
 * Emma Perkins, a barista who is trying to work her way through community college. She hates Hatchetfield, her job, and musicals.
 * Ted Spankoffski, the office asshole. He has been having an affair with Charlotte for some time.
 * Charlotte Sweetly, an anxious woman committed to a failing marriage with Sam. She is secretly cheating on Sam with Ted.
 * Nora, Emma's boss at Beanie's.
 * Bill Woodward, a divorced father trying to connect with his teenage daughter, Alice.
 * Alice Woodward, a teenage girl who is caught between her parents' divorce and facing the struggles of growing up.
 * Deb, Alice's bad-girl girlfriend.
 * Zoey Chambers, a catty college girl who works with Emma. She loves musical theater, and is also having an affair with Sam.
 * Professor Henry Hidgens, Emma's biology professor and doomsday survivalist.
 * Mr. Ken Davidson, Paul's laidback boss.
 * Sam Sweetly, Charlotte's cheating husband, a police officer who is having an affair with Zoey.
 * General John MacNamara, a military general who finds Paul and tries to help. He works for PEIP, a secret organization that investigates paranormal, inter-dimensional, and extraterrestrial phenomena.

Musical numbers

 * Act 1
 * "The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals" – Ensemble
 * "La Dee Dah Dah Day" – Greenpeace Girl, Homeless Guy, Ensemble
 * "What Do You Want, Paul?" – Mr. Davidson
 * "Cup of Roasted Coffee" – Nora, Zoey, Emma
 * "Cup of Poisoned Coffee (Reprise)" – Nora, Zoey, Ensemble
 * "Show Me Your Hands" – Sam, Cops
 * "You Tied up My Heart" – Sam
 * "Join Us (And Die)" – Charlotte, Sam
 * Act 2
 * "Not Your Seed" – Alice, Deb, Hatchetfield Bee
 * "Show Stoppin Number" – Professor Hidgens, Greg, Stu
 * "America Is Great Again" – General MacNamara, Soldiers
 * "Let Him Come" – Mr. Davidson, Professor Hidgens, Nora
 * "Let It Out" – Paul, Ensemble
 * "Inevitable" – Paul, EnsembleA cast recording was released on December 24, 2018.

Sequels
The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals served as the first installment in StarKid's horror-comedy series, the Hatchetfield series. A second musical entitled Black Friday was produced and performed by Team Starkid in the fall of 2019. The show takes place in Hatchetfield, and features several recurring characters from The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals. Since all the characters in said musical are known to have died, many theorize that Black Friday takes place in an alternate dimension, secondary timeline, or time loop, with the final song indeed posing the question of whether "tomorrow will come" as characters from The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals fill the stage. The show ran between October 31 and December 8, 2019 and featured most of the original cast and crew members.

As a result of plans being postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, StarKid Productions premiered a series of live-readings as a new installment in the Hatchetfield series named Nightmare Time. The first season of was announced on October 1, 2020 with the entire casts of both The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals and Black Friday returning. The series featured several returning characters from both series. The first episode of the series was streamed live to YouTube on October 10, 2020 featuring two stories: The Hatchetfield Ape-Man and Watcher World. The final two episodes were performed live on October 17 and October 24, 2020 featuring the stories Forever & Always, Time Bastard, Jane's A Car and The Witch in the Web. These episodes were then released on YouTube on February 14, 2021. A second season was announced on October 8, 2021. The series featured 4 episodes with six stories: Honey Queen, Perky's Buds, Abstinence Camp, Daddy, Killer Track and Yellow Jacket. The entire cast of the original series returned apart from Kendall Nicole and Robert Manion and they were joined by Jae Hughes and Bryce Charles. The episodes were announced to be released weekly on YouTube from May 20, 2022 to June 10, 2022.

A short film titled Workin’ Boys was announced in 2019 as a reward for Black Friday’s Kickstarter campaign. Production of the film was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A third musical, entitled Nerdy Prudes Must Die, written by the same writing team of Black Friday, was released on Youtube on October 13, 2023. It was to be performed sometime during 2020 but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it had been postponed indefinitely. In September 2022 it was announced that the musical would be performed in February 2023 at the El Porto theatre in Hollywood, with some of the cast and crew returning as part of "Starkid Returns".

Critical reception
The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals received generally positive reviews from local and online publications.

Awards
The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals received fifteen nominations in twelve categories at the 2019 BroadwayWorld.com Los Angeles Regional Awards. It was nominated in every category for which it was eligible, or in other words, every local (non-touring) musical category. It won in every category except three. Every actor in the musical was nominated for their performance except for Jeff Blim. Every nominee in the category Best Featured Actor in a Musical was from The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals.