The highly acclaimed musical production, crowned as the cream of the crop on Broadway, faced a postponement of its curtain rise last autumn, with ticket sales dipping remarkably low. However, the effusive chatter among enthusiastic patrons and positive critical feedback paved the way for this uniquely offbeat musical to emerge victorious. The spotlight shone brightly as Helen J Shen and Darren Criss, the lead performers of ‘Maybe Happy Ending’, reveled in jubilation alongside the director, Michael Arden, post their victory of sweeping six Tony awards.
Although the birth of ‘Maybe Happy Ending’ was far from fortuitous, its grand culmination during the Sunday night’s Tony Awards ceremony tells an inspiring tale of redemption. The musical bagged six coveted awards, including the title for the best new musical, marking a significant turnaround for a modest production that had a rather perplexing name and an unusual plot, which didn’t really resonate with potential viewers. Initially regarded as a non-starter by industry experts during its preliminary showing last autumn, the musical has miraculously gained momentum.
Darren Criss, a shining star of the show, reminisced about doubts over whether the show could even lift-off during its initial stages. Criss, who brought to life the character of Oliver, a passe helperbot who finds himself in a transformative relationship with a fellow robot, earned his first-ever Tony award for his performance. Already an Emmy recipient for ‘American Crime Story’ and having graced ‘Glee’, Criss also contributes to the production team of the show.
Criss nostalgically admitted, ‘We couldn’t even dare to daydream of an outcome such as this.’. Indeed, ‘Maybe Happy Ending’ proved to be the underdog that truly succeeded against all odds.
How severe was the situation, one might wonder? Preceding summer, the musical’s main producers, Jeffrey Richards and Hunter Arnold, made the tough decision to push back the inaugural show by a full month. As per their statement, the root cause for this delay revolved around supply chain hitches, specifically the postponement in receiving digital video tiles from far-off China.
However, many industry insiders expressed skepticism, seeing this as a mere facade to veil underlying financial hassles. Nevertheless, ‘Maybe Happy Ending’ shrugged off all uncertainty and, against all odds, unfolded a vision of triumph, its early-morning Monday celebrations at the Bryant Park Grill being a testament to its incredible journey.