SpongeBob SquarePants (musical): History and Key Facts

SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical (originally titled The SpongeBob Musical, later retitled for the national tour) is a musical, co-conceived and directed by Tina Landau with songs by various artists and a book by Kyle Jarrow. It is based on the Nickelodeon animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants and made its world premiere in June 2016 at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago. Following a month of previews, the musical opened on Broadway at the Palace Theatre in December 2017.

The musical follows SpongeBob SquarePants’ attempts to avert a volcanic eruption that could potentially wipe out all life in Bikini Bottom.

The show was produced by Nickelodeon, The Araca Group, Sony Music Masterworks and Kelp on the Road.

The musical opened to critical acclaim. With twelve Tony Award nominations, it tied with Mean Girls for the most-nominated production at the 72nd Tony Awards in 2018. The show closed at the Palace Theatre on September 16, 2018, due to theatre renovations. At the time of its closing, it had played 29 previews and 327 regular performances. A non-Equity North American tour opened on September 22, 2019, at Proctors Theatre in Schenectady, New York. On December 7, 2019, Nickelodeon aired The SpongeBob Musical: Live on Stage!, a television special of the show featuring members from the original Broadway cast. The tour closed in 2020 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The SpongeBob Musical UK tour opened on April 5, 2023, at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton and closed on September 9, 2023, at the Theatre Royal Newcastle.

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