Viral creators of the “Bridgerton TikTok Musical” Barlow & Bear pave the future of musical theatre with their concept album of The Unofficial Bridgeton Musical, which was released on September 10.
It started with Abigail Barlow’s simple text “what if Bridgerton was a musical” after binging the popular Netflix adaptation of Julia Quinn’s novel series. Barlow posted the first few verses of “Ocean Away” on her TikTok account, and set the craze in motion. What started as snippets of songs and Barlow and and her friend, Emily Bear, writing live on TikTok turned into a full 15-track concept album, and theatre fans and fans of the Bridgerton series rejoiced.
The Bridgerton series follows the eight close-knit Bridgerton siblings as they navigate love and society in 1813 London. The first season of the series—based on the novel The Duke and I—follows Daphne Bridgerton and her journey through her first season in society through her relationship with Simon Bassett, the Duke of Hastings. The lives of the London’s aristocrats are sent into a tailspin over the anonymous and scandalous newsletter column of Lady Whistledown.
As far as creating an album that gives the very essence of Bridgerton, Barlow and Bear take the cake. From the selected characters and moments they’ve illustrated through the album to the dynamic sound, a listener could get a snapshot into the series. It was overall nothing but delightful to listen to, and the crafting of the album shows great promise for Barlow and Bear as a writing duo.
Most of the vocal parts on the album are sung by Barlow, in which she alternates tones and voices for the different characters. It creates a mosaic of moments from Daphne’s light and airy melodies, to Simon’s low, rich tones, to Eloise Bridgerton’s upbeat and, at times, comedic tone of voice to match her youthful and brash nature. As Barlow is the main vocalist on the album, it is imperative that each character have sound qualities that distinguish them to audio listeners.
While the entire 15-track album gives a robust narrative arch to listeners with a variety of styles of music, “Burn for You,” “If I Were a Man,” and “Ocean Away” stand out stronger lyrically and compositionally, likely due to their early conception in the project.
After listening through the album many times, I think “Burn for You” and “If I were a Man” stand out as personal favorites. “Burn for You” captures the tension between Daphne and Simon, and creates an emotionally charged number with beautiful riffs. It has become a fan favorite for good cause. “If I were a Man,” on the other hand, captures some of the more playful and humorous side of Barlow’s lyrics. Eloise, as Daphne’s younger sister who has not yet been formally introduced to society, takes a dry and sarcastic perspective on society.
The production value of the album is very high for a concept album. Barlow and Bear use a full sound for some of the ensemble pieces, adding in layered voices, which makes it easy to envision the setting and scenes of the story. At times it almost feels like a full cast recording because of the layers and changes in tones and pitches. The robust sound makes it feel complete to the listener.
The album is a smash hit out of the gate. The songs are catchy, the humor makes it enjoyable, and is a delightful listen for fans of the Netflix series and musical theatre fans alike. I think listeners will agree that the future is bright for the songwriting duo.
The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical is available to stream on Spotify and Apple Music.
The Broadway Edit 