Skittles' Super Bowl Ad Will Be A Broadway Musical This Year
Colorful Skittles candy is known for pushing the limits with its outrageous Super Bowl commercials: Last year, it created an ad that was shown to only one person. This year, the candy company is turning its big ad into a one-show-only Broadway musical.
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How is that going to work, exactly? Playwright Will Eno, who was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in drama in 2005, is writing the play, which is literally called, "Skittles Commercial: The Broadway Musical." A 17-member cast and live band will perform the show only once, for a live audience at The Town Hall performance space in New York on Feb. 3, Super Bowl Sunday.
It's still an ad, but for a good cause. Ticket proceeds will be donated to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and Skittles will match the donation. (No, we don't know if the cat in the poster has anything to do with the play, but we sure hope so.)
"We're always looking for opportunities to innovate and entertain our fans in new ways around football's biggest stage," Debbie Litow, Skittles brand director, said in a statement. "And what better way to do that this year than by bringing our ad to the world's most famous stage: Broadway."
The musical's cast will be led by an as-yet-unrevealed celebrity, theater magazine Playbill reports, and the cast will include actors from such Broadway shows as "The Lion King," "42nd Street," and "Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812."
Playbill reports that the musical will take a "self-reflective look" at consumerism and brand advertising.
It's unclear how people watching the Super Bowl will be able to see the ad/musical, or if, like last year's one-person commercial, it'll play only to a limited audience. Skittles did not immediately respond to a request for comment. While you have candy on the brain, here are surprising facts about your 20 favorite candy brands.