Calling all “Heated Rivalry” fans! After the incredible first season of the hit show “Heated Rivalry,” it’s safe to say we’re all desperate for more content. The wait for season two of the series and Rachel Reid’s new book about the couple titled “Unrivaled” can feel so long, but the off-Broadway production of “Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody” is the perfect solution!
This musical is directed by Alan Kliffer and has an original soundtrack with 11 songs that are available for streaming. This heated rivalry-inspired musical is by The Culture Club, located in New York City.
The night began at 7 p.m. when I made it to the theatre. The theatre is located on the sixth floor of The Culture Club, and the stage is specifically built just for this show. The room seats up to 174 people, which makes this an incredibly intimate event. The stage is small–much smaller than the seating area, but that didn’t make it any less impressive or thrilling.
The stage consisted of a revolving wall, and it was located inside a bar. This allowed the setting to change between the rink, hotel, gym, and hospital quickly. Because the stage and cast are small, the showrunners and director had to get creative with how they utilized the space, and it was incredibly well done. There were also props that were brought onto the stage, such as gym equipment and a vertical bed that was held up by acting as a backpack. When the setting would change to the hockey rink, the revolving door would flip to an image of people sitting in bleachers.
This is a parody of the TV series, so while it stays true to the essence of the characters and overall themes of the show, there are parts of the plot that are different or exaggerated.
The cast consists of only nine people, making this a very impressive show for such a small cast. Some characters, such as Susan and Shane’s mom, play multiple characters throughout the show. Troy Iwata currently plays the role of Shane Hollander, a Canadian Asian-American hockey player. Jay Armstrong-Johnson plays Ilya Rozanov, a Russian hockey player. The two form a heated rivalry that teaches them a lot about themselves.
The show opens with three women named Susan, who represent the millions of people who streamed the show. They share and sing about how watching the show was an escape for them from their monotonous life. After this segment, the first song “What We Want” plays, and Susan explains that throughout the evening, she will be relaying the show to us, meaning that the musical is essentially a recap of Susan’s memory.
The show then follows the general plot of the TV series, with Shane being a closeted gay man who has intense chemistry with Ilya Rozanov, and the two of them eventually give in to their connection and fall in love, with some obstacles, of course. While the series is a romance and drama, the musical is a comedy.
It’s undoubtedly a hilarious show with various satirical elements. It has constant references to the characters’ sexual relationship, such as the song “A Heavy Load” and “You’re a Gay Guy.”
It was a laugh-out-loud show, with the audience continuously breaking into laughter and holding onto each other through the giggle tantrums. One of the most memorable, hilarious components of the show was that it constantly broke the fourth wall. For example, when Ilya was talking to Shane, he mentioned that Shane’s dad was so boring that “they didn’t even include him in the show.”
During the show, members of the cast would go into the audience. There was about two feet of space between rows of seats or the actors.
For instance, during scenes at the hockey rink, cast members dressed in team gear would run up the aisles, and cast members would occasionally enter a scene through the audience rather than the back of the stage.
The most memorable part of the show was the recreation of the iconic club scene from the TV series, where Ilya and Shane hold eye contact from across the club as “All The Things She Said” by t.A.T.u plays. The scene in the musical was similar; it began with both Shane and Ilya dancing with different people. While it isn’t on the soundtrack, they began singing their own rendition of “All The Things She Said,” and Shane came into the audience and got a drink from the bar. He then turned around and faced the stage once again, where the actual song by t.A.T.u began playing while they stared at one another. My seat was directly next to where Troy Iwata was singing. It was such a surreal experience!
The musical is about Shane and Ilya, but it does address the couple from the original “Game Changers” book, who were part of the TV series: Scott Hunter and Kip Grady. Ryan Duncan played Kip Grady, and Scott Hunter’s actor was pulled from the audience!
Once it was time for Scott Hunter to enter the smoothie shop where Kip worked, the Susan that is relaying this story came on stage and announced that Scott Hunter will be played by an audience member. Everyone raised their hand, eager for a chance in the spotlight, and a man from the first row was chosen. After briefly taking him backstage, he returned with a script book and a microphone, and began to play the part of Scott Hunter. It was such a cool way to fill in the part, and the man chosen did a fantastic job. However, once it was time for an intimate scene between Scott and Kip, the audience member was replaced by a puppet, which Kip then kissed and ran off with into the audience.
From the creative, intimate stage to the cast members joining the pews and acting in the audience, this was such an immersive experience! It felt as if I was part of the cast, even from the second-to-last row, which goes to show that there are no bad seats! This was a fun, heartwarming, and joyfully queer show that I had the honor of seeing. Now that the soundtrack is officially out, this is your sign to give it a listen and go see this show before it ends. This musical is only a train ride away.
