Ratatousical: The Tik-Tok Musical

By Kai Neuberger

Screenshot from the “Ratamix” (end mash-up song) with many of the original composers.

Many of us are aware of Disney's “Ratatouille,” but over the last few months, a new version was created. “Ratatouille: The Musical” or the “Ratatousical” was crafted by a conglomeration of artists on the popular app “Tik-Tok.” Eventually, it picked up enough traction to attract the attention of a producer. Thus, the “Ratatousical” was born as a charity event.

Screenshot of “The Rats Way of Life” with Emille (Adam Lambert) and background dancers.

Streaming on New Years Day with tickets as low as $5, the initial showing raised about $1.9 million for The Actors Fund. They describe themselves as follows: “Founded in 1882, The Actors Fund is a national human services organization here to meet the needs of our entertainment community with a unique understanding of the challenges involved in a life in the arts.”

Screenshot of Emille (Adam Lambert), Django (Wayne Brady), and Remy (Titus Burgess).

I was one of the lucky people to get to watch the first showing, and, let me tell you, it was so awful that it was amazing. Using “Tik-Tok” effects and dances to keep to the original sourcing was a clever idea, but oh boy did it create an interesting dynamic. However, all the music and acting was so well done, especially on the low budget they were working with. Seeing all of the songs that were initially made on “Tik-Tok” being expanded upon and performed was magnificent. However, while keeping up with the original artists in the process of creating this masterpiece, “The Rats Way of Life” by Blake Rouse was by far my favorite. I was unfortunately disappointed with the Adam Lambert version in the official musical as I don’t think his singing style matched with the way the song was written. My favorite song to come out of the “Ratatousical” has to be the mashup (“Ratamix”) they did for the credits with both the cast and original artists. (To listen to the soundtrack go to the “Ratatouille: The Musical” YouTube page.)

Screenshot from “Anyone Can Cook” with Chef Gusteau (Kevin Chamberlain) and background dancers.

This musical is also the first Broadway musical to be entirely filmed online and, while it didn’t have the highest budget, they did a wonderful job. Such a good job, in fact, that they did another show through “Tik-Tok” itself to get their amount of money raised up to $2 million. While finding it now is difficult, tracking down a copy is absolutely worth it if it means watching this at least once. (There are a few “top moments” videos on YouTube, last I saw.) Plus, now that the “Ratatousical” has done so well, this paves the way for other musicals being crafted online currently such as “The Lorax” and “Bridgerton.”