'Willy Wonka Experience' to be turned into stage musical with Broadway producers

15 March 2024 , 11:05

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Furious parents complained that their kids had been reduced to tears over the 'shambolic' event (Image: Jenny Fogarty / SWNS)

The botched Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow is to be turned into a stage musical in the US.

Top Broadway songwriters and producers have announced they are working on a musical parody of the viral event. Hundreds of people forked out £35 for tickets last month but were left furious after being ushered into a warehouse sparsely filled with Wonka-themed decorations and a bouncy castle in the corner.

Organisers at House of Illuminati were forced to shut the doors after just half a day with police also called in. The musical - titled Willy Fest - is planned as a live event for later this year and is being led by Richard Kraft, who produced The Little Mermaid Live show. He has assembled a team of writers and musicians to bring the project to fruition including Riki Lindhome, an Emmy nominee known for the musical group Garfunkel and Oates, and Broadway songwriters Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner.

Kraft said: "While most see nothing but wreckage in a disaster of this magnitude, we all think it screams out: MUSICAL!! While it is quite common for there to be writers' rooms in television, taking that approach with theatrical songwriters is fairly unique and likely to produce amazingly satirical and unexpected results."

Police attended the venue, in Glasgow as dozens of parents vented their rage at those responsible for the event and demanded full refunds (Jenny Fogarty / SWNS)

The actor hired to play Willy Wonka later revealed he was handed a script of AI-generated gibberish

The producer has experience in the world of Wonka, having directed Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in Concert at the Hollywood Bowl. In a joint statement, Zachary and Weiner said: "From Broadway to street corner pop-ups, audiences have become obsessed with immersive experiences that enable them to be a part of the story.

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"But it takes a special kind of magic to devastate children and adults alike and it feels like the only way to find meaning in this chocolate-less catastrophe is to sing about it." The Wonka-themed event did not feature any chocolate but two actors in 'sexy Oompa Loompa costumes' gave out jelly beans to disappointed youngsters.

The Wonka-themed event did not feature any chocolate but two actors in 'sexy Oompa Loompa costumes' gave out jelly beans to disappointed youngsters (X)

The actor hired to play Willy Wonka later revealed he was handed a script of AI-generated gibberish. It included an evil, cloaked chocolate maker called 'The Unknown' who was hiding behind a bedroom mirror. The teenage actor who played The Unknown, sixteen-year-old Felicia, has been recruited to work at the London Dungeon.

She will be putting her experience of scaring children from the Wonka attraction to good use on April 7. The guest appearance will see her trained up by the best in the business in the art of scare and immersive theatre acting. Earlier this week props from the Willy Wonka event raised more than £2,000 at auction for a Palestinian aid charity. Monorail record store in Glasgow auctioned them on eBay after they were passed on by a person who found them.

Lucy Skoulding