Be More Chill (musical)

Act One

Jeremy Heere, a high school junior, is a complete social outcast. He lives with his single father, who works from home and is often pantsless, severely depressed by his recent divorce. At school, he is bullied by popular student Rich, who writes "boyf" on his backpack. At lunch he meets up with Michael, his best friend (where Rich has written "riends" on his backpack), who tries to comfort Jeremy by telling him that being a loser is completely okay. Jeremy sees his long-time crush Christine signing up for the school play and decides to sign up as well. Jeremy wonders why he has to be the outcast and if someone can help him "more than survive" ("More Than Survive").

As they wait for the first play rehearsal to begin, Christine professes her love of theater to Jeremy, explaining that she likes being able to play different people and always knowing what to say and do ("I Love Play Rehearsal"). As more popular cast members trickle in, their drama teacher, Mr. Reyes, reveals, much to Christine's horror, that their school play will be A Midsummer Night's Dream set in a post-apocalyptic future, re-titled "A Midsummer Nightmare (With Zombies)". During rehearsal, Jake, one of the popular boys and Rich's friend, flirts with Christine, making Jeremy jealous and despairing of his inability to talk to the girl he likes. ("More Than Survive (Reprise 1").

After rehearsal, Jeremy is confronted in the bathroom by Rich. He tells him about how he managed his rise to popularity - as a very unpopular freshman, he took a pill called a "super quantum unit intel processor" - a "SQUIP" - containing a computer that implants itself inside the user's brain and tells them what to do and say. He suggests Jeremy buy one from him in order to become cooler. ("The Squip Song").

While playing video games with Michael after school, Jeremy tells him about Rich's offer. Michael is convinced that Jeremy is being scammed, but after an awkward conversation with Jeremy's dad (still not wearing pants), Jeremey decides to check it out. He assures Michael that no matter what happens they'll always be a team. ("Two Player Game").

The two visit the mall to buy the SQUIP from a dealer at Payless and Jeremy, as instructed, swallows it with green Mountain Dew. The SQUIP activates itself, causing Jeremy to have a seizure in front of Christine and Jake ("The SQUIP Enters"). The SQUIP speaks to Jeremy (taking the appearance of Keanu Reeves), criticizing his appearance, personality, and behavior, telling him that everything about him is terrible ("Be More Chill Pt. 1"). It orders him to go to a store to buy a new shirt - an Eminem shirt, where he runs into two popular girls from school, Brooke and Chloe. Jeremy accidentally picks up a girl's shirt, but the SQUIP has Jeremy fabricate a story where he was cheated on, causing the two girls to sympathize with him. They offer Jeremy a ride home ("Do You Wanna Ride?"), which the SQUIP demands he accept, but Jeremy declines, telling them that he has to meet his friend. They leave, and the SQUIP tells Jeremy that Michael has left the mall. It then tells him that in order for its plan to work, Jeremy needs to obey every order it gives him, and Jeremy accepts. The SQUIP assures Jeremy that following its instructions will, without a doubt, improve his social standing ("Be More Chill Pt. 2").

The next day, Jeremy heads to school with a renewed confidence, beginning to wonder if he might be a little less invisible than before ("More Than Survive (Reprise)"). Jeremy sees Rich, who is initially angry that Jeremy bought the SQUIP directly instead of through him, but the SQUIP syncs itself with Rich's, making them friends. At rehearsal, the cast of the play begin to rehearse their zombie-apocalypse version of A Midsummer Night's Dream. During a break, Christine tells Jeremy about her feelings for a guy she knows, which at first seems to be Jeremy but actually turns out to be Jake ("A Guy That I'd Kinda Be Into").

Afterwards, the SQUIP informs Jeremy that Christine won't date him until his social standing drastically improves and encourages Jeremy to use Brooke as a stepping stone to increase his popularity, while Jake asks Christine to come over to his house ("Upgrade"). Overwhelmed, Jeremy asks the SQUIP to shut itself off for a few minutes. Immediately, Jeremy sees Michael and is elated, telling him he hasn't seen him all day, but Michael states that Jeremy has been ignoring him. The SQUIP turns itself back on and explains that it was blocking Michael from Jeremy's vision using "optic nerve blocking," and that in order to be more popular he has to "upgrade." Reluctant to go back to being the loser and social outcast he was before, Jeremy turns the optic nerve blocking back on, leaving him alone with the SQUIP ("Loser Geek Whatever").

Act Two

On Halloween, Jake hosts a massive party, mainly involving alcohol and other shenanigans ("Halloween"). Christine wears her Juliet costume, hoping Jake will notice, but he doesn't. Jeremy arrives late and meets Brooke, but when she leaves to get a drink, Chloe, who is jealous of Brooke, takes Jeremy upstairs and tries to seduce him. Jeremy is uncomfortable and tries to get away, but the SQUIP forces him to remain in the situation as it escalates into a near-assault ("Do You Wanna Hang?"). Chloe also has Jeremy drink alcohol, causing the SQUIP to malfunction, and then feigns having sex with him; causing Jake to become jealous and breaking Brooke's heart.

Fleeing from Jake and the girls, Jeremy runs into a bathroom, where he finds Michael, who has crashed the party. Michael tries to warn Jeremy of the dangers of the SQUIP, explaining that someone ended up in a mental hospital after they went crazy trying to get it out of their head. Jeremy accuses Michael of being jealous of his popularity; and calls him a loser. Michael, devastated and angry, locks himself in the bathroom, where he has a severe panic attack as he mourns the loss of his best and only friend ("Michael in the Bathroom"). Jeremy meets Christine and he asks her out in a sudden burst of confidence ("A Guy That I'd Kinda Be Into (Reprise)"). However Christine, who has found herself in an existential crisis, declines, thinking it is best for her to not see anybody else until she knows who she is.

Meanwhile Rich goes around the party asking people for Mountain Dew Red. Jeremy's SQUIP finally reactivates and reviews the events of the night, prompting it to make Jeremy leave the party immediately. Rich, alone and desperate, takes up a can of gasoline after arguing with his unseen SQUIP, which appears to be torturing him. The next morning, Jenna, the school gossip, informs everyone that Rich had burned down Jake's house at the end of the party, sending him to the hospital and breaking both of Jake's legs. The news spreads throughout the school through text and tweeting. ("The Smartphone Hour (Rich Set a Fire)").

At home, Jeremy is confronted by his father, who brings up Jeremy's new personality and attitude change. Jeremy reprimands his father for his behaviour since his mother left, calling him a loser as well. Shaken by Jeremy's words, Mr. Heere realizes that something is very wrong and that he must take charge. He tracks down Michael, who has been smoking copious amounts of weed since the trauma of the party, and convinces him to not give up on his friend ("The Pants Song").

As the cast prepares for the play, Jeremy runs into Christine, who is shaken and upset about the fire. Jeremy realizes that the SQUIP knew about the fire before it happened, and is furious that it allowed people to get hurt, but the SQUIP ignores his complaints, instead telling Jeremy that he can ease the suffering of Christine and the rest of the students, and eventually, the whole world, by providing them all with SQUIPs ("The Pitiful Children"). The SQUIP has Jeremy open Rich's locker, where he finds a box full of enough SQUIPs for the entire student body, and pour the pills into a beaker of Mountain Dew. Christine confronts Jeremy over his use of the SQUIP, causing him to doubt the plan, but the SQUIP has the beaker taken from him.

During the play, Jeremy notices the other students have been SQUIPPed, where the SQUIP reveals its intention to sync the entire student body in an effort to take over the world. Jeremy also comes to a realization: green Mountain Dew activates the SQUIP, while Mountain Dew Red deactivates it. Michael reappears with a bottle of Mountain Dew Red, but Jake steals it and dumps most of it out. Jeremy and Michael fight off the SQUIPed students to regain the bottle, until the SQUIP reveals that Christine has been SQUIPed, and she professes her love for Jeremy. Knowing she'll do whatever he asks, he has her drink the last of the Mountain Dew Red, causing her to shriek and causing a chain-reaction that destroys all of the SQUIPs. ("The Play").

Jeremy wakes up in the hospital, sharing a room with Rich, where he proudly informs Jeremy that he's bisexual and ready to finally be who he really is, cheekily asking if Michael's single. Michael and Mr. Heere (now wearing pants) visit Jeremy. Surrounded by his friends and family, Jeremy finally realizes that there will always be outside influences, but he needs to learn to make up his own mind instead of just giving in. He asks out Christine, and she accepts and kisses him. The SQUIP reveals itself to still be alive, weakly taunting Jeremy from inside his head, but Jeremy ignores it, happily proclaiming that "of the voices in my head, the loudest one is mine." ("Voices in My Head")

Original productions^[6]