Who lives in a pineapple under the sea and became the hottest star on Broadway? It’s SpongeBob SquarePants, in an all-singing, all-dancing, dynamic stage show!

He’s ready to ride the wave to the Southbank Centre to entertain and delight audiences in this brilliant, bright, hilarious and brand-new musical production.

When the citizens of Bikini Bottom discover that a volcano will soon erupt and destroy their humble home, SpongeBob and his friends must come together to save their undersea world. With lives hanging in the balance and all hope lost, a most unexpected hero rises up. The power of optimism really can save the world!

Based on the series by Stephen Hillenburg, The SpongeBob Musical is written by Kyle Jarrow and conceived by Tina Landau. The SpongeBob Musical stars Lewis Cornay as SpongeBob Squarepants, Ru-Paul’s Drag Race legend Divina De Campo as Plankton; and alternating the role of Squidward, original Pop Idol Gareth Gates and Celebs Go Dating star Tom Read Wilson.

The show features a tidal wave of original songs by the world’s most iconic rock and pop artists, including Yolanda Adams, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Sara Bareilles, Jonathan Coulton, Alex Ebert of Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros, The Flaming Lips, Lady A, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco, Plain White T’s, They Might Be Giants and T.I., and songs by David Bowie, Tom Kenny and Andy Paley. Additional lyrics by Jonathan Coulton. Additional music by Tom Kitt.

An exciting new production featuring irresistible characters, magical choreography and dazzling costumes; this deep-sea pearl of a show is set to make a splash with audiences young and old.

It is camp, it is fun and it is a splash of joy for every age! One of the things that surprised us was that the audience was not just children, but people of all ages who seemed to be having a really good time!

YASS met Lewis Cornay who plays SpongeBob and this is what we talked about.

You were great on the show! How did you be so amazing on such a difficult role? 

The answer is probably a lot of training! Every performance is so much fun. Also, being in London doesn’t feel too difficult because the audiences have been so good. So, it feels like we’re riding on the wave of that energy which is everything you could ever hope for. It doesn’t feel too hard, actually. 

How easy or difficult is it to embody SpongeBob and be the living SpongeBob creature? 

I think it took a while to get the voice. That was the first thing that I wanted to understand because SpongeBob fans would be like “That doesn’t sound anything like SpongeBob”. So, that was my first step. And that did take a while because it’s quite a unique voice. And it’s also difficult to sustain that eight shows a week. I tried to work out how to do that and that took a while. And then, the rest of it, it is basically being as free and comfortable in my body as possible. And me just being like the childlike version of myself where I can run around on stage and not get in trouble for it. As soon as I found that voice, the concentration for me was just having as much fun and staying as present in the character as I could. 

So were you e a fan of SpongeBob SquarePants before the show? 

Oh. I obviously was not aware of all the work around SpongeBob SquarePants. I saw the production in Berlin, and I had a great time. I knew about the musical because when the soundtrack came out, I listened to it loads. It was sort of around the time that I graduated from drama school. But the cartoon itself, I hadn’t really watched it much. Even when I was auditioning, I didn’t really watch the cartoon. But once I got the job. I watched the cartoon a bit more! 

Are there any similarities between the British and the American version? Is it the same production or it gets adapted and adjusted? 

It’s adapted and adjusted. So, the book is the same. But it’s not the same creative team. It’s not a replica production from Broadway or Berlin, we have lots of different stuff. In our show. All the choreography is different and the way that we deliver the jokes is quite different – just because of British humour! Also, all the sort of sound effects on stage are different. And the androgynous role of Divina De Campo as Plankton is different too. The show is it’s so imaginative you can really put your own spin on it.  

Have you gotten in touch with any of the other SpongeBob actors? 

No, actually, I’ve been in touch with the production in Brazil and I spoke to the director a bit. Also, me and the American SpongeBob follow each other on Instagram, but that’s it. We haven’t really spoken. 

What has been the best reaction from the audience? 

Most days we get positive comments. A lot. I think a lot of people think that the musical is just for kids. But it is not only like that. It works for the family, but it also works for people in their 20s or 30s, who will love the music and the humour and the jokes. That means a lot and it is so lovely, knowing that for many children it will be their first experience in the theatre and that there are older people who will appreciate the humour and the singing, as well. 

What has been the best part during this journey? 

I think it’s a unique role. I haven’t played a character like this, and I probably won’t ever play a character like SpongeBob. So, getting to have the opportunity to lean into something that is so cartoonish, but also so British at the same time, it’s amazing and I’m so grateful for it. 

Also, it’s really nice to just sit down in London for a month because that is quite overwhelming, and you never really get used to it. 

Do people recognise you and stop you in the street? Do children call you SpongeBob? 

Weirdly, I can stand next to the big poster of me, and no one knows it’s me. Because my hair isn’t like that in real life. I have a fringe and, so, I’ve literally stood at the train station next to it and no realised it was me. People don’t know it’s me unless I’m coming out with my yellow eyebrows and the freckles. It’s weird. Also, kids don’t understand that SpongeBob exists outside of the theatre and they get confused. 

How do you imagine your future as a performer as an actor? 

My future, who knows? I have really enjoyed, up to this point, doing such a different range of characters. In the future, I’d like to do something completely opposite to SpongeBob. What I find most exciting is getting to do things that are different and diverse. I’m really looking forward to doing some roles that don’t feel like me and that include challenge.  

And what have you learned through this experience? 

What I’ve learned is how to sustain emotionally, vocally and mentally and how to gain quite a lot of strength while playing this role. You must be a bit like an athlete. So, I can definitely take that going into other jobs. Because I’ve just done the most crazy energetic stuff for months, so I know that I can the world is my oyster.  

What do you and SpongeBob have in common? 

I wish I was as optimistic as SpongeBob. I think, though, we share the same sense of humour and the same silliness! I am going to try and be as optimistic as SpongeBob, that’s what I want to learn from him, to be as optimistic. 

https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/performance-dance/spongebob-musical