Line #114 Theatre/Thirteen


1	[[quoteright:306:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/13_cover_5016.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:306:Top: [[WeirdnessMagnet Evan]]. Bottom (L-R): [[DumbBlonde Kendra]], [[AlphaBitch Lucy]], [[JerkassWoobie Archie]], [[TheCastShowOff Cassie]], [[TheGenericGuy Simon]], [[AlliterativeName Molly]], [[ClassClown Richie]], [[GirlNextDoor Patrice]], [[JerkJock Brett]], [[ThoseTwoGuys Eric, Malcolm]], and [[EnsembleDarkhorse Charlotte]].]]
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4	''13'' is the story of a Jewish boy named Evan, who moves to Appleton, Indiana from New York City after his parents get a divorce. He first befriends his neighbor Patrice, whose only other friend is Archie, the terminally ill nerd. Evan decides that, in order for his Bar Mitzvah to be a hit, he will have to become popular and unintentionally gets himself involved in a fight over the quarterback Brett between best friends Kendra and [[Creator/ElizabethGillies Lucy]]. {{Hilarity Ensues}}.
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6	With music by Jason Robert Brown and a book by Dan Elish and Robert Horn. It was the first Broadway musical with an entirely teenage cast.
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8	In 2019, Creator/{{Netflix}} announced a [[https://media.netflix.com/en/press-releases/netflix-adapts-tony-award-winner-jason-robert-browns-broadway-musical-13-into-a-family-film film adaptation.]] It was eventually released in 2022.
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10	Has a [[WMG/{{Thirteen}} WMG page]].
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12	----
13	!!This work shows examples of
14
15	* AccidentalKiss: Brett and Archie.
16	** "What's that taste?"
17	* AdultsAreUseless: All of the action takes place among the kids.
18	* AgainstMyReligion: Patrice jokes that bar mitzvahs are against her religion.
19	--> Evan: The one day where everything is supposed to be happy and perfect!
20	--> Patrice: See, Catholics don't have that. It would go against everything we believe in!
21	* AllGuysWantCheerleaders: Averted with Evan, who [[spoiler: goes for the only girl not on the cheerleading squad, Patrice]], with everyone else, it's played straight with beautiful head cheerleader Kendra.
22	* AlliterativeName: Molly Madison and Patrice Parker.
23	* AllMusicalsAreAdaptations: Subverted. There was actually a book based on the musical.
24	** Although it was written before the Broadway production.
25	* AlphaBitch:
26	** Playing a bit with with Kendra, who is popular and sought-after, but also a self-proclaimed "good girl". She may have accidentally rubbed her date with Brett in Lucy's face, but it's debatable if she knew Lucy liked him or not.
27	** Played straight with Lucy, who is popular, manipulative, selfish and in control. Though best friends with Kendra, she stole Brett from her and started spreading rumors about her dating Evan when the first plan backfired on her.
28	* {{Angst}}: The opening number is angst in musical form.
29	* ArcNumber: Thirteen. There are thirteen main characters, all of whom are thirteen-years-old, who sing thirteen songs, the first of which switches between 6/8 and 7/8, for a total of... 13.
30	* BetaCouple: [[spoiler: Brett and Lucy]] or possibly [[spoiler: Brett and Kendra]] depending on what part of the musical you're at.
31	* BettyAndVeronica: Brett between Kendra (Betty) and Lucy (Veronica).
32	* BewareTheNiceOnes: Patrice gives a pretty bad cold shoulder.
33	* BigManOnCampus: Brett.
34	* BittersweetEnding
35	* BlackComedy:
36	** Archie. How many terminal illness jokes are there?
37	** Also, Lucy has a bit of this going. Her comments about how fat she thinks she is are {{played for laughs}} when she probably has an eating disorder, which is confirmed during her line in "A Little More Homework To Do".
38	** All of "Terminal Illness" (the middle of "All Hail The Brain") is black comedy focused on, well, Archie and his terminal illness.
39	* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: Kendra, Lucy, and Patrice (personality wise).
40	* BrainlessBeauty: Kendra Quaker.
41	** And Brett.
42	* BrainyBrunette: Averted with the nerdy Patrice. Played straight with Archie and Lucy.
43	** Evan's nickname is "The Brain".
44	* TheCastShowOff: "Brand New You"
45	* CatchPhrase: Lucy would like to point out how hot she's looking today.
46	* CatFight: [[spoiler: Lucy and Kendra. Subverted when Brett doesn't stand and watch but breaks it up]].
47	* TheChessmaster: Lucy, being able to manipulate the entire school into believing her lie about Evan and Kendra, along with other manipulations.
48	* ClingyJealousGirl: [[spoiler: Lucy, who thinks every girl who talks to Brett is flirting with him]].
49	-->Brett: Hi, Cassie.
50	-->Lucy: Were you ''flirting'' with her?!
51	* DoesThisMakeMeLookFat: Lucy thinks every bad thing that happens to her her is because she's fat.
52	* DumbBlonde: Kendra and Brett.
53	* EconomyCast: The cast had a grand total of 13 people.
54	* EvilAllAlong: [[spoiler: Brett]].
55	* ExtremeDoormat: Patrice. Although she does stand up for herself, she's ''Always. Giving. Second. Chances.''
56	* FaceHeelTurn: Lucy goes from a good friend and confidante for Kendra who [[UnreliableNarrator (If Lucy was telling the truth)]] gave up opportunities for Kendra to the AlphaBitch who stole Kendra's boyfriend.
57	* GirlNextDoor: Patrice, who is the first to befriend Evan when he arrives and develops a crush on him. She's rather average compared to the other girls, who are all popular cheerleaders.
58	* GiveGeeksAChance: Averted with Archie. Kendra still wants Brett. Although in the book [[spoiler: Kendra kisses him after he writes a song for her... Despite what he says, however, he didn't get the tongue.]]
59	* GossipEvolution: The rumor Lucy creates starts off with first base, but makes its way around the bases.
60	* GrowingUpSucks: This is the theme of the musical, with examples of the trope mentioned in "Thirteen".
61	---> "Life goes wrong / Suddenly, they're yelling / 'cuz your hair's too long / or your room isn't clean..."
62	* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: [[spoiler: Brett]]. The audience doesn't know whether to root for him or not.
63	* HeterosexualLifePartners:
64	** Eddie and Malcolm.
65	** Less so Evan and Archie.
66	* IAmBecomingSong: "13/Becoming A Man"
67	* IdiotBall: Almost every character picks it up near the end because, for some reason, ''they all believe Lucy''...
68	* InnocentSoprano: Kendra, who is mentioned repeatedly as being PurityPersonified and isn't that bright, is listed as a soprano.
69	* InsidiousRumorMill: What Lucy does to [[spoiler:her best friend Kendra after Kendra starts dating Lucy's ex Brett. She spreads a rumor that Kendra is cheating on Brett with Evan, the guy who set the two up.]]
70	* IntentionalWeightGain: In "13", when the kids are lamenting that they're growing up and going through changes, one kid complains that he needs to gain 20 pounds "by Friday", implied to be for the sake of sports.
71	* IntercourseWithYou: The first verse of "Hey Kendra".
72	* JerkassHasAPoint: Subverted with Kendra and Evan's "thank you meeting" that Lucy sets up - [[spoiler: it was how Lucy framed Kendra "cheating on Brett" with Evan]].
73	* JerkJock: Brett, once he finally shows his true colors.
74	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Though the end of the play ultimately reveals Brett to be a jerk who was never intending to do anything nice for Evan, that doesn't change the fact that a ''huge'' chunk of the play is spent on his genuinely heartfelt romance with Kendra. We get his inner thoughts in song several times (heck, his relationship with Kendra is easily the focus of more songs than Evan's plotline is) and there's not a hint of malice in them.
75	* JewishMother: Averted with Evan's mom, who we almost never hear from. Although, what we've heard about her slightly fits the trope.
76	* KarmaHoudini: Lucy. She intentionally [[spoiler: breaks up Kendra and Brett]]. When [[spoiler: they get back together thanks to Evan, it merely takes a rumor for Brett to beat up Evan and break up with Kendra]]. And the kicker? [[spoiler: Lucy ends up with Brett at the end]].
77	* KidsAreCruel: To Patrice and Archie, who are at the bottom of the school's food chain.
78	* KidCom: Takes place primarily in a middle school where all the cast members are tweens.
79	* KidsDrivingCars: During the song "A Little More Homework", Eddie states he "got busted for driving his dad's pickup" when he turned thirteen.
80	* LampshadeHanging: "One day it gets better/One day it makes sense/One day I’ll stop talking in the friggin' future tense"!
81	* LastMinuteHookUp: [[spoiler: Evan and Patrice]].
82	* LoveHurts:
83	** Poor, poor Patrice. Evan keeps blowing her off in an effort to succeed in his own goals, oblivious to her feelings for him.
84	** ''Archie'' suffers a lot for his crush on Kendra, who is far out of his league and only interested in Brett.
85	* LoveTriangle: Lucy loves Brett who loves Kendra who is being obsessed over by Archie.
86	* LyricalDissonance:
87	** "Any Minute" could be considered a sweet love song, but it keeps the love song tone while Kendra and Brett are describing what is happening in the ''horror movie'' they're watching.
88	** Let's not forget that although "Get Me What I Need" is catchy, there are parts where it's downright depressing.
89	-->Here's the problem: every minute, every second that I wait
90	-->Might be too late
91	-->So let's face it, if I ever have a chance, the time is now
92	-->So who cares how?
93	* MoodSwinger: Lucy is a milder example of this.
94	* MusicalisInterruptus
95	-->'''Eddie''': ''Hey, Lucy, I've been thinking...''
96	-->'''Lucy''': Can it Hobbit, I'm here for one reason and one reason only!
97	* NewTransferStudent: Evan, the protagonist from New York City who is forced to move to Indiana.
98	* NoFourthWall: "My neighbor, Patrice!"
99	* ObliviousToLove: Kendra doesn't know that Archie has a thing for her, and Brett doesn't know how Lucy feels until she [[spoiler: kisses him right after he and Kendra break up]].
100	* OnlySaneMan: Evan, and possibly Patrice, the two most level-headed characters in the show.
101	* OriginalCastPrecedent:
102	** In most productions Kendra is blonde, Lucy has dark hair, and Evan has light brown hair.
103	** Subverted with Brett and Patrice, who both have brown hair in most productions, but Brett had blonde hair on Broadway and Patrice had red hair on Broadway.
104	* PlatonicLifePartners: Archie and Patrice.
105	* PopularIsDumb: Most of the popular students are...lacking, to put it nicely.
106	* PopularIsEvil: All the popular kids shun Patrice for being different, and cheer Evan on when he rips up her invitation and humiliates her.
107	* PurityPersonified: PlayedForLaughs with Kendra, the "good girl" who can't even kiss a boy and must sign a virginity pledge at the end.
108	* RewrittenPopVersion: "13 (Single Version)" and "A Little More Homework (Single Version)".
109	* SelfDeprecation: Patrice does this to her hometown during "the lamest place in the world".
110	* ShutUpKiss: During "If That's What It Is", between [[spoiler: Evan and Patrice]].
111	* SingleTargetSexuality:
112	** Kendra and Lucy only want Brett.
113	** Archie pines after Kendra, and is willing to do anything to get with her. Subverted in the end when she ditches him to go running back to Brett, and realizes that she is not worth it.
114	* SpellingSong: Lucy sees an "O-P-P Opportunity".
115	-->Kendra: O-P-P, O-R-T!
116	* TakeThat: If that’s what it is/Then that’s what it is/At least until Disney can re-write it...
117	* TeensAreMonsters: Most of the characters aren't but [[AlphaBitch Lucy]] and [[JerkJock Brett]] fit.
118	* TenorBoy: All of the boys.
119	** It ''is'' a Jason Robert Brown musical, after all.
120	* ThirteenIsUnlucky: All of the characters are either 13 or just about to turn 13 and they encounter the typical teenage problems.
121	* ThirteenthBirthdayMilestone:
122	** The story focuses on Evan, who is forced to move from New York City to [[SmallTownBoredom Appleton, Indiana]] due to his parents' divorce just before his Bar Mitzvah, meaning he has to make enough friends by his 13th birthday to have a big blowout party, where he hopes his life will finally settle and he'll understand what it means to be a man. [[spoiler:While it seems like Evan has lost everyone but the unpopular kids as friends due to finally standing up the JerkJock, Evan finally starts to understand what being a man means.]]
123	** All of the characters treat turning 13 as a huge deal, as the title song suggests.
124	* ThoseTwoGuys: Eddie and Malcolm.
125	* TitleDrop: The '''Whole. Frickin'. Opening. Number'''. Of course, it's kinda hard to avoid a title drop when it's a musical called 13 about 13-year-old kids. And guess how many kids there are? 13. It gets sort of weird when they say "13" again in a later song, with a completely different setting and only one character from the last song there.
126	* UncommonTime: The opening number uses a 13-beat pattern.
127	* UninvitedToTheParty: Evan wants to make his Bar Mitzvah the best party ever, and in the process, wants to invite the kids who will help him be popular. This means inviting everyone but the unpopular Patrice, who happened to be the only person who tried to befriend him in the first place. To add insult to injury, he outright pretends Patrice isn't standing next to him and destroys her invitation to make a good impression for the popular kids. Then, when he does end up inviting her to a movie party, he still ends up ignoring her and she leaves without being noticed.
128	* VillainSong: Although Lucy isn't really a ''villain'', "Opportunity" still fits.
129	* WeirdnessMagnet: Evan.
130	* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: "A Little More Homework".

Context Theatre / Thirteen