Sweets, Yes, but Not a Single Wonka Bar
The sign over the door of the Lunt-Fontanne Theater reads “Wonka Chocolate Factory.” But at the concession stands inside, there are no Wonka Bars.
As a musical adaptation of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” settles on Broadway, the candy at the center of Roald Dahl’s children’s best seller has vanished in a haze of marketing missteps, shifting strategies and corporate indifference.
The theater has plenty of candy for sale — Dylan Lauren of Dylan’s Candy Bar, is curating an assortment of sweet treats — but none with the Wonka name. Wonka- branded candy no longer exists in the United States or Britain.
“It’s a real tragedy,” said Jason Liebig, who calls himself a confectionary historian. “I want Willy Won- ka-branded candy — it’s such a fun fount of material to draw from, and certainly it’s ingrained in our popular culture.”
The Wonka Bar was born in Dahl’s imagination, inspired by a chapter in his childhood when, while studying at a British boarding school, he was invited to test Cadbury chocolates. He later wrote the story of an eccentric candymaker, Willy Wonka, whose treats were treasured by an impoverished boy, Charlie Bucket.
The novel, released in the United States in 1964, was adapted into “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,” a 1971 film starring Gene Wilder, and that’s when the imaginary Wonka Bar became a reality.
The film was financed by the American food conglomerate Quaker Oats, persuaded by an entrepreneurial producer, David L. Wolper, who suggested the company could use the film to promote a candy line. The effort was not especially successful. The film’s initial reception was tepid. As the first Wonka Bars were shipped, many of them turned to mush; their melting point was too low.
“The candy bar collapsed, but the movie ultimately succeeded,” said Mark Wolper, Mr. Wolper’s son.
The Wonka brand passed from company to company. In 1993 Nestlé acquired the name, and, for a time, nurtured the Wonka brand, which eventually encompassed SweeTarts, Nerds and Laffy Taffy. But the entire Wonka line has since been discontinued.
The disappearance of the Wonka Bar is a frustration for producers of the musical, an early version of which ran for nearly four years in London. On Broadway, where it opened in April, it has been playing to packed houses despite negative reviews. The producers managed to sell Wonka Bars from the concession stands when the show first opened in London in 2013, because Nestlé was again making Wonka candy at a European plant. But there wasn’t much appetite for the candy outside the theater.
“It landed with a thud,” said Kevin McCormick, a lead producer of the Broadway musical. “There were adult f lavors like crème brûlée, which were nice, but no Wonka Bar — it wasn’t the way people remembered it.” Nestlé soon stopped the manufacturing. When the musical sold its stash, that was it.
When a revamped version of the show came to Broadway, there was no Wonka product to be found. Ms. Lauren, who happens to be a longtime fan of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” was hired to capture the spirit of Wonka’s factory. The Dylan’s chocolate bars have golden wrappers; there are golden ticket souvenirs on offer, and the bags are purple with a big golden W.
Candy fans are still hoping for a comeback. “The flavor was unique and delightful and the wrapping was appealing,” said Elly Marie, a student in Adelaide, Australia, who talks about her passions on an internet forum for candy aficionados. “I certainly miss them!”
Chocolate choices are missing a show’s namesake.