Smash - Chemistry

With only a week to go before the show's first workshop, which will be attended by potential investitors, tensions start to fray. Julia (Debra Messing) struggles to finish writing the play - while staying far away from Michael (Will Chase) especially now that her husband (Brian d'Arcy James) has returned, Ivy (Megan Hilty) starts to panic as she looses her voice during rehearsals, and Karen (Katharine McPhee) deals with the real possibility she might be asked to step into the starring role.

Needing his star to perform Derek (Jack Davenport) puts pressure on Ivy to use Prednisone to quicken her recovery despite Ivy's reluctance and her concerns about side effects - some of which begin to quickly manifest leading to a troubling night and an explosion at rehearsals the next day.

Other stories include Karen taking a job singing at a bar mitzvah (despite knowing no traditional Jewish songs), Tom (Christian Borle) meets some of John's (Neal Bledsoe) friends, and Eileen (Anjelica Huston) finds herself cheered up by a night out on the town with Ellis (Jaime Cepero).


"Chemistry" delivers another episode where the melodramatic soap opera plots overshadow the more memorable song and dance numbers. Despite the workshop being only a week away the episode doesn't do a good job at selling how little time they have to get ready as every single character is involved in a different story in which they are each far more worried about than actually putting on the show.

This weeks songs include Karen's performance of Florence and the Machine's "Shake It Out, "Ivy performing Jessie J's "Who You Are," and original numbers "Let Me Be Your Star," and "History is Made at Night."