Twihard: Finding Laughter and Community in a Twilight Parody
Frank Najarro -
Joy and humour are heightened when shared with other people, especially those who just get it. Twihard: A parody musical fully grasps this. With a deep understanding of the fandom, a musical score that pulls from everything from vaudeville to Phantom of the Opera, and a cast that intimately and confidently engages with the material, the musical is a true love letter to Twilight and an opportunity to have a laugh with a theater full of people who get it [even if you’ve never heard the reference].
“When it comes to parody I find that you’re laughing with the fans at something because a lot of fan fiction can get very goofy. And I think one of the lovely things is we can laugh at something and still love it deeply.”
Exaggeration isn’t hard to do, especially when you have great source material to work from. However, what I witnessed watching Twihard wasn’t just comedic exaggeration; the musical brought me deep into Forks, WA, the raunchy Twilight fandom, and the genuine love at the heart of this show’s creation.
To make this show work for audiences who both love Twilight and those who may have never even heard of it, writer Tiffany Keane Schaefer and musical composer Brian Rasmussen had to bring together elements that could speak to both audiences. They set out to write a musical that was “...funny in general, for everyone”. They certainly succeeded. The writing is inspired, witty, and pulls from many inside jokes that the fandom cherishes and that those of us who don’t know [including me], can still crack a rib laughing at [I’m looking at you Daddy Off! song].
Schaefer successfully incorporated elements from the hundreds of fanfics that have been written about the source material, into the show. She gets it. The idiosyncrasies that make the fandom come alive. From hilarious ships between the fathers to more heartfelt songs about sacrifice, the show invites you to laugh about the absurd plot and care about the characters all the same. These moments become communal experiences with the rest of the audience, laughing and sharing in the joy of some clever lyrics.
“Tiffany came up to me, and she said, ‘hey, Brian, do you want to write a musical? It's a parody of Twilight.’ I took a moment because I was like ‘Did I just get asked to do a thing that is a lifelong dream of mine’ and I said “Yeah, yeah, let's do that. Yes!”
Musically, the show pulls in elements from a vast array of influences, making the music itself a parody of other great musicals and rock bands. From Phantom of the Opera and Wicked all the way to Green Day and Blink-182, Rasmussen understands the moment and the audience as much as Schaefer, cleverly weaving little musical easter eggs that add substance to the story, and sometimes stand on their own in compelling ways such as a hilarious vaudevillian number for the main antagonist or a repetitive high powered song about playing baseball. The music has a small moment for everyone that will bring a smile to your face or make you laugh out loud alongside someone who you may not know, but understands the reference just like you do.
And lastly, the actors’ physicality, commitment to the show, and ability to improvise, adds depth and humour in unexpected ways. From funny gags like Edward staring at Bella, to silly props like a golden onion [which I still haven’t figured out, but was hilarious]. The random improvised jokes and physical gags inject the musical with soul and help to bring the laughter out of everyone in the audience. “There's actually some scenes that were completely improvised that just ended up being in the final version of the script.” The actors are not afraid of messing with the audience either, pulling us into their fun world of theater comedy. I was even called out during the show! [Thanks Edward.]
“There's a lot of parts of the show where the script says something but can be different every night. If it's working, we'll go with it. There's lines that are some of the funniest things that somebody just said one night, and we kept them.”
In the end, this musical is a love letter to Twilight, one which brings together the vast audiences who have enjoyed this fandom for years as well as new audiences who want a good laugh, in a great theater, accompanied by their friends and a few drinks. The folks involved with Twihard all know exactly what audiences want, and are not afraid to deliver it, even if it means covering their bodies in glitter and gesticulating like madmen.
Communities are made of shared moments, and musicals like this one provide us with infinite small moments to connect with each other and the vampires around us.