StarKid Productions, also known as Team StarKid, is an American musical theatre company founded in 2009 at the University of Michigan by Darren Criss, Brian Holden, Matt Lang, and Nick Lang. Originally known for the viral success of their first musical, A Very Potter Musical, a parody of the Harry Potter series, the troupe primarily produces musical comedies inspired by pop culture, with original scripts, songs, and music. StarKid distributes their musicals for free on YouTube, with recent projects being funded by Kickstarter and physical ticket sales.
Since the success of A Very Potter Musical, the group has produced thirteen stage musicals (including two Potter sequels), three national tours, two reunion concert specials, a concert in London, three sketch comedy shows, and three web series.
As of 2023, the company has charted 13 albums in the top 10 on Billboard charts.[2] The cast recording of Me and My Dick debuted at number 11 on the US Cast Albums chart in 2010, becoming the first student-produced musical recording to chart on Billboard. The following year they landed at number one on the same chart with the cast recording of Starship, a feat that has since been repeated with their 2019 musical Black Friday, and their 2023 musical Nerdy Prudes Must Die.
History
StarKid Productions is composed of actors, writers, directors, composers, choreographers, and designers, most of them originating from the University of Michigan's School of Music, Theater and Dance. The members met while collaborating on plays through Basement Arts, the university's student-run theater organization.
The Team StarKid YouTube channel was created on June 19, 2009.[6] As of April 2024, the channel has over 810,000 subscribers and over 340 million combined views.[6] Aside from the viral Harry Potter adaptions, Team StarKid has produced a number of other musical theatre parody shows, creating both original stories and pop culture-based parodies of Disney, DC Comics, Star Wars and The Oregon Trail.
StarKid and its members are associated with various other theater groups, most notably Tin Can Brothers and Shipwrecked Comedy.
Team StarKid has had two major moves since its founding in 2009. The first was to Chicago after the founders graduated from The University of Michigan. The second was to Los Angeles.
A Very Potter Musical was performed in April 2009 at the University of Michigan. It is based on the Harry Potter series and was released on YouTube on July 5, 2009.
A Very Potter Sequel was performed in May 2010 at the University of Michigan. It serves as the sequel to A Very Potter Musical and is also based on the Harry Potter series. It was released on July 22, 2010.
Starship was performed in February 2011 in Chicago. It is inspired by Starship Troopers and The Little Mermaid. It tells the story of Bug, a resident of a planet inhabited by insects, who dreams of becoming a Starship Ranger. However, he is unable to become one because he is not human. Starship was released on YouTube on April 30, 2011.
In 2014, StarKid performed a sequel entitled Starship: Requiem. It was a one-time "theatrical reading" and is thus not included in their musical canon.[13]
Holy Musical B@man! was performed in March 2012 in Chicago. It is based on Batman and related characters. Holy Musical B@man! was released on YouTube on April 13, 2012.
A Very Potter Senior Year was performed in February 2011 in Chicago. It is based on the Harry Potter series and is the third installment to StarKid's Harry Potter trilogy. This production is a staged reading rather than a full production. A Very Potter Senior Year was released on YouTube on March 15, 2013.
Twisted: The Untold Story of a Royal Vizier (2013)
Twisted: The Untold Story of a Royal Vizier was performed in July 2013 in Chicago. It is Based on the 1992 Disney film Aladdin, the tale of One Thousand and One Nights, as well as the musical Wicked.[8] The story is told from the perspective of Ja'far, who is based on Jafar, the antagonist of the 1992 film. It was released on YouTube on November 27, 2013.
The Trail to Oregon! was performed in 2014 in Chicago and ran concurrently with Ani: A Parody.[14] It is based on The Oregon Trail video game series. It features the Father, Mother, Daughter, Son, and Grandpa characters in their journey to Oregon. In the show, audience members get to choose the names of the characters as well as decide on the musical's ending. It was released on YouTube on February 14, 2015.
Firebringer was performed in 2016 in Chicago. Set in the prehistoric era, the story features Zazzalil, who in pursuit of simplifying everyone's lives comes up with inventions and discovers fire in the process. Firebringer was released on YouTube on January 1, 2017.
The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals was performed in 2018 in Los Angeles. It is the first installment of StarKid's Hatchetfield saga. It depicts Paul, the titular "guy who didn't like musicals", and his experiences as the people of Hatchetfield mysteriously start singing and dancing in choreographed musical numbers. The musical was released on YouTube on December 23, 2018.
Black Friday was performed in 2019 in Los Angeles. It is the sequel of The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals and is part of the Hatchetfield saga. In the musical, Black Friday shoppers are overcome with an overwhelming desire to obtain a "Wiggly" doll, to the point of killing anyone who gets in their way. The musical was released on YouTube on February 29, 2020.
Nerdy Prudes Must Die was performed in February 2023 in Los Angeles. It is the third musical in the Hatchetfield saga. In the musical, a plan by a group of nerds to fight back against a bully backfires when they become haunted by his murderous ghost with a vendetta against "nerdy prudes". It was released on YouTube on October 13, 2023.
VHS Christmas Carols (2023/2024)
VHS Christmas Carols is a musical originally performed in November 2023. It expands on the 2020 live-streamed production based on A Christmas Carol, with The Gift of the Magi and The Little Matchstick Girl serving as additional bases, making it a "trilogy" version of the original. Unlike the two previous iterations, this version was directed by James Tolbert. The 2023 musical's pro-shot was released to YouTube on November 8, 2024 for a limited time. It was removed the morning of December 1st, 2024, in preparation for the digital ticket release of the 2024 production.[15] In November 2024, an updated production ran at the Apollo Theatre in Chicago again with three new cast members and revised staging, but no new story elements were added.[16]
Cinderella's Castle (2024)
Cinderella's Castle is a musical based on the tale of Cinderella. It was performed in Los Angeles in late July, 2024.[17] The musical is a dark retelling of the classic damsel-in-distress fairy tale with an original 80s-esque "synth-pop" soundtrack, elaborate puppetry, and a cast of 10.[18] A proshot is expected to be released on YouTube in late 2024 or early 2025.
Other performances
Starship: Requiem (2014)
StarKid produced a sequel to their 2011 musical Starship called Starship: Requiem that was performed on August 2, 2014 at LeakyCon in Orlando, FL. However, it was a one-time "theatrical reading" and, as such, Team StarKid does not include it in their musical canon.[13] The story followed the adventures of the android Mega-Girl and her half-witted Starship Ranger husband, Tootsie Noodles, as the newlyweds go to visit Mega-Girl's human-hating family.[19]
A VHS Christmas Carol (2020)
A VHS Christmas Carol is show is based on A Christmas Carol with the music, lyrics, and book written by Clark Baxstresser. It was directed by Corey Lubowich. A VHS Christmas Carol features songs and an aesthetic inspired by the 1980s.[20] It was streamed via Looped from December 11–13, 2020.
VHS Christmas Carol Live! (2021)
VHS Christmas Carol Live! is a staged version of the 2020 live-streamed production. Like A VHS Christmas Carol, it was also directed by Corey Lubowich. VHS Christmas Carol Live! was performed from December 9–11, 2021 at The Bourbon Room in Los Angeles and was released on YouTube on November 25, 2022.
Workin' Boys (2023)
Workin' Boys is a musical short film directed by Nick Lang, with songs by Jeff Blim and a book by Nick Lang & Matt Lang. It is based on the fictional musical mentioned in The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals. In The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals, the character of Professor Hidgens pitches his musical, entitled Workin' Boys: A New Musical. The real life Workin' Boys depicts the events leading up to as well as during the staging of his musical. It was livestreamed on October 13, 2023 as part of the Hatchetfield Halloween Party event and was then made available for free to Kickstarter backers of the SK 10niversary event on October 30, 2023.[21] It was released on YouTube on April 27, 2024.
The SPACE Tour is a North American concert tour with 21 stops in 15 cities. "SPACE" in the tour title stands for StarKid Precarious Auditory Concert Experience.[22]
A Very StarKid Reunion is a reunion concert performed in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater, and Dance.[24]
The Jangle Ball Tour is a North American concert tour with 8 stops in 7 cities from December 2 to December 17, 2022.
It's StarKid, Innit? (2024)
It's StarKid, Innit? is a one-night-only concert that took place at the London Palladium on May 12, 2024.[26] It was StarKid's debut performance in the United Kingdom.[27]
Sketch comedy productions
Airport for Birds (2013)
Airport for Birds was performed from January–March 2013 in Chicago, IL. StarKid Productions teamed up with The Second City to produce their first sketch comedy show. The show was produced at the UP Comedy Club.
1Night 2Last 3Ever (2013)
1Night 2Last 3Ever was performed from September–November 2013 in Chicago, IL. StarKid Productions second sketch comedy show with The Second City. The show was produced at the UP Comedy Club. The show was a parody of various pieces of 1990s pop culture centering on the exploits of a fictional boy band, 3Ever.
Yes, I am Afraid of the Dark! (2015)
Yes, I am Afraid of the Dark! was performed from September–October 2015 in Chicago, IL. StarKid Productions first improv comedy show with iO Chicago and was produced at the iO Theater. The show was a parody of the 1990s children show Are You Afraid of the Dark? with the cast creating an entire episode based on audience suggestion.
Web series
Little White Lie
In 2007, members including Matt Lang, Nick Lang, Eric Kahn Gale, Brian Holden, Darren Criss, Lauren Lopez, Elona Love (née Finlay), Chris Allen, Meredith Stepien, and Jim Povolo produced an online video series called Little White Lie. It was released in 2009 on StarKid's YouTube channel.[28]
Despite the series ending in a cliffhanger, StarKid members have confirmed at various events that there will be no season 2, as it was an expensive production and the actors who took part in it are scattered all over the country. However, Eric Kahn Gale, one of the writers for the show, stated that he would write and publish a synopsis of season 2, which was released on September 3, 2013 on his Tumblr page.[29]
Movies, Musicals, and Me
In October 2017, StarKid debuted its second web series on YouTube, Movies, Musicals, and Me. The series takes place in an alternate world where every popular movie ever has been adapted into a Broadway musical. The best of these musicals all star the same man, Halpert Evans, a vain and pompous, though brilliant, actor. The series is structured as a mockumentary of Evans, chronicling the most significant musical roles of his career, along with commentary from various colleagues in Halpert's line of work. The series introduces StarKid newcomers Esther Fallick as Halpert Evans and Mary Kate Wiles as Judy Davendale. Joey Richter, Nick Lang, Brian Holden, Dylan Saunders, Lauren Lopez, Jaime Lyn Beatty, Corey Dorris, and Clark Baxtresser also star.
Nightmare Time
On October 1, 2020, StarKid announced a new three-episode horroranthology series set in the world of The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals and Black Friday.[30] It featured six stories read by the cast of the shows. Performances took place virtually on October 10, 17, and 24, 2020.[31] In August 2021, a second season was announced. A cast recording was released on February 8, 2021.[32]
The next year, StarKid later livestreamed Nightmare Time 2, the second season of the series. Four performances took place virtually on October 23 and 30 and on November 6 and 13, 2021. The entire cast from the first season returned with the exceptions of Robert Manion and Kendall Nicole. The series was also the StarKid debut of Bryce Charles and Jae Hughes.[33][non-primary source needed] The episodes were released weekly on StarKid's YouTube channel between May 20, 2022 and June 10, 2022.[34]
