Nadira Tasnim
Think of the most bizarre plot point or trope you can think of. Multiply it by ten and then add a touch of humour, a healthy dose of valuable life lessons accompanied by a boatload of singing and dancing. With that, along with some incredibly talented artists, you will end up with Team Starkid.
Team StarKid is a musical theatre company having a wide range of musicals, all of which you can find on YouTube. Their musicals vary from weird to sad to thought-provoking, and I have watched each of them at least three times because once is simply not enough. Here, I will recommend some of their best musicals, which is not easy because I love each one of them from the bottom of my heart.
Warning: Most of the musicals contain mature language/swearing.
Twisted: The Untold Story of a Royal Vizier
Arguably their best musical, Twisted is a retelling of the story of Aladdin, where Aladdin is a lowly thief who goes around the kingdom plundering the lives of both rich and poor alike. Jafar, the royal vizier, is the protagonist in the story and dreams of making the kingdom a better place. The musical follows his story alongside that of Princess Jasmine, a naïve girl who attempts to understand the unfairness of the world from her sheltered life.
Twisted has everything you can possibly ask for in a story. A wholesome romance, incredible character development, and enough humour that will make you pause the story and laugh to your heart’s content. With subtle Disney references thrown in, this story revolves around Jafar and questions the political standing of the kingdom, throws shade at common Disney tropes, and features some of the best and most tear-jerking songs Team StarKid has made. You would be heartless to not shed a few tears when watching this.
Reviewer’s rating: 5/5
This is my personal favourite. Firebringer is set in the prehistoric era and features the discovery of fire and its effects on Zazzalil’s tribe. This musical is mostly light-hearted, funny, and cute, teaching us the importance of teamwork and sustainability, but also calls into question the tendency to follow a ridiculous tradition without questioning its origins (through the hilarious and quirky character Ducker, who worships a duck), and more interestingly, talks about climate change.
Evidently, climate change was nonexistent back then, but I would like to include part of the lyrics from one of their songs, Climate Change, which was sung shortly after the discovery of the fire:
There’s been a change in the climate,/ Something’s in the air./ We feel the heat;/ No need to define it,/ We don’t really care./ Come on, let’s eat.
Reviewer’s rating: 5/5
The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals and Black Friday
The Guy Who Didn’t like Musicals (TGWDLM) is about, you guessed it, a guy who did not like musicals. This is arguably their best musical, partly because of the amazing songs and eye-catching choreography, and mostly because Team StarKid has truly outdone themselves after their initial musicals, crafting a complex universe set in the town of Hatchetfield which is faced with the threat of a musical apocalypse.
I personally love this musical because of how different it is from their other musicals. It’s creepy, has an undertone of evil, and the plot is absolutely perfect. The story revolves around Paul, who hates musicals, and Emma, a barista whom Paul has a crush on, as they attempt to run from the oncoming apocalypse.
Black Friday, also set in Hatchetfield, seems, at first glance, to be completely detached from TGWDLM. The story is about a new toy being released before Christmas and the population, mostly adults, going crazy over it. It’s equally as creepy and dark as TGWDLM, perhaps even more, as we see completely normal working people losing their minds and resorting to violence to grab the latest product. Whilst the idea of a musical apocalypse is unrealistic at best, what happens is Black Friday is terrifyingly possible.
This musical is heartbreaking and so real and relevant, but more importantly for StarKid fans, this story is subtly and beautifully intertwined with the story of TGWDLM, as we start seeing references from the latter. We are left with more questions than answers and a lot more theories about alternate dimensions and time loops, but the only thing I can do right now is rewatch all the musicals and wait for the third and final instalment to come out.
Reviewer’s rating of TGWDLM: 4.85/5
Reviewer’s rating of BF: 4.5/5
Team StarKid is not just a musical company. It’s a group of talented young artists who love and value their work. Watching their musicals will make you laugh hysterically or sob uncontrollably on the floor, or both. If you are unfamiliar with them, I suggest that you search Team Starkid on YouTube as soon as possible, and join the Starkid Cult, as we call the fandom.
Nadira Tasnim is a Harry Potter obsessed math-nerd who loves watching psychology videos in her free time.