Team Starkid. Sounds familiar? For a lot of you, it's probably not a name that you've heard before but I bet you've probably seen them on the Internet. You'd probably recognize them form various Vines and memes such as the "I don't really wanna do the work today" Vine and various gifs or Darren Criss looking like Harry Potter. Well, the background for all of those is Starkid, a group of writers, directors, actors, and designers who met at the University of Michigan in 2009 and came together to find new ways to produce theater.
Think the "Harry Potter and The Cursed Child" play is amazing? Team Starkid released "A Very Potter Musical" (AVPM) on YouTube back in 2009. As a 13-year-old "Harry Potter" fan and musical lover, this was a jackpot find. This musical features pre-Emmy Award-winning Darren Criss as Harry Potter, in addition to Joey Richter as Ron Weasley and Lauren Lopez (yes a girl) as Draco Malfoy. The musical is so creative, so witty, and plays on some of the ridiculous characteristics of the book and movies. For example, Professor Snape has an absurd and over exaggerated way of speaking to mock the way Alan Rickman portrayed the character and Professor Quirrell and Voldemort are literally two men under one costume and even sing a song about how different they are but how they come together with their love of the idea of killing Harry Potter. It's so silly, yet a piece of great creativity for college students. This musical had so much success on YouTube that Starkid has created "A Very Potter Sequel" (AVPS) and "A Very Potter Senior Year" (AVPSY) which was performed live at the Harry Potter Convention and LeakyCon and both performances can be found on YouTube.
Although the Harry Potter Musical series may be the performances that Team Starkid is most famous for, if you're not a HP fan, don't worry! They have created eight other amazing musicals where at least one will catch your eye.
Are you a superhero fan? Then have no fear! "Holy Musical B@Man" tells the story of how Batman is at a slump in his lonely life until he finally finds a friend in Dick Grayson, aka Robin. This musical starts with the apparent death of the Joker and takes you on a thrilling adventure of making lifelong friendships and trying to defeat Sweet Tooth, the new candy-themed criminal in town.
Love Disney and the musical "Wicked?" Well, with a play on that musical and the movie "Aladdin," Team Starkid has released a musical called "Twisted" that features the untold story of Jafar.
Did that "I don't really wanna do the work today" Vine tickle your fancy? Well, that scene actually comes from their musical called "Firebringer," a story of cavemen and women trying to overcome the many challenges of prehistoric times.
Not only has Team Starkid produced some great musicals, but it has also produced some great people and has acted as a springboard for these people to climb higher into the entertainment industry. Most notably, Darren Criss got his start on Team Starkid and is still very close with the team. After playing Harry in the AVP series, he's gone on to host the 2013 Teen Choice Awards, have the lead role in "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" and "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," in addition to playing Blaine Anderson in "Glee" and Andrew Cunanan in "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story," a role that he received a Golden Globe for.
In addition to Darren, A.J. Holmes who has played Gilderoy in AVPSY and has written countless songs for Starkid is also known for playing Elder Cunningham in "The Book of Mormon" on Broadway, the US tour, the West End, Melbourne, and Sydney. Britney Coleman who played Bellatrix in AVPM has also been on Broadway performing in the cast of the musicals "Sunset Boulevard" and "Beautiful: The Carole King Musical." If you watch "The Flash," the actor that plays Cisco Ramon, Carlos Valdes has co-written and played the bass for multiple Starkid Musicals. Joey Richter has also made a cameo on "Glee" and has actually acted as Officer Petey on the Disney Channel show, "Jessie."
If you aren't convinced by now that Team Starkid is special and is a legit group, then don't take my word for it. I won't be offended! Instead, check out their channel on YouTube and see for yourself! I promise "It's gonna be totally awesome!"
