‘Twihard! A Twilight Musical Parody’ Is Hysterical Fun

A laugh-out-loud parody of Twilight, Twihard! is the musical that you never knew you needed in your life. Hold on tight, spider monkey!

If you are a Twilight fan (the movies or the books), you are familiar with the ups and downs of the saga. You’re on Team Edward or Team Jacob, you know the cringiest lines at the drop of a hat, and all of the goofy little nuances that this vampire/werewolf/Bella story hold a special little place in your heart. I’ll admit, I’m in love with Charlie. Bella’s dad is by far my favorite character and I just want to smush him and keep him in my pocket. But I digress.

Written and directed by Tiffany Keane Schaefer with music by Brian Rasmussen, Twihard! A Twilight Musical Parody is exactly what it sounds like and it’s fantastic. You do not need to know much about Twilight to enjoy the show, but if you do, you’re going to love it that much more.

In short, Twihard! is the story of Bella, a teen who moves to Forks, WA to live with her father while her self-absorbed mother goes off to tour the country with her new husband, a minor league baseball player. Bella awkwardly moves in with her dad (the police captain), makes some friends at school, and sees five pale students across the room. One of them is Edward, who she ultimately falls in love with. It turns out he’s a vampire, as is his entire adopted family, and even though the Edward and Bella want to be together, it’s difficult. Oh, and there’s a long-haired guy named Jacob who stops by occasionally to let Bella know he loves her too before running away.

This being a parody, everything is up for grabs. This is the story of the Mullens family and Bella Goose (i.e. The Cullens and Bella Swan in the books). The script is hilarious and the actors pull it all off with not just ease, but excitement and investment. And because this is a parody and the audience is already in on the joke, you can see that the performers are having the best time and pushing every Twihard! limit. Even the band – who can’t hide because they’re on stage for the entire show – was cackling at times.

With an original soundtrack and fantastic voices, the music is a very welcome addition to the telling of this story. There are songs like “Sacrifice” – which is a melancholy Bella singing about being willing to sacrifice her life for someone else (with allusions to chess and a doe, both of which appear in Twilight), “Lion and the Lamb” (when Edward and Bella each let their guards down to be together), and “Baseball,” which celebrates the Mullens taking Bella out to a field for the game.

There are also some seriously entertaining (and momentary) nods to Beauty and the Beast, RENT, and Phantom of the Opera within the show. Along with the lines and scenes you’ll be looking for – “irrevocably,” “own personal brand of heroin,” and the “prophase” biology scene (where Bella and Edward hilariously throw the tiny microscope towards each other), you’re going to appreciate all that this show has to offer. Oh, and did I mention that Aro is the narrator?

Twihard! A Musical Parody had me in stitches along with the entire audience as well as the band. It is its own kind of love letter to Twilight in the most original and unique ways. There are countless funny moments and characters in this show, but I don’t want to ruin it for you by describing too much. Just know that Bella playing with her hair, Carlisle looking dashing in his button up shirt, sad but loveable Charlie at his kitchen table, a very sparkly Edward, and some nods to Twilight fanfiction are all waiting for you as soon as you can get there. You’re seriously going to love it.

*Want to hear the soundtrack? You can find it on the Twihard! website or search “Twihard!” on Spotify.

Twihard! A Twilight Musical Parody runs for approximately 2 hours 20 minutes including one 15-minute intermission

Otherworld Theatre Company: Twihard! A Twilight Musical Parody Chicago Review – Twihard! A Twilight Musical Parody is playing at Apollo Theater Chicago through 8/31/2025. Tickets can be purchased on their website. Apollo Theater Chicago is located at 2550 N Lincoln Ave in Chicago.