This ‘Scream’ parody went viral and saved a Las Vegas theater group

Troy Heard knew he was onto something when his brain somehow connected Natalie Imbruglia’s biggest song with the murder of Tatum Riley, Rose McGowan’s character, in “Scream.”

Each night in Majestic Repertory Theater’s “Scream’d: An Unauthorized Musical Parody,” the Tatum character sings “Torn,” backed by a live band, as she’s being killed with a garage door.

“ ‘Torn’ is about being torn in a relationship, and she’s having problems with her boyfriend,” Heard explains. “And then she encounters Ghostface. Ghostface slashes her, tears her arm, and then she gets torn in the garage door. And that is a show-stopping moment.”

Not only has “Scream’d” kept the doors open and the lights on at Majestic, Heard’s Arts District theater company that celebrated its eighth anniversary last month, it’s helping to solidify its future in unprecedented ways.

“This was a Hail Mary pass I took last year to keep Majestic afloat,” Heard says, “and it’s really gone beyond what any of us could’ve expected.”

Going viral

Majestic barely survived the early days of the pandemic by staging socially distanced performances that could be viewed from the safety of patrons’ cars.

Heard and his actors rode the wave of pent-up demand once the world reopened as people scrambled for experiences they couldn’t have during quarantines. By early 2023, though, that enthusiasm had waned, and the company was in need of some serious cash. Heard and his team had to think about what they really wanted to do next, as well as what the city needed.

“I think that’s something a lot of artists don’t consider,” Heard says. “It’s not just for yourself — it’s ‘Who are your audiences?’ ”

Majestic’s audience apparently was made up of lovers of horror movies and ’90s pop songs who were just waiting for the two to merge, Reese’s peanut butter cup-style. That enthusiasm helped make “Scream’d” a viral sensation almost from the start.

Heard remembers heading next door to Davy’s with the cast and crew after a performance last year. As they unwound, they watched a clip of the show — the actors playing Billy Loomis and Stu Macher danced while singing a modified version of the Backstreet Boys’ “Everybody” — as it passed a million views on both Twitter, as it was called then, and Instagram.

“Scream’d” also incorporates songs from ’90s mainstays Britney Spears and ’NSync, along with earworms from the likes of Alanis Morissette, Goo Goo Dolls, 4 Non Blondes, Lit and Harvey Danger.

“It’s treated like real musical theater,” Heard says. “It’s like, ‘What songs tell the story?’ It’s not just, ‘Sing something cool because it’s cool.’ It’s what drives the narrative.”

Taking parody seriously

When it comes to horror, Heard is a Jason/Freddy/Michael Myers guy. He’s more into splatter and kill counts than meta humor, which explains why he wasn’t a fan of “Scream” when he started writing this in April 2023.

“I didn’t really get into it,” says Heard, who was in college when the movie was released in 1996. “It felt too cool for me then.”

Majestic had success the previous year bringing “The Craft,” another horror movie from 1996, to the stage. During discussions and brainstorming sessions to save the theater, “Hey kids, let’s put on a show!”-style, the one idea that kept coming up was “Scream.”

“I was like, ‘Oh, God, really? Fine. Let’s do it,’ ” Heard recalls. “But I think that also helped me, too. For me, nothing in it was precious, so I was able to come in and be very analytical.”

As a result, “Scream’d: An Unauthorized Musical Parody” takes its parody very seriously.

“A lot of people do parodies, and they’re really cheesy, and they’re really, honestly, kind of bad,” Heard says.

He made sure “Scream’d,” which he describes as “a ridiculous, raucous chaos,” landed closer to “Young Frankenstein” than “Scary Movie.” Instead of lampooning “Scream,” the musical is an homage to the movie, the genre and the era.

“It’s filled with as much nostalgia as it is parody,” Heard says.

Beyond Las Vegas

Brandon Scott Grayson, who arranged the music for “Scream’d,” filled “The Craft: An Unauthorized Musical Parody” with Nine Inch Nails, The Cure and other goth rock from the era.

After Las Vegas, “The Craft” had a run in Kansas City, Missouri, but it was ultimately tripped up by the lack of proper rights to all the songs. Heard didn’t make the same mistake twice, setting up “Scream’d” for future success.

“Scream’d” will hit 100 performances on Nov. 16, which is scheduled to be its final night. Don’t chisel that into the show’s tombstone just yet, though. This thing just keeps coming back, much like its masked killer.

Whenever this run comes to an end, Heard and his Majestic team will start prepping for a version to open in Los Angeles in the spring, with another version in the works for London.

“Large regional theaters do this all the time,” Heard says.

Southern California’s La Jolla Playhouse, for example, has birthed such Broadway productions as “The Who’s Tommy,” “Jersey Boys” and “Come From Away.” And the theater gets royalties from those shows whenever they’re produced.

“For us,” Heard says, “for a little 99-seat storefront (theater), to be able to do this is completely unheard of.”