Characterization, Subjectivity, and Intersectional Considerations in Heathers the Musical

Abstract

This thesis examines the multifaceted and interdisciplinary means through which the “rebel” trope is used as a groundwork for complex characterization in Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy’s Heathers the Musical (2018). Using Jamie Muscato’s performance as Jason Dean (“JD”) as an exemplar, I employ a three-stage analytic process through which nuanced, embodied subjectivity is realized, and the performer is highlighted as a vector for intersectional interpretation. The first stage examines the narrative impacts of the text and music written for JD and explores how they serve to individualize him. The second considers the musical mechanics and rock informed stylization of the character using an analytic model for embodied subjectivity, which I extend to account for theatrical elements of performance. The third considers the analytic findings of the first two chapters through an intersectional lens, highlighting the musical and theatrical interpretation of the text posited by the performer as being the main vehicle through which the “rebel” trope is expanded upon.