What do you do if you have a hit movie on your hands and you want to prolong its life? The answer is probably to fill it with a banging score and plenty of slick choreography and turn it into a musical.
Sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn’t but with Mean Girls it has certainly proved a success and a packed audience at the Regent Theatre was testament to that.
Cady (Emily Lane) has to move from home schooling in Kenya when her mother (Faye Tozer of Steps fame) accepts a job offer in America. The young girl finds herself thrust into the alien environment of an urban high school and she is most definitely a fish out of water.
She is befriended by two outsiders in the school’s social hierarchy. Damian (Max Gill) and Janis (Sadie Levett) give advice on who are the really cool and the not so cool groups that will enhance Cady’s social prestige – the advances of Kevin (Karim Zeroual), who is leader of the Mathletes are swiftly blocked – and she is persuaded to infiltrate a grouping known as the Plastics.
The Plastics are led by Regina (Vivian Panka) who is most definitely the Queen Bee of the establishment’s social scene and holds sway over the eager-to-please Gretchen (Kiara Dario) and the sweet but rather dumb Karen (Sophie Pourret).
As in most social groupings during teenage years there are hidden agendas. Janis and Regina were the best of friends at elementary school but an incident means that they are now sworn enemies. To make matters worse Cady has developed a crush on Aaron (Ben Oatley) who just happens to be Regina’s ex.
When the Queen Bee moves in to reclaim her former boyfriend’s favours there has to be some sort of revenge. But will the sweet newcomer Cady’s efforts to take the Queen Bee throne turn her into another Mean Girl? And how will lead teacher Mr Duvall (Joshua Elmore) cope with the scandal that is caused by the scandalous stories that are spread.
It is really great fun to see the situation that is common to most teenagers develop. A lively ensemble really makes the stage full of activity and the main characters are given free rein to showcase their vocal talents with a lively score that ranges from the poignant to the euphoric.
Director Karen Edwards and her creative team have produced a highly enjoyable show with costumes that are spot on and clever use of props. A live band under the direction of Tom Slade adds to the enjoyment.
There was a deserved standing ovation at the play’s end and I am sure that the moral of the story – being nasty to others in the petty arguments of adolescence does not make you a better person – really hits home. A piece of musical theatre that targets young people and their insecurities and diversity, Mean Girls deserves to be seen.
Mean Girls has a running time of 2 hours 35 minutes including interval and continues until Saturday April 4th. For ticket information contact atgtickets.com/stoke
