REVIEW: Mean Girls on Broadway

photo by Joan Marcus

"I just won The Cher Show lottery," my mom whisper-shouted on the train en route to New York City, staring at her phone in shock. "Who wants the second ticket?" "I'll go with you," my dad said immediately from the row behind us. That left me on my own in the city to see whatever show I wanted. "If they're still available once we get there, I'm going to try and see Mean Girls," I said. "This is the perfect time to go!" My mom and I had seen the pre-Broadway tryout run of Mean Girls at the National Theatre in Washington, DC back in 2017, and I have been wanting to see it on Broadway to identify changes between the two runs. Once we arrived in the city I successfully obtained my ticket in a matter of minutes at TKTS. About two hours later, I dropped my parents off at the Neil Simon Theatre and then practically sprinted across the street to the August Wilson Theatre to see the most fetch show on Broadway.

Mean Girls is based off the Tina Fey-penned, cult-classic movie of the same name. The story follows Cady Heron, the daughter of two biologists who spent her entire childhood studying in Africa. When they move back home to the United States, Cady has to learn how to navigate the social hierarchy of public high school. After being taken under the wings of "The Plastics," the most popular girls in school, Cady is thrown into an unfamiliar world of boys, gossip, and backstabbing. The movie originally came out when I was in middle school, so naturally I've been a long-time fan and can practically recite the entire movie by heart.

Movie purists going to see the Broadway production will not be disappointed. The book is written by Tina Fey and the score is written by her husband Jeff Richmond. Tina Fey made sure to keep fans happy by including the most famous lines from the movie, including "She doesn't even go here!" "Danny DeVito I love your work!" "On Wednesdays we wear pink," and most importantly "Four for you Glen Coco, you go Glen Coco!" The few things that had to be adapted for the stage were just as hilarious as the original jokes. For example, Regina no longer hooks up with Shane Oman in the projection room above the auditorium; instead, they hook up inside the North Shore Lions mascot costume. Instead of Damien having to get his car back by curfew, he drives his grandmother's mobility scooter across the stage. Of course, the storyline was updated to appeal to today's youth, including references to smart phones and social media (the movie was released long before even the first iPhone launched). The musical, even with some deviations from the movie we know and love, still allows Tina Fey's voice and laugh-out-loud wit to shine through.

The most improved aspect of Mean Girls from when I first saw the tryout run in Washington, DC is definitely the score. In DC, many of the songs seemed to interrupt rather than enhance the story. There were some memorable tunes, like the original finale to Act 1 entitled "Justice," but otherwise the songs in their original form were forgettable and needed serious work before the move to Broadway. Jeff Richmond did a great job creating much more catchy lyrics and more impactful songs. They also added some really great reprises that aren't included on the Original Broadway Cast Recording that help tie everything together. Additionally, Cady (who unlike in the movie isn't the primary narrator of the story - Janis and Damien are) spends a good time breaking the fourth wall and justifying her actions to the audience through song. This proved to be a very effective choice.

As far as performances go, I thought the cast was also much improved from the tryout run. Erika Henningsen starring as Cady Heron is so precious, and she transitions quite well from the social awkward new kid to the school's queen bee. I only wish she took a little bit more build-up time before reaching her peak level of mean. Taylor Louderman, who was Tony-nominated for her performance as Regina George, was the most improved since the DC run. In DC, I think Taylor was still finding herself within her character, and she wasn't as nasty as she needed to be. She has grown leaps and bounds since I first saw the show. She is now confident, sexy, irresistible, and manipulative. I had a really hard time determining when Regina was being genuine or fake, which is entirely the point of the character. I loved to hate her. Let's not forget Taylor Louderman's incredible vocal range! The higher the notes went, the stronger her voice became, and the more goosebumps I got. "World Burn" in particular brought the house down.

My absolute favorite performance of the show goes to Barrett Wilbert Weed as Janis. She has Janis' angry monotone from the movie down pat, and Barrett's vocals are out of this world. She has a voice that pierces through the air and into your soul with unbelievable clarity, and I love that the creative team found ways to exploit her incredible vocal chops more so than they did in DC. When she finally snapped in Act 2 and belted out "Someone Gets Hurt (Reprise)" I felt like she smacked me in the face with the sheer power of her voice. Her chemistry with Damien (played fabulously at my matinee by understudy DeMarius R. Copes) was excellent, and together they were hysterical through the whole show.

There are a few other roles that are definitely worth recognizing. Freshly debuted in the role of Gretchen Weiners, Krystina Alabado was excellent. I actually preferred her performance to that of her predecessor, Tony nominee and original cast member Ashley Park. If you take Lacey Chabert's portrayal of the same role in the movie and combine that with the energy and personality of a Pomeranian, you have Krystina's take on the iconic role. I promise you, that is a compliment.

The biggest laughs of the afternoon went to Kate Rockwell as Karen Smith. Karen is, as described by Janis, "the dumbest person you'll ever meet." Kate does an excellent job of making Karen's lack of intellect extremely endearing. Also, I really appreciate that Tina Fey made an effort to expand Karen's character to show that she was more than just a one-dimensional dumb blonde. If you go to see the show, be sure to sneak glances at Kate when she is not the main focus of the scene. She is 100% in character the entire time, and she is constantly making deliberate choices which had me in constant hysterics.

Finally, I must mention Jennifer Simard playing the roles of all three adult females - Mrs. Heron, Mrs. George, and Ms. Norbury. She was so convincing in each role that I didn't even realize it was Jennifer Simard onstage until I checked the cast list in my Playbill at intermission (and I am a big Jennifer Simard fan, so that's saying something). Each character was distinct and captivating in their own way. My favorite part of Jennifer's performance was towards the end of the show when she finally got to belt it out during the song "Do This Thing." The minute she began to sing, the entire audience erupted into cheers. She had the audience wrapped around her finger from the second she stepped on stage.

One wonderful and unexpected surprise was a fantastic tap number to kick off Act 2 in the new opener "Stop," led by Damien. DeMarius R. Copes, a former Newsie, was up to the task and did a wonderful job leading the Casey Nicholaw-choreographed number. Let's be honest, is it really a Casey Nicholaw show if there isn't a show-stopping tap number? I was delighted to see that dance and loved that it was added to the show (It definitely wasn't there during the tryout run).

If you're heading to a Broadway show to see something completely groundbreaking and unlike anything you've seen before, Mean Girls isn't the show for you. However, if you're looking for something light-hearted and laugh-out-loud funny, I can assure you you won't be disappointed, especially if you're a fan of the Mean Girls movie or of Tina Fey in general. I wouldn't say this show is spectacular by any means, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it immensely. As I told my parents when I met back up with them after our respective matinees, I couldn't wipe the cheesy smile off my face the entire time.

Mean Girls is currently running on Broadway at the August Wilson Theatre in New York City and does not currently have any signs of closing. The first national tour is scheduled to kick off in Minneapolis, MN on October 1st, 2019, and ticket information for the tour can be found here. Tickets can be obtained for the Broadway run at ticketmaster.com, on the TodayTix app, or frequently at the TKTS booth in Times Square, Lincoln Center Theatre, or South Street Seaport. Additionally, the Broadway production has a $42.50 digital lottery for same week performances, $42.50 general rush tickets for same-day performances, and a Pink Wednesday rush which sells a limited amount of $32.50 tickets for same-day Wednesday performances only to anyone wearing pink.

Run Time: 2hrs 20mins with one 15min intermission

Mean Girls rating: PG-13

Hillary's Score: 7/10
Check out my other show reviews here!

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