Mean Girls is big, loud, splashy, and fun. I sat next to a high school principal from Palm Springs, and he informed me that not only had he seen the movie dozens of times, but also that the kids at his school knew the dialogue by heart. So, it’s best that the play faithfully follows the film. Cady Heron (Erika Henningsen) has been home schooled all her life. She and her parents have just relocated from Africa to Illinois. Cady—Katy, not Caddy—is anxious to make “some human friends,” but finds that American high school is every bit as much of a jungle, and the animals are just as ferocious. Fortunately, she makes friends with two of the outcasts, hippie Janis (Barrett Wilbert Weed) and way-out-of- the-closet Damian (Grey Henson). They give her the cafeteria lay of the land and warn her against the group of girls known as “The Plastics,” who are both worshipped and feared by the student body. Regina (Taylor Louderman) is the head of the group; she’s stereotypically blonde, has a great body, and considers herself above everyone else. Her acolytes are the gorgeous but really dumb Karen (Kate Rockwell) and the insecure but eager Gretchen (Ashley Park). When Regina becomes interested in Cady, she offers the ultimate boon, an opportunity to have lunch with the golden girls. Janis decides it would be fun to have Cady spy on The Plastics from within, but soon Cady becomes seduced by the glamour, and turns into a phony herself. Breaking up with the group has dire results, and a hard lesson is learned. There are some charming touches. The opening backdrop features pages from the “burn book,” a yearbook which features nasty sayings and insulting cutouts. It’s also a wink to the audience to have the students decked out in T-shirts from other Broadway shows, including Hamilton, Wicked, and Dear Evan Hansen. It’s always a joy to watch Kerry Butler work. She makes the most of three small character roles, and as Regina’s dingbat mother, she’s hilarious and even a little heartbreaking. It’s fun to see the usually level-headed Cady go “Stupid in Love” over heartthrob Aaron (Kyle Selig), and great to see him ultimately reject her dumb act. While the entire cast is stellar, Kate Rockwell brings extra light to the stage as the dim bulb Karen. She has a sweetness that overrides the blind adoration of Regina, her voice is excellent, and she’s a true beauty. She really knocks it out of the park with her Halloween song. Grey Henson makes the most of an extremely showy part, and while his Damian fills the bill as “almost too gay to function,” we are left with no doubt that this is a young man who will find his niche in the world outside high school and flourish. The music fits the script, and in a few cases, really shines. Chief among the touted numbers is Gretchen’s plaintive “What’s Wrong with Me?” The fact that Regina’s mom, who’s too anxious to be one of the gang, later picks up the refrain is a welcome surprise. Regina’s “Someone Gets Hurt” feels off message coming from this Queen Bee, and “Whose House Is This” is lost in the mayhem of the wild party scene. Mean Girls drags in the second act; at two hours and thirty minutes, it’s just too long. Worse yet, the rather interminable mass confession scene features male member of the cast in drag, and Kinky Boots this ain’t. Simply put, these are by far the least attractive “girls” on Broadway. But, in the spirit of the moral of the play, this is much too mean . . . and I’m sorry.
