Theatre Review: Heathers
SUMMARY
Rating: ★★★★
Running Dates: Tuesday 9th November - Saturday 13th November 2021
Where to see it: Bristol Hippodrome (UK Tour)
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes (including 20 minute interval)
Keywords: Musical, Suicide Ideation, Black Comedy
REVIEW
Wow. What did I just watch?! Mean Girls on acid?
Entering the beautiful auditorium I was surrounded by the Heathers fandom of young girls wearing different coloured scrunchies - I almost immediately felt out of my depth. I must admit I did no research prior to seeing this show. I haven’t seen the film it's based on - so I went in totally blind.
But... I LOVED IT. The madness of it, the randomness of some parts, the sheer abandonment of any stem of reality. I was here for it.
Heathers is a story of fake friendships and survival of the fittest in a classic high school setting with a twist - a murderous twist. The opening number ‘Beautiful’ highlighted the various stereotypes of high school: the nerd, the jocks, the cheerleaders and of course, The Heathers in a vision of red, green & yellow.
Tingling my A Level Media Studies spidey senses it was highlighted in their personalities that red was certainly teenage angst anger and green was jealousy. The classic ‘plastics’ that every school had - it set them up as the gods to be worshipped.
Enter Veronica, our protagonist who dreams of getting through high school unscathed but at what cost? She very quickly finds her way into the Heathers gang and becomes the ‘blue’ member. She is stiflingly different from her Heather pals - this is indicated through her adorable friendship with Martha Dunstock, who is played by Mhairi Angus, who has a voice of an angel.
Then in steps our leading gentleman, JD played by Simon Gordon, who is problematically charming and attractive, and establishes a relationship with Veronica - so begins our tale of murderous woe. I particularly enjoyed that his costume was a nod to ‘The Breakfast Club’ which already set out what character type he was going to play.
Three body counts later, our Veronica is being haunted by three ghosts, two that remain in their underwear for the remainder of the show. I’m not complaining.
Act Two leaps into action with a gospel number of ‘My Dead Gay Son’ which was a highlight of the show. Following, hit tracks such as ‘Seventeen’ and the number even I was aware of, ‘I say no’ - which was pulled off with style by Rebecca Wickes (Veronica).
Ultimately, this is a story about growing up as a teenager and navigating through the high school environment; which can sometimes feel like the end of the world but doesn’t actually end in murder. A story about friendship conquering all despite what stereotype is put on us - popular, nerdy - it doesn’t matter, and that boys really need to deal with their feelings and not murder people?
This is definitely worth a watch, it's worth the hype - and there is something in this tale that everybody can relate to on some level. Go along for the ride - it's truly something!
Standout Quote or Moment: The teacher breaking the fourth wall to talk to a member of the audience. Even the cast were struggling to keep a straight face!
See If: You enjoy a black comedy that doesn’t shy away from difficult topics
Similar Plays: Mean Girls, Spring Awakening, Dear Evan Hanson
Last Impression: A cheeky nod and a wink to our high school days, and how everything felt like the end of the world when we were that age!
Written by Steph Clarke
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