“Mean Girls” impresses audiences
Drama, fights, amazing songs…and a whole lot of pink. CVHS’ production of “Mean Girls” has revealed itself to be one of the drama program’s most ambitious and difficult shows to pull together, but the result was nothing short of spectacular. The musical is based on the hit 2004 comedy movie of the same name, written by Tina Fey. Fey led the conversion of film into a musical, and it retains all of its old charm in a new, modernized world.
The musical follows Cady Heron, played by senior Jazhara Jones, as she travels from homeschooling in Kenya, Africa to a bustling American high school in Illinois. She meets new friends Janis,senior Charlotte Carpenter, and Damian,junior Jason Galvan, who soon convince her to sabotage the ‘Apex Predator’ of the school, Regina George, junior Sophia Pereira. Regina and her two best friends, Gretchen,senior Maya Wong and Karen,sophomore Nora Layne, lead the school with their oppressive behavior and are nicknamed ‘The Plastics’ because they are shiny, fake, and hard. As the story progresses things get out of hand, and what follows is a story that no one will forget.
Mean Girls at its heart is a story about bullying, and it has roots in the real world. The film was based on the parenting book “Queen Bees and Wannabes” by Rosalind Wiseman, which tackles a subject coined “toxic female aggression”. The film finds a way to put this information into a cohesive story that is more entertaining and digestible to an average audience. The musical then takes what the film has done and transports it into the modern world, showing how the same events from the book and film can be amplified and worsened by social media and the world we currently live in.
The cast and crew of the CVHS production worked tirelessly for weeks on “Mean Girls,” with over 150 students in the production. The numbers had many ranges, from menacing and dark like “Someone Gets Hurt,” to upbeat and fun like “Where Do You Belong.”
Junior Sophia Pereira, who played Regina George, said, “The message of ‘Mean Girls’ is to be yourself and be kind to others.” When asked about what she liked about the character, even though the character is a villain, she has found inspiring ways to connect with her. “Regina has a level of confidence that I admire and that’s what I hope to take away from the character, not the mean comments or sheer amount of pink.”
“Mean Girls” portrays the ups and downs of high school in an exaggerated and hilarious way, and the numerous props, costumes, and scenic projections used in the show create an amazing atmosphere that will cement this show in CVHS history as one of the biggest and best shows in the school’s history.