★★★★★

“The performances are rich and joyous. It’s hard to take a part that’s so familiar and make it your own, but this cast does it.”

In case you’ve been living under a rock, this show is a Covid delayed U.K. premiere of the smash hit US musical, based on the hugely successful film of the same name.

The plot sticks closely to the film. Cady Heron (Charlie Burn) is a new kid at an American high school, having been home schooled in Kenya up until now. She must choose between authentic outsiders, Janis (Baylie Carson) and Damian (Tom Xander), or the poisoned chalice of popularity that comes with being one of ‘The Plastics’. The romance plot is more central than in the film, with Cady’s main motivation being her infatuation with fellow calculus student Aaron (Daniel Bravo).

Mean Girls marks another in a current trend of film to stage adaptations, which seem to be driven, at least in part, by the temptation of an existing fan base. Certainly, as I join a small army of pink clad women (it’s a Wednesday, so we’re all wearing pink) marching towards the theatre, this plan seems to have paid off.

There’s a worry it will feel like a soulless shell of the film. But it doesn’t. The book, written by Tina Fey, who wrote and acted in the film, is smart and witty. It’s updated, with fresh and current jokes (references to Ozempic and Get Ready with Me videos) but keeps the fan favourite one-liners from the film. With clever lyrics by Nell Benjamin and music written by Fey’s husband Jeff Richmond, the show delves further into these characters who are beloved by the fan base.

The performances are rich and joyous. It’s hard to take a part that’s so familiar and make it your own, but this cast does it. Each character has a different musical style which allows the actors to stand out, each thriving in their niche.

Tom Xander as Damian is wondrously campy and fun. Every moment with him is a scene stealer. At one point he steals a mobility scooter, which results in some glorious physical comedy. Baylie Carson smashes it as Janis, standing in for Elena Skye for this performance. It’s a tricky part and they own it, giving Janis her own flair amongst bigger more flamboyant characters. Georgina Castle as the iconic Regina George is fabulously evil, Disney villain meets Instagram influencer. She has a captivating stage presence. Grace Mouat as Karen has fabulous comic timing, and her physical comedy is on point. Also, Zoë Rainey as all three of the ‘grown up’ women dazzles in her multi rolling, turning each caricature up to the max.

Scott Pask’s set design combined with Finn Ross and Adam Young’s video design is as much a nod to the film as the plot. Settings are projected onto huge screens, calling into question that line between film and theatre. Sometimes it’s backdrops, sometimes photos of the cast, of the Burn Book, and sometimes (like in a brilliant evocation of a photocopier) it’s a theatrical wonder. It doesn’t do it for me, but it does feel fresh.

Under this show’s joyous silliness, there’s an important message about female solidarity. It would be interesting to know how it plays for people who don’t know the film. But for fans, and there are many, it’s a delicious night of fetch-y fun.

BRONCO BILLY – THE MUSICAL at Charing Cross Theatre

★★★

“it has the thrill of a fairground ride that plants an irresistible smile on our faces as we bravely hang on”

Welcome to the Wild West. It’s not a place on the map, but a place in your heart – or rather Bronco Billy’s heart. A world that tells you that you don’t belong, you ‘gotta’ be strong, and never give up on your dreams. You can be anything you want. Or so it seems. But just in case you missed the greeting card message, it is repeated in verse, prose, rhythm and rhyme many a time over the next couple of hours.

Billy (Tarinn Callender) is a Brooklyn born go-getter, reinvented as a gun-slinging, gun-toting, gun-firing cowboy. A damaged Vietnam veteran he conceals his purple heart, but wears his real one on his sleeve. And it turns out his heart is as big as his personality. Callender is immensely likeable and engaging as the leader of his rag-taggle travelling troupe, performing their Wild West show across America. Part vaudeville, part circus, and wholly chaotic, these cowboys are as ramshackle as the tour bus that is their home.

It is difficult to place them in time. We could be on the frontier in the seventeenth century, or in the depression era of the 1920s, but a casual reference to Margaret Thatcher’s rise to power across the pond places us firmly in 1979. Likewise, Chip Rosenbloom and John Torres’ score wanders the wheat fields and Hillbilly highways in search of a hook; visiting the Grand Ole Opry before rocking up in the disco hostels of the Village People. And we’re back in the seventies. It’s a bumpy ride for sure; coherence hanging by a thread and plausibility in tatters. Yet it has the thrill of a fairground ride that plants an irresistible smile on our faces as we bravely hang on.

Based on the 1980 Clint Eastwood comedy-drama, original scriptwriter Dennis Hackman has adapted and updated the story for the stage, enlisting Rosenbloom and Torres, with additional lyrics courtesy of Michele Brourman. Billy and his company are en route to Hollywood chasing their dream opportunity. But back in New York chocolate heiress Antoinette Lily (Emily Benjamin) is running for her life from her family who have thirty days to make sure she is dead and buried so they can commandeer her inheritance. The two meet by chance at a gas station. Antoinette changes her name to Lily Rose and joins the travelling show and they embark on a will-they-won’t-they romance. The pantomime villains are in hot pursuit led by the wicked stepmother Constance (Victoria Hamilton-Barritt) and hired hitman Sinclair St Clair (Alexander McMorran).

“What draws the most attention are the vocal performances, which is where the principals shine”

Hunter Bird’s upbeat production is as pacey as they get, but somehow feels laboured, not quite sure in which direction it is heading. Stumbling on slapstick and tripping up on clichés that roll like tumbleweed across the dusty terrain towards its predictable finale. Overacting is the keyword, with Hamilton-Barritt, surprisingly, the main culprit. The sideshow players are more nuanced, most notably Karen Mavundukure’s powerhouse ringmaster Doc Blue, and triple threat Helen K Wint as Lorraine who keeps one step ahead of the rest.

What draws the most attention are the vocal performances, which is where the principals shine. Benjamin and Callender – both in fine voice throughout – have the range and refinement to carry the show, culminating in some magical duetting. Hamilton-Barritt delights with some villainous crooning. It is clear that the performers are all having a ball and eventually the audience are infected with the tongue-in-cheek glee that springs from the stage. The second act cranks up the gears, aided throughout by Amy Jane Cook’s revolve set design, centring on the tour bus: a life size box of tricks, ever changing and opening up to reveal the many locations; from the fields of Kansas to the plush New York interiors to the Hollywood film lots.

As ramshackle as Bronco Billy’s Wild West Show, the musical shares Billy’s dreams and ambitions. Like the journey he leads us on, it is a bit of a tough ride, but let’s hope the show doesn’t give up on those dreams. It will get there eventually.

MEAN GIRLS at the Savoy Theatre

★★★★★

“The performances are rich and joyous. It’s hard to take a part that’s so familiar and make it your own, but this cast does it.”

MEAN GIRLS at the Savoy Theatre

Reviewed on 10th July 2024

by Auriol Reddaway

Photography by Brinkhoff/Mögenburg

Last month’s top shows:

MEAN GIRLS

MEAN GIRLS

BRONCO BILLY – THE MUSICAL at Charing Cross Theatre

★★★

“it has the thrill of a fairground ride that plants an irresistible smile on our faces as we bravely hang on”

“What draws the most attention are the vocal performances, which is where the principals shine”

BRONCO BILLY – THE MUSICAL at Charing Cross Theatre

Reviewed on 31st January 2024

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by The Other Richard

Previously reviewed at this venue:

BRONCO BILLY

BRONCO BILLY