Eric Huffman (Damian Hubbard) and the National Touring Company of Mean Girls
Credit: © 2022 Jenny Anderson
It’s so “fetch” that the Mean Girls national tour is making a stop in Houston this week. This stage adaptation of Tina Fey’s hit movie follows the same story as the film version, however the creative team made an effort to change it enough that it’s even better for the theater. Featuring new scenes and new jokes, along with a great soundtrack by Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin, Mean Girls was a hit with everyone in the audience at my rescheduled Friday matinee. Although I did not attend the Wednesday performance, there was still plenty of pink among the audience. The story follows the progression of high school friendships and cliques as they develop and crumble through the fight for power and jealousy. This show is definitely a must-see while it is playing at the Hobby Center.
The cast was stellar, from their beautiful voices during sweetest ballads to rocking out in the full ensemble numbers. Although my performance featured an understudy playing Cady Heron, I wouldn’t have been able to tell apart from the pre-show announcement. Adriana Scalice had such a powerful voice and chemistry with the rest of the cast looked like she had been in this role at every performance. Nadina Hassan played the meanest of the mean girls, Regina George, with such an energy that the rest of the cast really did cower in fear. Each of the female leads had powerhouse belting voices and absolutely killed it in each of their solos, and Eric Huffman, playing Damian, blew me away with his rendition of “Where Do You Belong?”
The set was created with fully digital walls that could change between any locations or effects seamlessly, while the cast would bring on and off various pieces like doorways, tables, and desks to fill out the space. The creativity from the design team allowed the show to flow seamlessly between scenes while still creating realistic spaces for the cast. Casey Nicholaw’s choreography felt natural while also allowing for creative dances for the cast. There were scenes where he would incorporate prop pieces into the dances, such as using cafeteria trays for the sound effects of tap dancing instead of having cast members switching into actual tap shoes mid-scene. Since most of the cast played high-schoolers, the bulk of the footwear was either sneakers or high heels (for the Plastics).
Mean Girls is on-stage at the Hobby Center through August 21st. For more information about Broadway at the Hobby Center and the recently announced 2022-2023 season, please visit houston.broadway.com. For more Broadway updates, tune into my KTRU specialty show “Showstoppers” weekly on Sundays from 1:45 to 2:45 pm on air and online at ktru.org.
