Editor's Note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Ellie Quinlisk's last name.
When Cady Heron shows up in an American high school she’s in for the education of a lifetime.
Fresh from being home-schooled on an African savanna, the naive Heron lands utterly unprepared for a world of popularity cliques, nasty comments and exclusion.
Welcome to “Mean Girls,” Tina Fey’s spectacularly successful, and hilarious 2004 film, based on the nonfiction book “Queen Bees and Wannabes,” written by Rosalind Wiseman. In 2018, the film was adapted into a musical stage production and this year, a movie version of the musical was just released.
On March 14, the Central Bucks West Harlequin Club premiers the comedy-driven musical on its stage, featuring a powerful cast of talented students, directed by Claudine Piechotta.
“The girls were very, very excited when this was chosen,” said Piechotta, during an interview in the school’s auditorium, as cast and crew dashed around preparing for a rehearsal.
Part of the excitement the play’s sparked, she explained, is because “there are very few female-forward musicals.” “Mean Girls High School Version” features a cast of 40 girls and six boys from the high schools’ highly regarded theater club.
“I think being a girl in theater is so hard,” said 18-year-old Ella Patras, who takes on the role of Cady’s nemesis, Regina George. Male roles far outnumber those for females, she added.
Still, the musical is “not about boy-bashing; it’s very positive for boys,” said Piechotta.
Playing Regina offers a “fun challenge,” said Patras. “I never got to play the evil one,” said the senior, with a smile. “I’m stepping out of my comfort zone.”
Starring as Cady is Ellie Quinlisk, also a senior. “I’m enjoying playing the part of someone who doesn’t fit in.” Cady’s character, said Quinlisk, is “about changing yourself to try and be like someone else” and how she learns “that just doesn’t work.”
Alyssa Cooke, 17, plays Janis Sarkisian, a central character who wants Cady to try and “take down Regina from the inside” to settle a past score between Janis and Regina.
Aiden Adams, 16, plays Janis’s “sidekick.” It’s his first time back on the stage since sixth grade, Adams said. When he sang, said the director, “He blew us away.”
“Mean Girls,” Piechotta said, “is a very real take on what high school is like. It’s very relatable. Sometimes friends hurt each other more than enemies. There’s bullying, but there’s also real acceptance.” And, while the play “can definitely be crass at times, at its heart it’s absolutely a comedy.”
The Harlequin Club is a donation-supported club.
Performance dates and times are: 7 p.m. March 14, 15 and 16, and 2 p.m. March 17.
Online ticket sales on the theater club’s showtixforu website end 12 hours before each performance. If remaining seats are available, general admission tickets will be sold at the door 30 minutes prior to show time. General admission seating is typically at the rear and sides of the auditorium.
The play is rated PG-13 for mild language and thematic elements. Viewer discretion is advised, and parental guidance is suggested for children under 13. If you require special assistance or need to be seated in a wheelchair, send an email to harlequinclubproducer@gmail.com.
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