MEAN GIRLS Previews — Page 5

Playbill_Trash said: "I saw Mean Girls in DC and really enjoyed it. I left thinking about what changes they would make for Broadway so thank you to everyone who is posting with what they are seeing now for us that are unable to see the new version.

I'm a big Casey Nicholaw fan and have been since Spamalot. I left Mean Girls in DC thinking it was pretty light on tap for a Casey Nicholaw show, so that's why I'm glad to hear they cut Bossed Up (a musical turducken of every tune in the first act) and added a tap number for Damien to open act 2! My question for those who have seen the latest previews is, would you say this new number is a big Casey Nicholaw production number? Or is it smaller with just Damien and a few other people tapping?"

Happy someone agrees about "Bossed Up." I really didn't even like it when Aaron said it in act one, then when it became a number, I was really ready for it to be over so we could move on.

I was there tonight. The main thing I was shocked by was how tonally different it feels from the movie. The movie felt cool and this feels more like an energetic cartoon world the story of Mean Girls just happened to be dropped into. It's clearly a deliberate choice and when it works, it really works, but it definitely took some adjusting. The opening number is awful and really had me worried about what I was about to get into, but things definitely perk up. I agree the music is mainly fine and does it's job. The lyrics on the other hand...YIKES. Most of the lyrics are rough rough rough , and this is coming from someone who has nothing but affection for bad pop lyrics. I went back and forth on the projections; sometimes they enhanced and sometimes they looked cheap. Taylor Louderman was the standout for me. Erika Henningan is horribly miscast. The Plastics/Janice and Damian are worth the price of admission. It'll sweep all the off broadway awards The Band's Visit won't be eligible for this year. On it's own, the show is in the C+/B- range but add nostalgia, audience excitement, and the sheer energy from the cast and it's an easy B+ (and I could even see die hard movie fans convincing themselves it's an A). Overall, a pretty fun mindless night of theatre.

Jakeevan942 said: "It starts small and then turns into a fuller ensemble number. Not as big as, say, Musical or Omelette, but on par with Bottom's Gonna Be on Top, to use the crazy amount of tap in Something Rotten as a standard of comparison."

Thanks Jakeevan942 for clearing that up! That completely answers my question, and I could not have asked for a better frame of reference to get an image of the number. (Something Rotten is one of my favorites and I'm even seeing the tour tomorrow).

Elegance101 said: "Happy someone agrees about "Bossed Up." I really didn't even like it when Aaron said it in act one, then when it became a number, I was really ready for it to be over so we could move on."

Elegance101, I feel the same way. The point of the song was basically the same as the point of Justice at the end of Act 1, I didn't think Bossed Up really moved the story along at all. Glad to hear Damien gets another number, Where Do You Belong was one of my favorite parts in DC.

Interesting to hear that they kept Who's House Is This, in DC it dragged on for 2 verses too long with the same joke in the chorus. Is it at least shorter now?

I hope I used the spoiler toggle correctly in this post; kind of new to that function. If not oh well, everyone gets abducted by aliens and turns out to be related to each other at the end of this show. Spoiler Alert.

Playbill_Trash said: "

I hope I used the spoiler toggle correctly in this post; kind of new to that function. If not oh well, everyone gets abducted by aliens and turns out to be related to each other at the end of this show. Spoiler Alert."

The song you asked about is "I Can Be" and yes, it's still in the show. The role of Karen needed no rewrites, so thank god her stuff has remained practically untouched.

Updated On: 3/16/18 at 03:34 PM

After seeing this twice in DC, spontaneously joined a friend at the show tonight in NYC. In all, I think it is a much tighter show, still kinks to be worked out, but I haven't had this much fun at the theatre in ages.

Again, I have to say, BOO narration. Don't tell us, just show us. And let's be honest, Mean Girls isn't Hamlet - which didn't need a narrator - it doesn't need a framing device, or anyone to explain what's happening. We get it.

I saw it the other night, and while I and the group I was with overall enjoyed it, it definitely needs some work.

1. The script needs some rewriting, especially in the second act. It is much too long, going from a 90 minute movie into a 2-1/2 hour musical. The framing device with Janis and Damien narrating needs to be tightened up and made more clear. They seem to try to hit every single piece of minutiae in the first act but just breeze past most of the major plot points in the second act, like Regina's accident and Cady taking the blame for the Burn Book. On that note, did anyone else notice that the principal just kind of forgets that he banned Cady from the Spring Fling dance? He says she's banned, and then two scenes later, he's handing her the crown with a smile on his face with no real explanation. I just need one line explaining it.

2. The lyrics do have some wit to them, but the music is very bland. I've never watched much of 30 Rock, so I can't speak for the quality of Jeff Richmond's music in that show, but there is a world of difference between composing underscore for a TV show and writing the score of a musical. It's hard to pick up motifs and reprises when everything just sort of floats together. I can probably only remember one motif, which is the one Cady always sings in her inner monologue.

3. They really need to rework the projection design. There's parts where it works, but it's overall too obnoxious. There's a very fine line between stylized overindulgence and making a stage musical look like a cartoon, and this looked too close to a cartoon.



All that being said, I still enjoyed the show. I enjoy the original movie, and Tina Fey's writing didn't disappoint. There's a lot of really funny one-liners, both in the spoken and sung text. Casey Nicholaw is a fantastic choreographer, and most of his staging was very inspired, especially with Damien's two numbers. The cast is all fantastic (what a treat it must be to get to write a song for Barrett Wilbert Weed).

I could see the actresses playing Janis and Karen, and the actor playing Damien getting nominations, but Tina Fey winning over The Band's Visit? Not a chance in hell.

Wow I had high hopes walking into this show...and let me first say the young audience - which I loved seeing on Broadway -was eating the show up BUT OH BOY this is a clunker. It started out strong and then it was like all the energy began to drain out of it. I know there's lots of Casey Nicholaw fans out there but we thought the choreography and direction was dismal. And the acting was all over the place...but primarily overacted. At one point I turned to my friend who works for a celeb tv show and said this is rough...she agreed. No star turning performances...the writing is a series of one liners...and what was up with that framing device? Why? Didn't love the set, didn't love the costumes, the music is forgettable, nothing stands out and nobody stands out. The gay best friend Damien was mugging the entire show and totally irritating. The "big" transformation at the end of act one is a big MEH. Her skirt didn't even fit her right? Yikes! The kids in the audience loved it so maybe that's all that matters but seriously if you're looking for an amazing night at the theatre save yourself 400 plus on this one. I feel totally ripped off. Sorry folks.

Do Janis and Damien not return at the end with "the moral of our story is...calling someone xyz doesn't make you cuz... even the people you don't like have feelings, so get off their d*cks" like in DC?

Updated On: 3/17/18 at 05:50 PM