Go back to school with Mean Girls
Rachel Cahoon, left, stars in Mean Girls, a musical based on the 2004 film written by Tina Fey. The musical, which was nominated for 12 Tony awards, runs at Toby's Dinner Theatre in Columbia, Maryland, through August 23.
American audiences have long been drawn to comedies about high schools — from the 1940s radio and 1950s TV show “Our Miss Brooks” to Archie comics to the 1970s sitcom “Welcome Back, Kotter.”
In the early 2000s, we had the film Mean Girls, which was so popular that it became a Broadway musical (and another movie two years ago).
Now the musical is on stage at Toby’s Dinner Theatre in a fine production directed by Mark Minnick, choreographed by David Singleton and led musically by Ross Scott Rawlings.
The lead character in the Mean Girls franchise, Cady Heron (portrayed warmly by Rachel Cahoon), is at first the proverbial “fish out of water,” an American girl who returns to the States after being homeschooled in Africa for 10 years.
As the audience watches Cady navigate the various cliques of North Shore High School, the theme of Mean Girls becomes clear: how to find where we belong — not only in high school cliques, but in life.
Music orients audience
While many of the dozen songs follow a pop or rock pattern, the song “Where Do You Belong?” is the exception. Alan Gutierrez-Urista and Tobi Baisburd, as Cady’s new friends, social outcasts Damian and Janis respectively, ably lead the ensemble and introduce the audience to the titular mean girls: dumb Karen, insecure Gretchen and vicious Regina, the queen bee of her group, dubbed the Plastics.
This song is perhaps the most Broadway of the production’s songs, along with “Meet the Plastics,” which has a traditional, showstopping Broadway exit that aficionados of the genre will appreciate.
Some of the songs take us through the seasons, such as Halloween, celebrated in “Sexy” by an effective Alexis Krey- Bedore as Karen, leading the ensemble. The Halloween costumes, as well as the Christmas outfits in a later sequence, are designed by Janine Sunday and are nothing short of splendid.
Though older than the high school-age characters they portray, the cast comes across very believably in these roles.
As Regina, MaryKate Brouillet is in some ways the standout personality in the show. She performs the striking song “Someone Gets Hurt” and shows off her powerful voice in “World Burn.”
Toby’s again turns its theater-in-the-round setting to a decided advantage. When all of the students rotate their desks a quarter turn, for instance, they and the audience members are thereby transported to a different classroom.
Universal themes
Like all classic high school comedies, the show reminds us that coming of age and facing peer pressure are universal experiences. Occasionally, though, the musical strays into trite territory, quoting the Golden Rule and asking, “We will explore: What does it mean to be a good person?”
Although the high school setting, moral lessons and the original film’s association with Disney star Lindsay Lohan might imply that this is a show for teenagers, the music has insights for us all, no matter our age.
Mean Girls runs through August 23 at Toby’s Dinner Theatre, 5900 Symphony Woods Rd., Columbia. Due to the use of profanity and references to sexual situations, it’s not recommended for young children.
Tickets range from $84 to $92 for adults. People 65 and older pay $74 for Tuesday evening or any Wednesday performance.
Tickets are available from the box office by calling (410) 730-8311 or online at tobysdinnertheatre.com.
