On April 18 and 19, The Westminster Players put on an amazing production of the musical Mean Girls in Kellett Theater. The musical, based on Tina Fey’s 2004 cult classic teen movie of the same name, concluded its Broadway run in 2020, making this one of the newest productions that the Westminster Players have put on. The musical tells the story of Cady Heron, a previously homeschooled teenager who grew up with her parents in Africa, and her journey adapting to the high school experience after moving to America.
Looking back on the success of the two performances of the musical in Kellett, everybody involved in the production was very proud of how far they had come since their first rehearsal. However, the journey toward the show days was exactly smooth sailing.
The musical includes numerous dance numbers, from “Where Do You Belong,” a fun number in the school cafeteria incorporating lunch trays into the choreography, to “Sexy,” an energetic and empowering number at a Halloween party, to “Stop,” a tap dance number– all of which are high-difficulty numbers that require large physical movements while also singing. Kari Twyman, the show’s choreography director, was left with the challenging task of choreographing most of the dance numbers within the show, all while helping many other high schools with their choreographic numbers. Running on a very restricted schedule, it left the large responsibility of memorizing and practicing the dance numbers to the students.
In the absence of Twyman, however, senior student choreographers Kayla Chaney and Sapna Goel stepped in and took on the responsibilities of all the dance numbers in the show. Under their guidance and support, the cast was able to keep up with their dance routines and stay on track even after Twyman had left. The student choreographers also had their chance to shine by adding their own twists to the original dance numbers and coming up with the dance for songs such as “Someone Gets Hurt.”
“Being part of the Mean Girls cast and creative team was the best part of my time as a Westminster player,” said Goel. “The best part about choreographing is seeing the dance numbers come together at the end and knowing the hours of choreographing and teaching all paid off.”
The progress of the show was also interrupted by the outbreak of the flu within the cast and crew. Just days before the show, quite a few members of the cast were not able to come to rehearsal due to the sudden outbreak of illness, including the show’s main character, Cady Heron, played by senior Chloe Carlton. In fact, a day before the open dress rehearsal, her understudy, Avery Clay, had to take on the role of Cady, having never performed in Carlton’s place before.
“I was super nervous to step in for Chloe because she’s so incredibly talented, but throughout the performance, I really appreciated how the rest of the cast supported me and helped me through any mistakes I made,” said Clay.
On the day of the open dress rehearsal, Carlton was not to be seen at school. Before the show started, while the cast was getting ready in the Kellett green room, everyone was extremely worried about her health and the show. She soon appeared in the green room, however, and was immediately greeted by the warm applause of the cast and crew.
Apart from the student choreographers, many other students played critical roles in the success of the production. The show’s stage manager, junior Sallie Dotson, was in charge of managing all props, set changes, and helping out backstage crew. Junior Philip Williams, the show’s assistant musical director, helped actors learn their singing parts and assisted Caroline Stewart, the show’s music director, in keeping track of song cues and entrances. The costuming team led by senior Laila Wehbi and junior Audrey Earnest helped all the actors find appropriate outfits for each of their scenes as well as make alterations and adjustments to their costumes. Last but not least, the show’s student director, senior Anne Cox, originally pitched the idea for the show to the teachers, and helped director Kate Morgens in creating and polishing the show into its final, best form.
“It’s very rare that someone is able to pitch a show to faculty and get it approved like that and I was really lucky to put on one of my favorite shows,” said Cox. “Also, we had such an amazing cast and crew, and I really think this was one of our most successful shows to date.”
The production of Mean Girls also attracted quite a few newcomers to Westminster’s theater department, including senior Julia Gibney. This was the first time she participated in a theater production. Senior Sam Montag, one of Westminster’s top track athletes, also decided to make a return to theater after his freshman year debut.
“I felt like rejoining the theater would be an amazing experience which I could only get at Westminster, and I couldn’t be happier that I made the decision.” said Montag. “The cast and crew were amazing to work with and I loved being able to get back on the stage with such incredible people to have such a memorable experience.”
Though the story of Mean Girls is a hilarious and entertaining one throughout, the show tackles many of the social problems prevalent in high school – body image, bullying, peer pressure, as well as teenage drinking and drug use. Through picking this musical, the Westminster Players hoped to address such controversial topics head on, hoping that viewers could leave the theater with a renewed perspective.
With the greater goal of spreading awareness and education through its production, the entire cast of Mean Girls decided to do online research, looking into professional articles tackling such issues, having discussions about their findings, and considering how they could shed light on these issues through their character work and acting decisions. The cast and crew also created interactive boards which were available to viewers on the show days. The boards included the cast’s findings and insight on the issues portrayed in the show and asked viewers to share their opinions and perspectives on these topics.
Edited by Kavya Athota
