Curve Theatre Leicester – until 9th May 2026
Reviewed by Amarjeet Singh
3***
Mean Girls lands at Curve with a great deal of confidence, buoyed by the popularity of the 2004 film and the prestige of its creative team. The story follows Cady Heron, a teenage outsider trying to navigate the social maze of an American high school after growing up in Kenya. Her attempt to find friends and blend in quickly draws her into the orbit of ‘The Plastics’, a glossy but merciless clique where popularity is power and cruelty is currency.
Tina Fey’s book largely sticks to familiar territory, keen not to alienate fans of the film. Many of the most quoted lines are here and greeted warmly by the audience. While this brings a sense of recognition, it can also feel forced. Some moments play more like laughter cues than story beats. The show rarely pauses long enough to let its themes develop. The result is lively but oddly thin, skating across ideas of identity and belonging without fully exploring them, leaving a lack of depth in the characters and their journeys.
Structurally, the show struggles. The first act bustles with colour but does little to build emotional investment, while the second swings hard towards sincerity and loses momentum as a result. Musically, Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin lean into high-energy pop. The score is relentlessly upbeat and delivered with impressive force but lacks variety. Too many songs feel interchangeable and shoehorned in for laughs, rather than pushing the story forward or revealing something new about the characters. The humour itself follows a similar pattern: sporadically sharp, but often broad and out of place. When the jokes hit, they sparkle; when they don’t, they linger awkwardly.
Where the production truly shines is in performance. The cast embrace the material with commitment, dynamism and vocal assurance. Emily Lane brings clarity and warmth to Cady, while Vivian Panka’s Regina George is commanding and coolly controlled. Faye Tozer is brilliant in her multiple roles, shifting effortlessly between characters. Georgie Buckland and Max Gill are real standouts as Janis and Damian; their chemistry and comedic timing are a joy.
Visually and vocally, this Mean Girls is slick and polished, but it feels underwhelming. Characters often lean toward caricature where complexity would be more rewarding. Mean Girls delivers spirit, talent and recognisable fun. What it lacks is the bite and cultural sting that gave the original movie its staying power. Glossy and crowd-pleasing, this production plays to the masses but misses the mark. It’s perfectly pleasant, but unlikely to linger long after the final curtain.