Grand Opera House York – until Saturday 13th May 2023
Reviewed by Michelle Richardson
5*****
The award winning, Heathers The Musical is currently showing in York this week. It is based on the 1980’s film and is now a cult classic. I have previously seen the film and had a small recollection of the of the tale. Following the pupils of Westerberg High, it is a black comedy, filled with some quite dark content, bullying, suicide, sexual violence and murder. Billed at suitable for ages 14 and over.
The school is run by three popular girls, all named Heather. The leader Chandler (Verity Thompson) and her two mini me’s, Duke (played by understudy Summer Priest) and McNamara (Billie Bowman), striking in their red, green and yellow kilts with matching jackets. Think Mean Girls and you get the gist. Studious Veronica Sawyer (Jenna Innes) appears content with being an outsider, despised by the in crowd, until a good deed sees her joining the ‘Heathers’ clique. She is soon dressing and acting just like them, becoming part of their gang to the detriment of her true friends. She comes to realise that they are bullies, creating a toxic environment, and she is being manipulated and used by them.
Veronica is attracted to an alluring newcomer, the damaged Jason ‘JD’ Dean (Jacob Fowler). He’s all dark, sinister, and mysterious. Their bond takes an unnatural turn after the accidental death of Chandler, where they cover it up to look like suicide. Things rapidly spiral out of control with other victims and even darker scenes, culminating with a bang.
This show is packed full of music with every song resulting in huge cheers from the audience. I don’t believe I have ever heard such loud applause, from every number sung before. The noise resonated throughout the theatre, you felt that the audience were on the stage, part of the stage, powerful!
The standout numbers for me were My Dead Gay Son, which though sounds pretty macabre was just so funny, and loved the end of that number. It was executed brilliantly by the two dads, Conor McFarlane and Jay Bryce, who played numerous roles in the show, from dads to coach to principal and even filling in as students. The powerful lyrics of Dead Girl Walking were sung fabulously by Innes, who has such a great voice. Her duet with Fowler with Seventeen was magical, if only that innocence could have lasted with their love story.
The talented, energetic cast brought the turmoil of high school to life. Innes was a strong lead who portrays the confused teenager, struggling with her identity and place in the world. Fowler had a very strong Christian Slater vibe, who played JD in the film, just the right amount of unhingedness. Thompson shone as the lead Heather, especially her comedic turn during her ghost phase, it had us all in hysterics. I must also mention Mogan Jackson and Alex Woodward, who played Ram and Kurt, the two jocks, superbly. They were hilarious and I especially loved the slo-mo fighting scene between them and JD. Bravo to them both playing the second half in only their underwear, well Jackson also donned a tie. What a great double act.
This musical if full of bite, not afraid to tackle some serious and difficult topics, such as bullying, teen suicide, homophobia, sexual assault. These are balanced out with humour and is full of some great, catchy songs.
I never realised that Heathers had such a cult following amongst the youth of today, my, don’t I sound ancient. It was fabulous to see the theatre packed out with such a young and enthusiastic crowd, it lifted the whole experience to another level. One not to miss.