Based on the 1989 film of the same name, “Heathers” begins like your classic high school drama. All of the recognisable characters are there – the bullies, the jocks, the nerds. The story subverts expectations however, and slowly creeps into darker territory over the course of the show.
The play focuses on Veronica Sawyer (Erin Caldwell, whose voice blew us away in the song “I say no”), who longs to be one of the popular kids at school. The “popular kids” are known as the Heathers – 3 girls all with the name Heather who walk round the school as though they own it, and have everyone (including the teachers) doing their bidding. When Veronica joins the Heathers, however, she quickly finds out that it’s not all she thought it would be.
The Heathers (Maddison Firth as Heather “Red” Chandler, Vivian Panka as Heather “Green” Duke and Jasmine Beel as Heather “Yellow” McNamara) are defined by the colours of their dresses, but as the show continues, each character gets fleshed out, and we find ourselves even beginning to sympathise with the bullies. A highlight for me was the song “Lifeboat”, in which Heather McNamara sings about her anxiety at the thought of losing friends.
The story takes a dark turn with the introduction of J.D. (Nathanael Landskroner), whose pessimistic view on the world leads him to commit some terrible acts. Football players Kurt (Tobias Turley) and Ram (Brandon Gale) meet untimely ends and spend the rest of the show haunting Veronica in their underpants.
The show is filled with loud, lively music, effortlessly mixing big numbers such as “Candy Store” and “Big Fun” with powerful ballads such as “Our Love is God” and “Kindergarten Boyfriend” (performed by Lydia Eliza Roberts as Martha Dunstock). The show is also able to take serious topics and add a sprinkle of humour, so that the show (whilst being fairly dark) isn’t a barrage of misery. Although it is important to point out that, even with this humour, the serious messages underlying the show are never lost (songs such as “You’re Welcome” cover attempted rape and “My Dead Gay Son” discusses the grief of a parent after their son commits suicide).
There are some fairly absurd turns in the second act, and some moments appear to be rushed and yet dragged out at the same time, as the story becomes convoluted (J.D. brings a bomb into school and whilst the reason is explained, it seemed to make little sense to me – but maybe that was the point). Still, the show ends on a positive note that left everyone with a smile on their face, and the talented cast received a well-earned chorus of applause, with audience members throwing scrunchies onto the stage in place of flowers (reminiscent of the scrunchies that the Heathers wear in their hair).
Overall, an excellent production with great musical numbers but a slightly weak plots towards the climax – a thoroughly enjoyable day out in London!
Tom Morley, January 2023
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