Unlike other reviews I write, this is sort of a re-review. I originally saw Heathers back in January in the West End (see the review here), and Elise and I enjoyed it so much that we couldn’t resist going to see the tour when it came to Nottingham.
The musical was as lively and energetic as ever, with Jenna Innes taking on the role of Veronica and Jacob Fowler playing her main love-interest-turned-psychopath JD. I felt like JD was much easier to relate to in this production, and his storyline, whilst still being a bit far-fetched, was a lot more believable (although I still found the final act to be a little rushed).
It’s interesting how different moments stood out to me more than previously. For this show, the song “My dead gay son” was a real highlight, with Jay Bryce and Conor McFarlane as Kurt and Ram’s respective dads giving an upbeat yet emotional performance. The song has sad undertones yet still manages to end on a happy note as the two men find acceptance for their sons’ sexuality (even though their sons aren’t actually gay).
I found Elise Zavou as Heather “Green” Duke a little harder to relate to, and found that the song “I will never shut up again” didn’t blow me away as much as it did in the West End, with the final reveal of her taking up the mantle of Red Heather not quite as dramatic as previously. Perhaps this was just due to us sitting further away this time, whilst we were quite close to the stage in London. Although I think the staging also affects the show – I felt it worked better in the more intimate setting of The Other Palace, rather than Nottingham’s Theatre Royal which has a much bigger stage, resulting in what feels like lots of empty space for a fairly concise musical cast.
I was unsure about Billie Bowman’s performance as Heather “Yellow” Macnamara in the first half, but she completely won me over in the second half. As before, “Lifeboat” was excellent, and Heather Mac’s naivety and childlike behaviour in the first half really helped to amplify her journey in the second act.
Verity Thompson as Heather “Red” Chandler still stole the show, and it is easy to see why lots of teenage girls turn up to the theatre dressed as the character. Whilst she is undoubtedly a nasty character prior to her death, once she becomes a “ghost”, the layers of her complex character are peeled back to allow us to properly understand her thought processes. I also felt like the themes and commentary on suicide, and the way people react in the wake of a suicide, were much clearer in this production, with the show even calling itself out for “glorifying suicide” at one point.
Overall, this was another fantastic production. The singing was perhaps not quite as strong as in the West End (Innes’s rendition of ‘I say no’ didn’t give me goosebumps the way that Erin Caldwell’s did previously), but with a musical this entertaining, that is ultimately unimportant. A stage full of colour, music and “Big Fun” – what more could anyone want?
Tom Morley, September 2023
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