A Cappies Review of Independence High School’s production of Mean Girls

By Talia Lytle of St. Paul VI Catholic High School

Mean girls have been around since the dawn of high school, but the cult-classic sleepover favorite premiered in 2004 with a script written by comedy icon Tina Fey, and based upon a self-help book published in 2002. The musical premiered locally at the National Theater in Washington, DC in the fall of 2017 before opening on Broadway in 2018. It was most recently adapted into a movie musical in January 2024.

Set at a high school in suburbia, Mean Girls follows the adorably dorky Cady Heron, who is attending high school for the first time after moving back from Kenya. Trading the wild terrain of the African savanna for the rambunctious landscape of North Shore High School, Cady encounters “The Plastics,” a group of queen bees led by the conniving and gorgeous Regina George and her backup girls: the anxious, considerate Gretchen and lovably aloof Karen.

Of course, no teenage drama is complete without a love interest, found in the form of boy-next-door Aaron Samuels. As Cady tries to navigate the complexities of North Shore, she is aided by the vibrant Damian and witty Janis, who help her learn about the effects of lying and changing who you are to fit in.
With hair full of secrets and a brain full of stress, Katie Wetzel perfectly encapsulated Gretchen Weiner’s anxious nature and the effects of Cady, Janis, and Regina’s manipulation on her self-esteem in the song What’s Wrong With Me?, providing a serious lesson amongst a comedic landscape.

Paul Hartmann in the role of the confidently fierce Damian showed comedic prowess in many notable
moments, like his joyride on his grandmother’s scooter and his energetic tap dancing in Stop!

Of course, no iteration of Mean Girls is complete without the world-burning Regina George, played by Annie Jackson. Jackson pairs perfectly with Chase Danzenbaker’s Aaron Samuels in Someone Gets Hurt, where Regina flirts with Aaron in a calculated attempt to make Cady upset. The number clearly shows the difference between the characters, with Jackson’s controlling Regina and Danzenbaker’s easily-persuaded Aaron.

Rounding out notable moments of the show was Janis’s show stopping number I’d Rather Be Me, a self-confidence anthem that brings the musical’s message of empowerment home.

Samantha Shroeder matched Janis’s artsy punk vibe with her raw vocals that emphasized the song’s emotional undertone and message. The show’s ensemble supported the many iconic characters throughout Mean Girls whilst also bringing energy to the show through their execution of the rhythmic choreography from the ITPA Choreography Team.

Costumes, done with evident consideration by the ITPA Costume Crew, play an important role in emphasizing the differences between characters and their arcs throughout the musical. Janis’s patchwork jacket displays her character’s rebellious nature and Cady’s gradually tighter and shorter outfits mirror her character’s personality shift as she spends more time with The Plastics.

Starr Davis, Sydney Foxx, Sawyer Jaffe, and Mickey Etheredge’s stage management and the ITPA Stage Crew’s execution stand out with their notable omission of blackouts for scene transitions. Instead, actors on stage would serve as stage crew by rolling in parts of the set during scene transitions, a technique that led to full immersion and flow for the duration of the production.

Mean girls, teenage drama, and “calculust” may always be a part of the high school experience, but there was nothing mean about Independence High School’s charmingly hilarious production of Mean Girls.