{"id":10193,"date":"2025-10-17T20:07:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T20:07:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/10193\/"},"modified":"2025-10-17T20:07:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-17T20:07:09","slug":"the-musical-superficial-but-spirited","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/10193\/","title":{"rendered":"The Musical\u201d superficial but spirited –"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Image<\/a> <\/p>\n

For intermission of Heathers: The Musical, Long Beach Playhouse put together a playlist ostensibly honoring the 1980s, the decade in which the story takes place. \u201cThis is the best song ever!\u201d gushed a guy behind me over the opening riff of \u201cJust What I Needed\u201d [1970s, but never mind]. Then the vocals kicked in. \u201cOh,\u201d he said disappointedly, \u201cI thought it was \u2018Stacy\u2019s Mom\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t know from The Cars but think Fountains of Wayne has got it going on, you may be the ideal candidate to enjoy the music Kevin Murphy & Laurence O\u2019Keefe crafted in their adaptation of the 1988 Winona Ryder \/ Christian Slater skewering of society\u2019s pop-culture approach to teen suicide. And not knowing the film probably helps. But however lacking Heathers: The Musical may be, there\u2019s no shortage of spirit in the Playhouse\u2019s production.<\/p>\n

Veronica (Arystaysha West) wants to be popular in the worst way, and the shortest route to that destination is by teaming up with the school\u2019s triumvirate of Heathers (Harper O\u2019Laughlin, Kacey Oschack, and Journie Ma-Johnson). But when she falls for a mysterious new kid with misfit written all over him (Quinn Vann), things get dangerously complicated.<\/p>\n

Why is she singing about her love for him even though they\u2019ve spent literally eight inconsequential seconds together? Why does she refer to someone she hates as her best friend? Why is there a reprise after only three songs? Don\u2019t ask \u2014 literally, don\u2019t. Murphy & O\u2019Keefe eschew character development, leave plot holes all over the road, and seem to have played hooky from Musicals 101 one too many times. And while Heathers is no Network in terms of depth, satire, or even yuks, Heathers: The Musical is no Heathers, so you\u2019re best off putting your brain on hold and channeling your inner high-schooler to go with the superficial flow.<\/p>\n

This, at least, is where I can find things to like about this show \u2014 although here I credit director Sean F. Gray and his cast more than the writers. As the capo de tutti capo Heather, Harper O\u2019Laughlin\u2019s reactions from beyond the grave during \u201cThe Me Inside of Me\u201d are precious. In \u201cBlue\u201d (as in balls), Zavier Davis and Mitchell Dambrowski manage to make stupid, obvious zingers kinda funny. And then there\u2019s the slo-mo fight that, thanks to the complete commitment of everyone on stage, is more charming than it has any right to be.<\/p>\n

Musically, although the lead vocals aren\u2019t always strong, the harmonies usually are. Davis and Dambrowski are a case in point. The fact that their solo lines in \u201cBlue\u201d meander a bit (not that it really matters in a song like this) makes it that much more of a pleasant surprise the way their voices lock together when they sing in tandem. And although she doesn\u2019t get a lot of opportunities, Amanda Webb (in a dual role as Veronica\u2019s mom and a teacher\/counselor) is a secret sauce to any song involving her.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, the castmember with the most leads, Arystaysha West, is also one of the strongest. And on \u201cSeventeen\u201d, she and Quinn Vann co-produce the show\u2019s most arresting musical moments.<\/p>\n

Another vocal highlight is \u201cKindergarten\u201d. Ignoring the fact that the song is sorta shoehorned into the storyline, as the discarded Martha Dunnstock, Alana Ruhe\u2019s solo turn soars high enough to overcome Murphy & O\u2019Keefe\u2019s mawkishness.<\/p>\n

Technically, opening night was problematic. During the first 10 minutes actors were consistently left in darkness downstage when clearly the opposite was meant to be the case; and for more than half of Act One the mics didn\u2019t work, meaning that lead vocals on early numbers were somewhat drowned out by the solid seven-piece band backstage, even though without mics their sound was muffled by the set. Gradually these problems were redressed, and by Act Two everything was going pretty much according to plan, though sporadic mic noise was an issue throughout.<\/p>\n

The people around me had a raucously good time at Heathers: The Musical. Some of that enthusiasm came from many in the opening-night audience being friends of the cast, while no doubt some was simply in response to the spirit of the performances. How much did the material itself contribute? Who am I to say? \u201cStacy\u2019s Mom\u201d was a Top 40 hit in 2003 and to date has over 500 million plays on Spotify. De gustibus non est disputandum.<\/p>\n

Heathers: The Musical at Long Beach Playhouse
Times: Fri\u2013Sat 8:00 p.m., Sun 2:00 p.m.
The show runs through November 16.
Cost: $20 to $30
Details: (562) 494-1014; LBplayhouse.org
<\/a>Venue: Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach<\/p>\n

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