If you ever wondered what might happen if Mean Girls and Sweeney Todd shared a locker at Westerberg High, you\u2019ll find your answer in \u201cHeathers: The Musical\u201d\u00a0 now playing in the Studio Theater at the Long Beach Playhouse through November 16.<\/p>\n
Under the sharp direction of Sean Gray, this compact and wickedly funny production proves that the cult-classic film still has a pulse\u2014 and quite a dark one at that.<\/p>\n
What makes this show tick is its ability to lean into the outrageousness without losing sight of the pain underneath. That\u2019s a hard line to walk, especially in a venue as intimate as the Studio Theater, where the audience sits close enough to see the tremor in a hand or the smirk before a scheme.<\/p>\n
Gray keeps the energy taut, Stephen Olear\u2019s music direction keeps the vocals bright and punchy, and Sonya Randall\u2019s choreography squeezes every inch of attitude out of the limited space.<\/p>\n
The result feels claustrophobic in just the right way \u2014 like being trapped inside the fluorescent hellscape of high school itself.<\/p>\n
Arystaysha West makes a terrific Veronica Sawyer, delivering that mix of self-awareness and desperation that gives the show its beating heart. She sings with bite and finds humor in Veronica\u2019s slow moral unraveling. As J.D., Quinn Vann brings a slick menace to the part; he\u2019s more seductive philosopher than straight-up sociopath, which makes his spiral all the more chilling.<\/p>\n
Among the Heathers, Harper O\u2019Loughlin as Heather Chandler sets the tone early \u2014 her every line crackles with venom and comic timing. Kacey Oschack\u2019s Heather McNamara and Journie Ma-Johnson\u2019s Heather Duke both find surprising texture in roles that can easily become caricature, and Alana Ruhe\u2019s Martha brings the night\u2019s most grounded, vulnerable performance, her voice pure and aching in \u201cKindergarten Boyfriend.\u201d<\/p>\n
The men of Westerberg hold their own as well. Zavier Davis and Mitchell Dambrowski are hilarious as the overinflated jocks Ram and Kurt, and Milo Cote and Caleb White shine in their ensemble of dads, coaches, and teachers, each leaning into the show\u2019s absurdist humor. Amanda Webb juggles multiple comic roles\u2014including Veronica\u2019s mother and the terminally chipper Ms. Fleming\u2014without missing a beat.<\/p>\n
Technically, the show is tight if occasionally uneven.<\/p>\n
Sadly, a few microphones seemed to come and go, and the balance between the live band and vocals sometimes tipped toward chaos. But this cast sings through the static with gusto, and the ensemble sound is especially strong in numbers like \u201cBig Fun\u201d and \u201cShine a Light.\u201d The set, designed as a single high school hallway, proves remarkably effective.<\/p>\n
Rather than changing locations, the same corridor appears throughout the evening with only slight shifts in furniture or props. It\u2019s a smart choice: in \u201cHeathers,\u201d every act of cruelty, confession, and chaos seems to circle back to those same linoleum floors and locker-lined walls. The unchanging backdrop underscores the show\u2019s central truth \u2014 that for all the body count and costume changes, no one ever really leaves high school behind.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s always a risk with Heathers that its satire gets lost in the laughter \u2014 that audiences leave humming the tunes but miss the critique of cruelty that lies beneath the glitter. Gray\u2019s production mostly dodges that trap. It\u2019s self-aware without being smug, allowing the ugliness of teenage hierarchy to poke through the humor.<\/p>\n
When the final moments arrive, the laughter catches in the throat just enough to remind us that even the funniest high-school nightmares have real bodies behind them. Perhaps, alongside the trigger warnings in the lobby, LBP list information for resources if someone is depressed and feeling hopeless \u2014 just a thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cHeathers: The Musical\u201d at the Long Beach Playhouse doesn\u2019t try to reinvent the show \u2014 it sharpens it. It\u2019s a fast, funny, and surprisingly heartfelt night of theatre, packed with young talent and pulsing with the kind of manic energy that makes live performance feel electric.<\/p>\n
If you remember the film, you\u2019ll grin at the references; if you don\u2019t, you\u2019ll still recognize the world. Either way, this version of \u201cHeathers\u201d is a class you won\u2019t mind repeating.<\/p>\n
If you go<\/p>\n
Where: Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E Anaheim St.<\/p>\n
When: Through Nov. 16.<\/p>\n
Cost: Tickets start at $20.<\/p>\n