Dear Diary, Heathers the Musical is coming to Milton Keynes Theatre. And guess what?! It’s one of my favourite shows. Why do I love it so much? Because its dark, the characters feel real and so many of us who were bullied at school know how Veronica feels. It’s also funny and has some fantastic numbers including Beautiful, Seventeen and Big Fun. What’s not to love…oh actually, some of you may find its subject contents unsettling. It’s a twisted version of Grease; high school at its darkest. If you’re on board with that, then come into my candy store.
Set in high school, Westerberg High, geeky Veronica dreams of being popular. No, scratch that. She dreams of not being bullied every day. The most popular girls in high school are the Heathers. Veronica is adopted by the Heathers and made over into a ‘Heather’ and has to pay the price of kindness to be popular. Veronica falls for a new boy in school, he shows her how to get revenge on anyone who upsets her. However, if you thought the Heathers were cruel, you ain’t seen nothing yet. JD’s love for Veronica is intense. It’s overwhelming. He is damaged and doesn’t care who lives or dies as long as he has her love. It’s hard being seventeen.
Veronica is played by Jenna Innes who was born to play this role. I honestly cannot imagine anyone else playing Veronica. Jenna is sublime. Her voice is perfection. Equally compelling, Veronica’s boyfriend, JD, is played by Keelan Mcauley who not only has a fantastic range but his acting is off the scale. I could actually see the look of madness in his eye when he is looking to blow up the school for love. The chemistry between Jenna and Keelan is tangible, particularly during Dead Girl Walking and together they can start and finish wars (I make no apologies for all the song quotes in this review). Their performances are beyond phenomenal.
The Heathers are stunning and their sass means they own the stage. Esme Bowdler is Heather Chandler, the lead Heather. Esme delivers bitch and bestie in the same breath. Sedona Sky plays Heather Duke and Daisy Twells plays Heather McNamara and each Heather has her place, yes there is a hierarchy even with the Heathers. Kurt is played by Ivan Fernandez Gonzalez and Ram is played by Jason Battersby who are the jocks, and they only think about getting laid and football. Ivan and Jason completely steal scenes with their funny lines, head glances at each other and just giving off ‘jock vibes’. The whole cast are exceptional. The show is exciting and well-paced with a witty script. And where else can you hear people sing ‘Oh Shit’ on stage? I love the slo-mo during the early fight scene.
It’s in my top five favourite musicals, but don’t take my word for it. Go buy a ticket and experience the angst of teenage love at its most extreme. And if you want to dress up, I promise you will not be alone. The audience does not disappoint.
Heathers The Musical is at Milton Keynes Theatre, until 14 September 2024.
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