Before there was Mean Girls, there was Heathers. Heathers follows the senior year of Veronica Sawyer as she deals with high school, the popular girls, and falling in love. Oh, and the murders of her bff, Heather Chandler, and football players Ram and Kurt.
Market Theatre in Anderson opened Heathers to sold out crowds this weekend. As a fan of the West End production and Carrie Hope Fletcher's Veronica, I had high expectations for the show. Expectations that were met and exceeded. Market Theatre Company did an amazing job putting you in the world of Westerburg High while taking a
minimalistic approach. Behind the risers were posters for beta club, pep rallies, and more high school events, which set the tone but it was the amazing cast that they assembled that sold the experience. From the leads to the ensemble, they brought the environment to life.
This production blended the Off-Broadway Production with the West End, replacing the Off-Broadway's "Blue" with West End's "You're Welcome". But it was so seamless that unless you knew both
productions you would have no idea the switch even happened. The energy was high through out the performance and the comedic timing was not missed. Even with the comedic moments, there were still beautiful moments, like Savvy Thompson's, a KCATCF nominee from Anderson University, heartwarming moment as Martha Dunnstock reminiscing about her "Kindergarten Boyfriend".
The showstoppers for me personally were Kassi McMillian as outsider turned popular girl Veronica Sawyer and Maggie McNeil as the demon queen of high school Heather Chandler. The two perfectly embodied the essence of their characters and vocally were above par. McNeil's "Candy Store" remains one of my favorite numbers in the entire musical, followed closely by McMillian and Joshua vanderVeen's, who played J.D, "Seventeen".
Heathers: The Musical will be playing at The Market Theatre Company until August 4th. You can visit their website: http://www.themarketanderson.org/
You can find them on social media at @TheMarketAnderson
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