Countryside Community Theatre's “Mean Girls" at the North Scott High School Auditorium -- July 24 through August 2.
Friday, July 24, through Sunday, August 2
North Scott High School Fine Arts Auditorium, 200 South First Street, Eldridge IA
Lauded by New York magazine as a show that "delivers with immense energy, a wicked sense of humor, and joyful inside-jokery," the Tony-nominated Broadway musical Mean Girls enjoys a Countryside Community Theatre staging, from July 24 through August 2, at Eldridge North Schott High School Fine Arts Auditorium, New York adding that this critically lauded smash based on the 2004 hit comedy is "hilarious, splashy, and unmistakably by Tina Fey."
After years in the making, the Mean Girls musical hits the stage with the favorite characters from the movie, powerful music, and timely pop culture and news references. At the show's start, Janis Sarkisian and Damian Hubbard welcome the audience to their “Cautionary Tale”: Cady Heron is the new girl at North Shore High School in Chicago, desperate to fit in and find friends. Janis and Damian befriend the new girl, and when the popular-girl brigade The Plastics set their sights on Cady, Janis convinces naive Cady to be their “friend” in order to bring down Queen Bee Regina George’s reign. Along the way, Cady loses herself, her friends, and her crush, all for the chance to be popular and loved. Yes when dethroned Regina gets revenge by releasing the Burn Book, Cady is brought down and must mend her broken relationships with Janis, Aaron, and even Regina. With dynamic songs for young performers, Mean Girls is an anthem to friendship, loyalty, girl power, and being true to yourself. How fetch!
Boasting a book by eight-time Emmy Award winner Tina Fey, lyrics by Nell Benjamin, and music by Fey's husband Jeff Richmond, Mean Girls is based on the 2004 film by Mark Waters, which was also written by Fey, and was in turn inspired by Rosalind Wiseman's 2002 book Queen Bees & Wannabes. Directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw, and produced by Saturday Night Live visionary Lorne Michaels, the original production of Mean Girls premiered on Broadway at the August Wilson Theatre in 2018, after completing pre-Broadway tryouts in Washington, D.C. at the National Theatre in 2017. The show went on to be nominated for 12 trophies at the 72nd Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and a recording featuring the original Broadway cast was released in 2018 by Atlantic Records. The show eventually closed, after 833 performances on Broadway, on March 11, 2020, an end to the run only caused by the closing of theatres due to COVID-19.
Serving as Mean Girls' respective director and music director are Ashley and Bobby Becher, longtime Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse veterans whose respective credits include Ashley directing Chicago and Lucky Stiff and Bobby appearing in Fiddler on the Roof and, portraying the Tin Man, the theatre's current production of The Wizard of Oz. Lily Schloss of Iowa City, who plays Mean Girls' Regina George, recently sang the National Anthem at the Savannah Bananas game in Iowa City, having won a regional competition whose competition journey will soon continue in Nashville.
Additional members of the Bechers' Mean Girls creative team include: assistant choreographer Chloe Schwab; stage manager Mya Kelsey; lighting designer Emmett Boedeker; technical director Dylan Rutledge; sound designer and sound-board operator Kaitlyn Knepper; costume designer Ashley Becher; assistant costumers Charli Connor and Emma Reif; light-board operator Kallen Rohlf; spot operator Samantha Mussack; and fly-rail operator Carter Dorr.
Joining Lily Schloss among Mean Girls' other featured performers are: Baylee Parker; Micah Roldan; Ryenne Lacher; Maesi Geigle; Rebekah Riewerts; Reece Riewerts; Maddux Lamb; Savannah Bay Strandin; Ken Johnson; Mary Beth Riewerts; Kevin Hurley; and Stephanie Hurley. And included among the musical's ifted ensemble members are: Kaitlyn Baker; Peyton Behrens; Jack Carslake; Charli Conner; Will Emerle; Kylie Figanbaum; Noa Hewlett; Ellerie Hurley; Mirabella Johnson; Melena Knutsen; Hayden Lacher; Briley Larson; Shira Mally; Thomas McCarthy; Madison McCoy; Kassandra Miller; Keegan Panther; Lauren Pawloski; Owen Peel; Spencer Powell; Peyton Reece; Kaitlyn Rogers; Mia Roldan; Grace Sandercock; Xander Sharp; and Caroline Sieren.
As director Ashley Becher states, "It's truly a community production! Our cast boasts current and former students from all of the Iowa QC high schools, including multiple two-, three-, and four-year All-State vocalists (ICDA) and Iowa Triple Threat (IHSMTA) nominees and finalists. Mean Girls is the full package! Audiences will love the high-energy dance numbers, powerful and impressive voices, and the genuine and honest portrayals of these quirky well-known characters. With a book by Tina Fey, you know the jokes will be clever, quick, and highlight the meaningful message."
Countryside Community Theatre's production of Mean Girls runs at the North Scott High School Fine Arts Auditorium July 24 through August 2, with performances Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Admission is $20, and more information and tickets are available by calling (563)219-7514 and visiting CountrysideQC.org.
