Following two smash hit London seasons, a UK tour and fresh from winning the WhatsOnStage award for Best New Musical, Heathers the Musical is back and has arrived in Birmingham!
The show welcomes you to Westerberg High where Veronica Sawyer is 'just another nobody', but when she joins the beautiful and impossibly cruel 'Heathers', she hopes her dreams of popularity may finally come true. A mysterious teen rebel called JD teaches her that it might kill to be a nobody, but it is murder being a somebody.
Heathers has fast become a musical theatre phenomenon. It's a show that's about as quintessentially 'American' as you can get, yet it's success over the pond is a comparatively limited two-year journey compared to it's time in the UK. First arriving here in 2018 for an off-West End run, the show launched at The Other Palace with Carrie Hope Fletcher and Jodie Steele amongst its 'alumni'. Now, 5 years later its still exciting audiences - and none more so than those in the auditorium this evening.
The show has developed a fan following akin to The Rocky Horror Show, with legions of supporters growing in number rapidly. We're talking hardcore fans too, who arrive dressed head to toe as their favourite Heather. These die-hard's know every line, every song and - importantly - every moment that deserves a cheer. However, whereas those reactions could be deemed to go against the 'British way' of behaving, it certainly adds to the atmosphere in an auditorium that was teeming with 'corn nuts' ready for a brilliant night out.
Jenna Innes and Jacob Fowler play Veronica and JD and are, quite simply, exceptional. Fowler has a pedigree with the role, having played it in London and Innes is comparatively new to the blue blazer. However both are stunning vocalists and brilliant all-rounders with a chemistry that feels like a life-long partnership. In particular, Innes' take on 'I Say No' was a power-house performance which saw the audience - young and old - burst into one of the most well-deserved spontaneous ovations of the evening.
Their scenes together were an absolute joy - as was Innes' time on stage with Verity Thompson as Heather Chandler. Chandler is the leader of the Heathers and Thompson gives a confident, sassy performance which just hit every beat so perfectly. Chandler, and the actress playing her often undergo a certain level of scrutiny from fans but Thompson passed the test with flying colours this evening.
Special mention should also go to Kingsley Morton as Martha Dunnstock - the girl who's often the butt of the jokes from the popular kids, but who comes good in the end. Her performance of 'Kindergarten Boyfriend' was BEAUTIFUL. Morton's voice was powerful, crystal clear, her timing perfect and her natural emotion quite literally brought tears to the eyes of the audience. The pauses in the song gave you the chance to hear the audience holding their breath and Morton should be applauded on her command of the room for three, mind-blowing minutes.
Heathers, on the face of it, is a fun new musical with some quirky songs that's hit the right notes to become popular with a new generation. But it's so much more than that. It's a dark, stark reflection on the reality of teenage life and a shocking, sometimes very raw reality check. But this cast and this production bring a masterclass in musical theatre to the stage at The Alexandra.
Sure, you'll leave singing the songs and putting coloured scrunchies in your hair tomorrow. But after five years of listening to the songs on my Spotify playlist, thinking it was a flash in the pan...I get it now.
This is a brilliant production, perfectly articulated by a group of uber-talented, slushie-drinking, corn-nut eating superstars.
Heathers the Musical plays at The Alexandra until 20th May 2023. For more information and to get your tickets, head online to atgtickets.com/birmingham.
