Community theatre lovers looking to have a fetching time later this month will not want to miss out on the opportunity to see the students of Brentwood College get snarky with Mean Girls The Musical, which graces the T. Gil Bunch Theatre stage from Feb. 26 to March 1.
Since September, a cast of 64 students from grades nine through 12 have been working hard on the high school version of the popular musical, adapted from the hit 2004 film, and nominated for 12 Tony Awards. Cast as one of the 'Plastics' is Grade 12 student Ella Wenhardt who also is this year's musical theatre captain and has also been in the Mill Bay school's productions of Madagascar, Mamma Mia, and A Chorus Line.
"We have a term in the program called 'lifer' which means you have been in three or more Brentwood musicals and I am happy to be a lifer," said Wenhardt.
"I am very excited to be presenting one of the most iconic shows to ever touch Broadway in the 2000s. It has been a lot of hard work, especially because we have an almost entirely new cast, but I am so proud of their work and dedication to this program. The best part of this journey as a student was being able to bond with a bunch of new people who I am happy to call friends and also share our love and appreciation for musical theatre in general."
Remember high school, and where you were on the popularity food chain?
While new student Cady Heron (Sophie Albanati) may have grown up on an African savanna nothing could have prepared her for the wild and vicious ways of her strange new home in suburban Illinois, high school, and most of all The Plastics — a trio of lionized frenemies led by the charming but ruthless Regina George (Kerrington Gillespie). Rounding off The Plastics posse is Gretchen Wieners played by Valentina Winkelmaan and Karen Smith who will be portrayed Wenhardt.
As Cady ponders how to rise to the top of the popularity pecking order, she and her friends devise a "Revenge Party" to end Regina’s reign, but learns the hard way that you can’t cross a Queen Bee without getting stung. The high school version is less racy than the original Broadway musical.
"We have a lot of families who live on campus as part of the boarding faculty and wanted to make sure that it was appropriate for them to see," said Wenhardt.
One thing that makes this production special is that there will be a 12-piece orchestra in the pit for the show led by musical director Phil Newns. Newns has a long history as a musical director and said Mean Girls will be his 20th senior musical at Brentwood College, and 48th altogether.
"The scores for Broadway musicals are often challenging and demand excellent musicianship and Mean Girls is no exception," said Newns. "So, what a treat it is for me to conduct the meanest pit musicians on Vancouver Island, many of whom have played in Brentwood shows dating back to the early 2000s. They are simply the best. My favourite part of working on this production has been watching the steady progress over countless hours of work and seeing our directors, cast and crew steadily bring the musical to its fruition — they are all wonderful to work with."
Tickets range from $10 to $25 and can be purchased through simpletix.com.
"Whether they are kids or adults, I hope our audience members leave inspired," said Wenhardt. "Mean Girls is very digestible for any age of person because of its popularity as a movie but also its relatability. Community theatre is one of the most fulfilling experiences I have ever had. It's such a special moment when you are singing, dancing and acting with 60 other people and enjoying the music and the moment. Sometimes, we will be in rehearsal and I'll look around and have a moment of reflection on the fact that the whole cast has had such different experiences growing up. We all have other passions and hobbies but we come together and simultaneously enjoy the one thing we have in common: our love of music. I hope our audience gets inspired to put themselves out there in the musical theatre world, whether they join a community theatre program or enjoy watching musicals in their free time. "
