The Heathers At The Regent Theatre, Stoke Review

Reviewed by H Chan

Whatever I’d been expecting, it wasn’t this! So many twists and turns, tangents and not one dull moment!

This musical was on my list of shows I wanted to see, so I was really excited to be invited to see the show at the Regent Theatre in Stoke, one of my favourite theatres. We had fabulous seats on row J, numbers 14 and 15 so we were right in the aisle opposite the stage. From here there were no obstructions, we could see the whole stage and the sound quality was great too. The theatre itself is accessible, stocks a fab range of drinks and snacks and is always clean. The staff are friendly and approachable and even though the theatre is on a main high street, leaving the theatre is always well lit and feels safe.

I’d been told the musical was similar to the movie – which I hadn’t seen but now it’s at the top of my watch list – and that the Mean Girls was based from this movie. So of course I was expecting something a bit tamer, even though I absolutely loved it, wow, I wasn’t expecting so many tragic events. It’s a black comedy, so in a very strange way has you laughing at their lines as they talk lightly of really hard concepts like suicide, rape and drugs. Things which you really don’t joke about, but this show brought all of these issues to light in a thought provoking yet jazzy way only a musical can. With songs you won’t be able to get out of your head. I’ve been singing Never shut up again, all day so far.
The story follows the life of Veronica Sawyar, played by Jenna Innes, a high school senior struggling to find her way through a life controlled by The Heathers. Three popular and cruel girls named Heather, played by Verity Thompson, Elisa Zavou and Billie Bowman. These girls pull all the strings and if you don’t follow their rules, you’re in trouble. Veronica finds love, betrays her best friend and in her downward spiral becomes responsible for some very serious events which I won’t go into because – spoilers. Alex Woodward and Morgan Jackson who played high school jocks Kurt and Ram played their parts perfectly. It was very easy to imagine them in that 1980’s teen environment. So very well cast.

We have to talk about Jacob Fowler who played J.D, Veronica’s love interest and over all the guy who took the whole thing to the next level. His voice was incredible, and the way he acted was spot on 1980’s creepy heartthrob. The character was so believable. Just the right amount of brooding and darkness to have you hooked in minutes.

In fact, the cast all had the most amazing voices and songs showing off their vocal ranges. As a musical it is important that the cast fill you with emotion as they sing and they succeeded. Each song pulling the story forward and none seemed out of place, even the very random song by their teacher Ms Fleming, played by Katie Paine.

The whole cast were amazing so it’s hard to pick a favourite character or song as they were all so great. I loved the chemistry in the songs shared between Veronica and J.D. The heartbreak behind Martha’s song Kindergarten Boyfriend had the audience silent and some in tears. Well done Kingsley Morton (Martha). The songs by the Heathers themselves showing how they viewed the world and how they hid their own insecurities. Overall a very powerful and memorable performance by all.

You know what else stood out for me? The lighting. The lighting was absolutely spot on and without it, the show wouldn’t have been as amazing as it was. Enhancing feelings, showing the divide and even to showing how someone was feeling during their scene, the lighting team deserve a lot of praise, their timing was perfect. All of the backstage team in fact, every little detail was so well planned and thought out from props and scene changes. The whole thing flowed so well that there was not one moment I thought – that needs to be looked at – not even once.

As a whole it’s really hard to sum up, such awful, tragic events being sung about it a bright and flashy, almost comical manner was really random and there’s no way I’d sing about them like this, but for me, as a musical it worked. The surprise, shock, feeling we needed to root for the girl to be freed of her toxic relationships, it was all there and for me, it was a great show. Although you might want to though, I wouldn’t recommend taking children under 15 due to the concepts.

The Heathers runs at The Regent until Saturday 15th April, with tickets from only £13. You can find tickets here. The Regent Theatre is in Hanley, Stoke and there is plenty of parking close by. If using sat nav, John Street car park is just around the corner and well lit.

Rating: Both my friend and I gave this musical 5 out of 5 stars, if only I could award higher!