By Mia Vaccarella
This weekend, Rutherford High School performed their annual musical, Mean Girls. Based on the widely known 2004 movie, the musical embraces the film’s most memorable and quotable moments. The performance includes the iconic, “On Wednesdays we wear pink”, “You go Glen Coco”, “She doesn’t even go here”, and “That is so fetch!”
Cady Heron (played by Amelia Perlmutter) has never experienced a public high school, having been homeschooled in Kenya her whole life. Her move to the states and shift to a public high school leads her into a group of “mean girls”, who create an unrecognizable version of Cady. Damian (Nick Scaglione) and Janis (Liz Dunlop) are Cady’s first real friends at school; the pair share a close friendship based heavily on affectionate teasing and encourage Cady to avoid certain cliques.
The “Plastics” are Regina George (Veronika Virostko), Gretchen Wieners (Jeannille Ettinoff), and Karen Smith (Kyla Kemple). Regina, the manipulative leader of the Plastics, is highly respected and heavily feared by the other girls at the school. Gretchen glorifies Regina’s position of power, desperate to keep her own high status; she appreciates any validation given by Regina. The lovable but ditzy Karen is the most amiable of the Plastics and values Cady’s kindness. Cady meets Aaron Samuels (Braedon McQuade), Regina’s ex boyfriend, in Calculus. He is well-known and seemingly off limits to Cady because of her newfound “friendship” with Regina.
The plot of Mean Girls follows Cady Heron’s transition into this American High School as she shockingly finds herself among the Plastics at the top of the social hierarchy. Quick to realize the flaws of their nature, Cady, with the help of friends Damian and Janis, play a game to undermine Regina’s status. As she falls in love with Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron, Cady becomes increasingly similar to the Plastics. From dumbing herself down for Aaron’s attention to giving Regina nutrition bars under the deceiving notion that they would make her lose weight, when they would, in fact, do the opposite.
The Burn Book, used by the Plastics to write mean, sometimes cruel, information about other girls, proves to be the most chaotic moment of the musical. The content within the book is intentionally spread by Regina, causing chaos and conflict between every single one of the girls.
The story’s satisfactory ending leaves Cady embracing the person she came to the United States as. In one night, she won a math competition with the Mathletes and Spring Fling Queen. While on stage, she decides to share the Spring Fling Queen crown with others in the crowd. By the conclusion of the show, there is a strong sense of harmony and acceptance between the girls throughout North Shore High School.
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