Mean Girls
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: New Victoria Theatre, Woking

Meet The Plastics – Regina, Gretchen and Karen. They rule North Shore High and will burn anyone who gets in their way. Home-schooled Cady Heron may think she knows a thing or two about survival of the fittest thanks to her zoologist parents, but high school is a whole new level of savage. When Cady devises a plan to end Regina's reign, she learns the hard way that you can't cross a queen bee without getting stung.

Tina Fey’s Mean Girls arrives in Woking and packs a punch of sass, high-school drama and slick choreography. This version of the 2004 film is as fresh as ever and clearly made for a new generation, though it retains an air of nostalgia and its themes remain relevant as ever in the age of growing up with social media and mobile phones. 

The plot of Mean Girls follows a fairly straightforward narrative: new girl Cady Heron arrives in an American high school classroom for the first time, fresh from Kenya and keen to socialise, but she quickly learns the social rules that will dictate life at North Shore High. She finds herself torn between The Plastics, led by Queen Bee Regina George with her sidekicks Gretchen Wieners and Karen Smith, or Janis and Damian, the school misfits and proudly so. Throw in some boy drama along the way and Mean Girls has all the ingredients for a great musical reminiscent of the angst of teenage years.

Vivian Panka is excellent as Regina and a perfect counterpart to Emily Lane's great, endearing portrayal of Cady. Panka is domineering and authoritative, snarling in all the right places with not a hair out of place, while Kiara Dario and Sophie Pourret make for convincing Regina sidekicks as Gretchen and Karen, respectively. However, by far the most popular performers of the night are undoubtedly Georgie Buckland and Max Gill, and rightfully so. Both shine as Janis and Damian, and Buckland's vocal prowess in particular cannot be underestimated. 

A word must also go to the comic timing of the multi-faceted Faye Tozer, who is great as all three characters she plays - both Regina and Cady's mums and school teacher Ms Norbury. All characters are brought to life not only by their acting and vocals, but also by Katrina Lindsay's eye-catching costumes to re-create the film's most iconic looks.

The set design by Scott Pask is slightly simpler than the West End version, with the main difference being no use of any screens on tour, but the difference is minimal and barely detracts from the rest of a straightforward but well-utilised set. The transitions are slick as we move between characters' homes, the school's canteen and the gymnasium, but it's really the choreography from Casey Nicholaw, who also directs the show, that brings the whole performance to life in front of the backdrop of Kenneth Posner’s excellent lighting.

Musically, not every number from Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin is memorable, but the score certainly has some popular songs that are catchy and go down a treat with fans, like ‘I'd Rather Be Me’, which has an anthemic chorus and carries home the key messages of the show. It is a pop soundtrack full of energy and character, brought to life by the fantastic cast, even if the songs are sometimes sweeter in tone than the script truly lends itself to. 

Despite any tweaks that could be made to the score and set design to improve what is already a brilliant show, fans will love the nostalgia of seeing the classic film on stage with a portrayal that stays true to the 2004 original. A fast-paced two and a half hours of drama later, and the show's lasting message remains clear - it's cooler to be kind than it is to be cool.