On March 15, the highly-anticipated production Mean Girls hit the stage, marking a fabulous finish to this school year’s Performing Arts productions. The shining success and excitement Mean Girls produced wouldn’t have been possible without all the tireless dedication and preparation behind the scenes. Mrs. Amanda Folena, the Director, and senior Callie Watson, who starred as Regina George, recounted their experiences and memories of bringing Mitty’s rendition of Mean Girls to life.
While there were multiple reasons why Mean Girls was chosen as part of this year’s list of productions, its female-driven story made this show that much more important to bring to Mitty. Mrs. Folena states, “Our department has quite a few females that have a lot of talent. To be able to give an opportunity where they can be showcased and where they take center stage instead of being a secondary character to a male character is pretty huge. Mrs. Folena also was certain the show would be relatable: “It is new, and it speaks to the high school experience, highlights social structures in female groups, and addresses the here and now.”
Although many students from all four grade levels participated in this show, Mean Girls was especially rewarding to the number of seniors in the play, including senior Callie Watson who played Regina George. Callie described how gratifying the show was to her and to all of the Performing Arts seniors graduating this year. “It’s like a built-in family. You get to hang out with new people every day and you’re all just united. Getting to experience that with other people and working towards a common goal, there’s no better feeling.” Despite the support and encouragement from all the cast members, embodying another character can be difficult, especially becoming Regina George. Callie discussed her experience playing Regina by mentioning, “I love playing Regina. But it’s so hard playing a character who is nothing like my actual self. Still, it’s cathartic to be able to release all that anger and be a completely different person. It’s so fun and it’s so iconic. I just love it.”
Despite the show’s immaculate appearance, there were a few difficulties that the cast and crew encountered. In general, the time crunch posed a challenge for the production team as it took a good deal of planning and effort to flawlessly adjust from Great Comet to Mean Girls. Another difficulty that many of the cast members ran into was costume changes. Many of the roles included multiple costume changes in a short period of time. Callie talks about her strenuous costume changes when she explains, “There was a part in Act 1 where I basically changed costumes four times in a row […] and I have five people helping me. It’s absolute madness.”
Not only was time an issue, but limited space backstage and onstage provided challenges as well. Mrs. Folena recalls, “If you go backstage, you will realize we have no wing space, so we had to be very creative in how we addressed all of the production needs while not having 20 different set pieces.”
Difficulties aside, watching the show come together with everyone involved working in sync was special. Ms. Folena reflects, “For me, it is the joy of seeing everyone dedicate themselves to this story, egos aside. Our job is to provoke, challenge, and inspire our audiences.” Moreover, many students were able to let their artistry and creativity shine. Junior Oliver Wu designed the lights which was the first time a student had ever designed the lights for a main stage show at Mitty.
As the curtains closed on the last show of the 2023-2024 school year, Mean Girls has served as a play about female empowerment. Despite time constraints and space challenges, the cast and crew of Mean Girls were able to impeccably carry out a rendition of one of the most popular and iconic movies of our generation.