KIDSTAGE
Inside the Show: KIDSTAGE Mean Girls
Our KIDSTAGE high schoolers are taking on The Plastics in Mean Girls High School Version! We connected with Mean Girls Director Jasmine Joshua to get an inside look into the rehearsal room and what these talented students are learning.
What is unique about KIDSTAGE’s production of Mean Girls?
Our cast is thinking critically about this script and some of the outdated language and jokes. So while we’re still having a campy fun time, we’re also bringing another level of awareness to this material that hopefully takes the edge off.
What are students learning throughout the rehearsal process?
We are taking a show that deals with very real and dark themes around societal prejudice, bullying, and cruelty, and learning to find the humor in a way that doesn’t punch down. We are also learning how to create a safe space to discuss and explore these themes so that the actors can inhabit these flawed characters without harming themselves or their scene partners.
Why should audiences come to the show?
These kids are remarkably talented singers, actors, and dancers, so it’s going to be a great show full of verve! Not only that, and perhaps more importantly, the kids are creating a supportive and vibrant community of players who cheer each other on. In a show with difficult topics, this sort of positivity and camaraderie really shines through into the work on stage. It’s inspiring and a true delight to witness!
JASMINE JOSHUA, they/them (Director) has directed Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Book-It Repertory Theatre); Mystery of Irma Vep (Intiman Theatre); Anyone Can Whistle, Cabaret (Reboot Theatre Company); Cafe Nordo; associate directed Ken Ludwig’s Sherwood: The Adventures of Robin Hood and XY (Village Theatre) and assistant directed Bliss (The 5th Avenue Theatre). Onstage: The 5th Avenue Theatre, Seattle Shakespeare Company, Seattle Public Theatre, Book-It Repertory Theatre, Intiman Theatre. Upcoming: directing Gold (Annex Theatre), and premiering their nonbinary musical Here and Their (12th Avenue Arts) in June 2025.
Originally published November 13, 2024
KIDSTAGE Mean Girls High School Version
DECEMBER 6-22
Hunt Family Theatre, Issaquah