"Heathers: The Musical" is coming to Millikin University. Students will perform the dark comedy Thursday, May 4 through Sunday, May 7 at Shilling Hall's Albert Taylor Theatre.
The story takes place at an Ohio high school in 1989 and follows misfit Veronica Sawyer and the shoulder-padded, scrunchie-wearing Heathers: the hottest and cruelest girls in all of Ohio. The vicious social order of high school is upset with the entrance of Veronica's new boyfriend J.D. and his plans to put the Heathers in their place.
Tom Robson, assistant professor of theatre at Millikin, directs the production.
"We are all different people depending on who we are around and our situations," said Robson in an interview with the Herald & Review. "This musical puts the question, 'What are you willing to do to be popular?' on stage in a really funny way."
The dialogue throughout the play refers to events of the 1980s, including the 1985 Live Aid concert and Hands Across America, when millions of people formed a human chain for a charity event in 1986.
"Children of the '80s will see a lot of things they are familiar with," said Robson. "We've had to do some explanations of what those things are to the cast."
Veronica is played by Heather Banks, a senior musical theatre major from San Diego, Calif., and Lydia Burke, a senior musical theatre major from Indianapolis, Ind., performs as one of the Heathers.
Both actors were born in the 1990s, and they believe most people can identify with the story. Before the first rehearsal, the cast sat with the directors to discuss their high school days.
"We could all recognize the scenes from the play in our own experiences," said Robson. "It is fascinating to see these same patterns."
The show is rated R and not considered family friendly.