Heathers is the holy grail of teen-angst comedies. It’s dark, funny, endlessly quotable, and more on point than any other film of its kind (sorry Mean Girls). Filmed at the rise, and possible height, of Winona Ryder and Christian Slater’s Hollywood moments, director Michael Lehmann couldn’t have chosen two more perfect people for his stars. Collectively, they delivered a movie unlike anything created before or since. Writer Daniel Waters gave lines for days, ones that live on twenty-one years after the film’s release. He created a perfect, mirrored world where good intentions go to hell and motives are ambiguous at best, devious at worst. Needless to say, Heathers is an untouchable cinematic icon.
Like all beloved cult films, there’s always someone out there who wants to remake the story with their own hands. Sometimes these notions come in the form of a musical. Inspired, retooled, these films make their way to Broadway, both on and off, and incorporate songs and dances that sometimes add to the beloved experience – Young Frankenstein, Hairspray, and Evil Dead comes to mind. Other times, like with Re-Animator or Grey Gardens, the experience is fun, but ultimately unnecessary. Heathers :The Musical falls somewhere in between.
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