After weeks of preparation, rehearsals, and behind-the-scenes work, Daytona State College’s theater program officially closed its run of Mean Girls this past Sunday night, and let’s just say, they delivered.
“Opening night, honestly it went phenomenally,” said DSC student Lora Thompson, who plays the character Janis in the show. “Even the little mistakes we made we were able to play off great, and I mean we can’t do it without a good audience you know, and we had a phenomenal audience so feeding off their energy is what makes us good.”
From the moment the lights hit, the energy didn’t let up. The cast stayed locked in, and the audience matched them all the way through, turning the night into something that felt like more than just a performance.
“It was great I had so much fun,” said DSC student and ensemble Kennedi Francis. “The 2 pm show was really fun, but the crowd at the 7 pm show was way better, I mean the energy was just radiating and it was so much fun.”
That momentum carried through the show’s most memorable moments, including one cast favorite. “I think my favorite moment is the scene that Cady has with Gretchen and Karen at the end where she says, ‘you are real, you are rare’ because it really recognizes everyone coming together,” said Francis.
The production itself was the result of a semester’s work, and the cast didn’t ignore that. “We started in January, so it’s been a couple of months,” said Thompson.
When asked what the hardest part of the show was, DSC student Jennie Rebekah Davis, who plays Regina George, said “Putting everything together, like singing, dancing, and acting all together as a group was so hard. Costumes were hard as well.”
But the work paid off because the costumes were everything, and they fit the characters’ personalities so well. Especially when it came to Karen, Gretchen, and Regina. “Oh my gosh, If I could take something from set, it’d be every single one of Karen’s outfits, Said Francis. “Every single one, she looked so cool the whole time.”
“I think for me it would probably be my outfit from ‘Revenge Party.’ I would totally steal that,” said DSC student Kalina Pickard who plays Karen Smith. Davis also stepped in and added, “I would say my top from ‘World Burn’ or honestly my whole outfit from ‘Revenge Party’ too.”
From the backstage interviews to the choreography, and comedy, it was clear just how much work went into every detail, and how seamlessly it all came together on stage.
Mean Girls at DSC wasn’t just a show, it was a full group effort that paid off in every scene. “There have been so many moments in this show that I’m proud of, but this cast I mean it’s just been a pure joy to work with them,” said Director Samantha Stern.
