School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (255)
See it if you liked Mean Girl, or if you want to see a simultaneously hilarious and heart-warming play
Don't see it if you don't like plays
See it if you want to see an absorbing play that's fun and funny as well; if you want to take advantage of the best that Off-Broadway offers
Don't see it if if you don't want to relive what might be painful memories of high school cliques; if you only like Broadway plays or musicals
See it if You want to see a very funny play with an important message. Incredible acting by entire cast. Brilliantly written!
Don't see it if You hate plays that are both funny and have dramatic moments. Shows without an intermission annoy you. Read more
See it if You want to see a dark comedy that has a point and makes it without apology. Want to see Mean Girls, but with a purpose.
Don't see it if You dislike plays with very visceral verbal abuse. Read more
See it if You like one act plays; 75-min long. Quick-tongued. Some harsh language. I wanted to see it during the first run, but, glad I finally got
Don't see it if To see it during the end of this run. The young ladies are SO talented. Who cares if it's "Mean Girls" set in Ghana? It's funny and relevant
See it if you were ever in high school and you want to forget it all; or you were ever in high school and loved it. You love or like Mean Girls.
Don't see it if you're threatened by watching hilarious, captivating and joyous performances by incredibly talented women. You don't like laughing. Read more
See it if You’re looking to experience a show that only deals with being a teenage girl but also colorism and choices adults make.
Don't see it if You want something light. There is levity throughout but it gets very intense.
See it if you missed it in its initial run, you enjoy biting comedies, or are a fan of female-led plays
Don't see it if you’d rather see a musical or a play that’s longer than just over an hour Read more
Critic Reviews (29)
"This eight-member ensemble is a well-oiled machine...Bioh, a shrewd comic writer of obvious gifts, doesn’t shrink from the uglier side of her subject. And she maintains enough empathy to redeem even the most narcissistic and spiteful of antiheroines...I saw and adored 'School Girls' last fall, and good on MCC for bringing it back. Taichman recreates her very musical, funny, and tight-paced 70-minute production, which includes...one of the most appealing ensembles on stage now."
Read more
“Most of MCC's excellent world premiere cast returns in Tony-winning director Rebecca Taichman's spot-on production. They're joined by a trio of terrific new colleagues in a production that effectively blends humor and bite to swiftly make its points in a play that's solidly satisfying in just 75 minutes."
Read more
"Uproarious. Affecting, human, and sympathetic, too; but this is the funniest time you’ve spent in high school since those 'History Boys' came to town...The play is brightened by a uniformly talented cast. Boafo and Jones make a strong mismatch...Anyone who laughed through it last November is likely to urge friends to catch the play before it closes...Because yes, 'School Girls' is a joy to see."
Read more
"Punchy, crisp, and sly...The laughs are combined with some tougher drama...Race, ideals of beauty, and personal identity are at the heart of 'School Girls'—and they are uncompromisingly addressed by Bioh and the cast. The play is only 75 minutes long, and perhaps on the Lortel stage that makes sense. But it is so smart, quick, and intelligent this critic kept wishing it was longer. Maybe if it grows to a bigger stage, it just might."
Read more
“A highly entertaining comedy that takes an all-too-familiar American concept and shows how universal it indeed is...Bioh gives room for the characters to grow without completely vilifying our lead character or making her a victim...Paulina could quickly be the bitch...but it’s in Boafo’s excellent acting choices and Bioh’s complex writing that leads the audience to appreciate the intricacies of humanity...A well-paced, rewarding ensemble show that is equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking.”
Read more
"The nasty-teen comedy genre emerges wonderfully refreshed and even deepened by its immersion in a world it never considered...Beneath the infectious silliness of Biog's play’s adopted genre, the ugly question of internalized racism lurks...Mostly and smartly, she trusts the form; there’s a reason these stories work. Ms. Taichman’s production highlights all of those reasons...One of the production’s chief assets is the delicious ensemble work."
Read more
"Nearly assaultive hilarity...'School Girls' is a kind of Bioh bonanza; after several seasons of settling for just one of her, there are suddenly eight...Her brief play is missing its middle...Taichman leans so far into the bright Punch-and-Judy colors of the first 50 minutes that the last, humanistic 20 seem to take place on a different planet. Still, Bioh knows how to write a stunning breakdown scene, and Boafo handles the tonal switcheroo with ease."
Read more
"Funny and fast-paced...Under Taichman’s confident hand, 'School Girls' rolls swiftly through its 75 minutes...'School Girls' is formulaic without being unsatisfying. Familiar structures, especially when full of fresh faces and sharp humor, can be deeply enjoyable...Its emotional and narrative leaps are fast, even a little too fast...Bioh knows how to craft bouncy, juicy dialogue that performers can have fun with."
Read more