Interview: Danielle Wade Spills That MEAN GIRLS at Wharton Center is Pink and Fantastical, Yet Universal

Mean Girls, the Broadway musical based on the 2004 film of the same name, is making its way to Michigan in 2022 for the first time ever. From March 1st to the 6th, you can catch this Tina Fey-penned musical at Wharton Center in East Lansing. After premiering on Broadway in 2018, Mean Girls went on to be nominated for 12 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Original Score.

Ahead of Mean Girls' stint in East Lansing, BroadwayWorld Detroit had the pleasure of speaking with Danielle Wade, who plays Cady Heron in the show. Read our conversation below!

Can you give readers a brief introduction to you and your background in theatre?

I'm Canadian and I actually live right across the border there in LaSalle, Ontario, which is very exciting. It's nice to be coming relatively close to home.

I started when I was [in] about 10th grade. I did theatre in secondary school and when I was in college I auditioned for a TV show, a reality competition called Over the Rainbow. This was Canada's search for Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. I ended up winning that and then I played Dorothy in Toronto for about 9 months. Then, I did a first national tour of The Wizard of Oz for a year. I have been adventuring around the country and Canada / America ever since trying to tell some stories and pretend to be people for a living.

In a sentence, how would you describe the story of Mean Girls?

A young girl moves from Africa to America and finds herself at a high school in situations she's never encountered before, and her dealing with and learning to cope with that.

Can you tell me a bit about what it's like playing Cady? What's your favorite part about playing her, and what does she mean to you?

It's a joy to play a character like this because I think all of us have some version of Cady in our brains and in our bodies. We've all seen a Cady, we are a Cady, we're best friends with a Cady. She's somebody who's very much searching to belong and wanting to belong and eventually does, and figures it out on her own terms, which I appreciate.

She falls in with the wrong crowd and then a good crowd. She makes good choices and bad choices and I think that's a really normal human character. She's not a villain all the time and she's not a hero all the time and I think that's really nice.

What has been the most rewarding aspect to telling this story all around the country?

It is really, really wonderful to see all of the young people who come to the show. You think that they could take away that being the cool, popular girl is the best, but they end up taking away that you should really just be what you are and who you are. That's what has been so nice about this show, it's big and pink and fantastical and all of the things but people are still taking away to just be you. It's so much better to just be you. That is so lovely. I think that's the only goal of the show, actually.

So the original movie came out in 2004, which is crazily enough almost 2 decades ago. What do you think makes the story resonate with people all these years later?

It's a universal theme, no matter the decade or the time - everyone wants to belong and be accepted. It's like Grease, where she just really wants to fit in so she does what they say and then eventually realizes that's not a great idea.

There are so many themes [in the show that are applicable] today - I mean, you're seeing mean girls in Euphoria, which is a very, very relevant TV show today. It's still happening - the archetype of the mean girl, the best friend, the other one that's not actually mean but is just going along with it, the outcast, and then someone who's new and just trying to figure out where they belong. It's universal and it's still happening everywhere we go.

What's your favorite song to sing, and what's your favorite song that you don't sing?

Favorite song to sing is "It Roars" - it's the top of the show. It's a cool moment because every single cast member is out there, which I really like. It's one of the only moments when everyone is on stage.

My favorite song that I don't sing is either "World Burn" (which is Regina's act 2 song where she lets the Burn Book free; I just think it's such a good song with such cool power) or "I'd Rather Be Me" (which is Janis' song; it's a great one too).

What's it like being back and doing live theatre after this long hiatus?

The most wonderful thing I could've done for myself is to get back to work and do what I love to do and sing and be around people who are creative. It has been so nice to be back. I could talk about it for days and we could go on and on because it really is the best thing. That's not very beautiful but it's simple and the best thing I've ever done is to be back here.

And I think that would go for both audiences and cast members.

Yeah, I think so too. I think everyone was ready and people are craving this kind of entertainment and escape, both actors and audience members alike.

How is the stage musical different from the modern cult classic movie that it's based on?

It's very similar to the film. Fans of the film will come to the musical and know what is going on, but there will be a couple different punchlines to jokes you know to keep you on your toes. And then a random song just tossed in there.

I think Tina [Fey] did such a good job of incorporating today. We have a lot of social media involved in the show. [The movie] did come out in 2004, so the musical is a little updated compared to then. But I think if you were a fan of the movie, you will enjoy the musical.

That goes for people who haven't seen the movie too, I would imagine.

Oh yeah, you'll still have a good time. One of the best parts of the musical is that parents will bring their kids to the show, but the parents are cackling just as much as the kids are. Or dads, the dads are the ones who are laughing really hard. That's so funny.

Do you have any social media accounts that readers should follow?

Instagram is the main one, it's @daniewade. The company itself has an Instagram called @changeisfetch, and it's promoting different charities and causes. We're just trying to share knowledge across the country.

How To Get Tickets

Tickets for Mean Girls are on sale now at Wharton Center's official ticketing outlets: online at whartoncenter.com, at the Auto-Owners Insurance Ticket Office at Wharton Center, or by calling 1-800-WHARTON.

Connect with Mean Girls on Twitter at @meangirlsbway, on Instagram at @meangirlsbway and @changeisfetch, on Facebook at @MeanGirlsBway, and at meangirlsonbroadway.com.

Photo credit: Joan Marcus