Interview: Deshawn Bowens of MEAN GIRLS at Orpheum Theatre

On Mean Girls Day in 2016 - October 3 for those familiar with the movie - it was announced that the cult classic movie, by comedic genius Tina Fey, would be made into a musical. The world premiere would be in Washington D.C. before making its Broadway premiere at the August Wilson theatre in April of 2018. It opened to rave reviews in which Variety reassured fans that "nothing important has been purged from the story" which is very important, especially if you're a big fan of Tina Fey's hilarious comedy.

Now it's time for the Plastics to come to Minneapolis on only it's second stop of the national tour. That means Minneapolis is the first city west of the Mississippi to witness this hilarious musical. On the eve of it's opening, I was able to chat with DeShawn Bowens who is in the ensemble and making his national tour debut. Bowens has starred in regional productions of Chicago, Guys and Dolls, and Newsies. Read up on his experience so far and how excited he is to be touring!

BB: First of all, congratulations and welcome to Minnesota! Have you ever been and are you excited to be traveling across the country?
DB: Thanks so much! I've never been to Minneapolis before and I'm so excited to be able to explore and bring this wonderful show to new audiences! Being a person who loves to travel, I can honestly say that I'm super pumped about traveling across the country!

BB: When did it really hit you that you had booked this show and was about to embark on a national tour? Take us through that journey.
DB: I think it really hit me that I booked this show when the press release came out and I realized I'd be a part of the first national tour of this show! Getting to be apart of the first cast that starts a national tour of a Broadway show is something very special and I'm so grateful to be a part of it!

BB: While the original movie is such a cult classic, and hilarious, there are still some important themes. Can you tell us about those themes and how they transferred into the Broadway show?
DB: There are several themes from the cult classic that displayed wonderfully into the show. Some of the major themes are friendship, loyalty, feminism and the trials of adolescence. These theme are shown beautifully in the stage adaptation. The Broadway show is set in today's world current world of social media, which makes all of the movies original themes that more apparent.

BB: Without giving too many spoilers, what is your favorite thing about this show overall as well as your favorite moment within the show specifically?
DB: One of my favorite things about this show is that being part of the ensemble I'm able to have lots of freedom as far as my specific character, which of course is lots of fun. One of my favorite moments in the show may include jumping off a piece of furniture multiple times!

BB: The original movie has such a large fan base, what can those fans expect from this musical?
DB: The fans can expect all of the things you love about the original movie in this new musical along with some new elements to add even more to the story!

BB: If you could take any movie in the world and make it into a musical with the snap of your fingers, what would it be and why?
DB: Miss Congeniality! I think this movie has the perfect plot and overall message to become a stage musical! It would be amazing!

Miss Congeniality as a musical? I'm in, but only if we can find a way to get Sandra Bullock in!

Mean Girls will be playing at the Orpheum Theatre Tuesday, Oct. 1 through Sunday, Oct. 13, and yes there is a performance on Oct. 3! Tickets are on sale now.