SCHOOL GIRLS: OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY Opens Tonight

MCC Theater's return of the critically acclaimed, sold out, extended, award-winning play School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play, written by 2017-18 Tow Playwright-in-Residence Jocelyn Bioh, and directed by Tony Winner Rebecca Taichman opens tonight, October 22nd. The encore production will be performed at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street) from October 16th through November 25th.

The cast features original cast members Lortel Award nominee MaameYaa Boafo (Untamed), Paige Gilbert (Street Children), and Zenzi Williams (The Homecoming Queen)., Abena Mensah-Bonsu (Ragtime on Ellis Island), Lortel Award winner Mirirai Sithole (The Death of the Last Black Man...), and Lortel Award nominee Myra Lucretia Taylor (Familiar) along with two new cast members, Latoya Edwards (Miss You Like Hell) and Joanna A. Jones (Hamilton).

School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play had its world-premiere at MCC on November 2nd, 2017. The 2017-2018 Award season garnered four Lucille Lortel Award nominations including wins for Outstanding Play, Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for Mirirai Sithole, and Outstanding Costume Design for Dede Ayite. It also received a 2018 Drama Desk Special Award for Ensemble, the Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award for Playwrighting, the Dramatists Guild Hull-Warriner Award, and nominations for Best Play by The Drama League and from the Off Broadway Alliance.

In School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play, Paulina, the reigning Queen Bee at Ghana's most exclusive boarding school, has her sights set on the Miss Universe pageant. But the arrival of Ericka, a new student with undeniable talent and beauty, captures the attention of the pageant recruiter--and Paulina's hive-minded friends. This buoyant and biting comedy explores the universal similarities (and glaring differences) facing teenage girls across the globe. How far would you go to be queen bee?

The creative team for School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play includes scenic design by Arnulfo Maldonado, costume design by Dede Ayite, lighting design by Jen Schriever, sound design by Palmer Hefferan, hair and wig design by Cookie Jordan, and casting by Telsey + Company/Adam Caldwell, CSA, William Cantler, CSA, Karyn Casl, CSA. Production Stage Manager Rachel Gross and Stage Manager Ayisha Hunt.

Photo Credit: Joan Marcus