SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY Will Be Filmed for WNET-TV

MCC Theater announce the last day of school-the final performance of the encore production of the critically acclaimed , 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 will be December 9, 2018.

The schedule for the final week is as follows: Tuesday at 7 pm, Thursday and Friday at 8 pm, Saturday at 2 pm and 8 pm and Sunday at 3 pm. Performances are at the Lucille Lortel Theater, 121 Christopher Street (between Bleecker and Hudson streets).

MCC Theater is proud to announce that School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play will be filmed by WNET-TV and will air on the public television program "Theater Close-Up" in 2019. Additional information will be provided at a later date.

Support for the filming of School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play is provided by The Tow Foundation and the Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust. Major support for "Theater Close-Up" is provided by Bernard and Irene Schwartz, the Howard Gilman Foundation, the Luesther T. Mertz Charitable TRUST and Elaine & W. Weldon Wilson.

The cast features original cast members; including, Lortel Award nominee MaameYaa Boafo (Untamed), Paige Gilbert (Street Children), Abena Mensah-Bonsu ("Orange is the New Black"), Lortel Award winner Mirirai Sithole (Homecoming Queen), and Lortel Award nominee Myra Lucretia Taylor (Familiar) along with three new cast members,Latoya Edwards (Miss You Like Hell), Joanna A. Jones (Hamilton), and Zenzi Williams (The Homecoming Queen).

School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play had its world-premiere at MCC on November 1, 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 Playwriting, 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?

Jesse Green of The New York Times said "The nasty-teen comedy genre emerges wonderfully refreshed and even deepened by its immersion in a world it never considered." The show was a NYT Critic's Pick. Danielle Kwateng-Clark of Essence says "School Girls is the most important play Off Broadway right now." And, in his review in theHollywood Reporter, Frank Scheck concluded "School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play' is a ferociously entertaining morality tale that proves as heartwarming as it is hilarious."

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 Veronicz Lee.

MCC Theater broke ground on its first permanent home- a two-theater complex on West 52nd Street and 10th Avenue-on March 22, 2016. Set to begin productions in January, 2019, the space will unite MCC's diverse roster of programs under one roof for the first time in the company's three-decade history. The new facility will also allow MCC to expand its programming and establish it as a cultural anchor within the Clinton neighborhood. The $35 million project is funded by a public-private partnership between the Theater and the City of New York, with $30 million raised to-date.

Photo: Abena Mensah-Bonsu, Mirirai-Sithole, and Paige Gilbert in 'School Girls; Or the African Mean Girls Play'

Photo Credit: Joan Marcus