CLUELESS THE MUSICAL: REVIEW
Hit Nineties Highschool Movie Has Way Cool West End Makeover
Clueless has had a way cool West End makeover, so we head to Trafalgar Theatre to review the new musical.
Marking 30 years since the hit movie was released, and 250 years since the birth of Jane Austen (whose novel Emma inspired it) the latest Clueless incarnation has been adapted to the stage by the movie’s writer and director, Amy Heckerling.
And it’s a gloriously nostalgic romp through the Nineties, with a catchy score by KT Tunstall, who has successfully captured the tone of the film’s genre-jumping soundtrack - which features tracks from Coolio and Supergrass to the Beastie Boys and Radiohead - into the musical.
The production is forensically faithful to the film, and the amazing Emma Flynn is more like Alicia Silverstone than Silverstone herself, as Beverly Hills High’s most popular student, Cher, with vocals which hit every crevice of the theatre.
It tells the story of a shallow LA rich girl, who rules the school with her best friend Dionne, played with designer bags of attitude by Chyna-Rose Frederick.
Cher gets high on power from playing god, matchmaking teachers or students, and making over the “hopeless” into popular girls, ignoring judgment from her step-brother, Josh (Keenan McCauley). Her hopeless case becomes more popular than her, making her reevaluate her priorities and feelings, leading her to realise her true feelings for nemesis, Josh.
The chemistry between Cher and Josh is electric, and the arc of their romance from squabbling brat and nerd, to lovers is moving.
McCauley (Josh) is another standout in this excellent cast, who performs some of the show’s catchiest tracks, like the Green Day-esque Human Barbies, admonishing Cher for playing with people like dolls (“Barbies only bend so far before they break”) while the cast dance around like Mattel toys.
His Reasonable Doubts number is another highlight, which sees him backflipping around Cher's lawyer father's sweeping, chandelier-lit LA mansion, while professing his mistrust of her love interest, Christian.
The sets are impressive, effortlessly transforming from high school basketball court, to school room, house party and Cher’s garish, Barbie doll bedroom, complete with vast wardrobes bulging with designer bags and Nineties classics.
And there are clever touches, like the transformation of the sofa into a car for her disastrous driving lesson scenes, leading to the famous “you’re a virgin who can’t drive” line.
Paloma Young’s costume design is also pleasingly true to the film - which filtered into every Nineties teen wardrobe - from Cher’s impossibly short, yellow D&G number and the red Calvin Klein dress - which she goes to amusing lengths to preserve while being mugged - to Dionne’s fabulously extra red and black suit.
Clueless the Musical is a high energy, fun and catchy trip back to the Nineties, following the success of high school musicals like Mean Girls and Heathers, but unlike other teen romantic comedies of its era, this one has a card of platinum, but a heart of gold.
Clueless the Musical, Trafalgar Theatre, 14 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2DY. Running until 14 June 2025
