School Girls

Reviewed: November 19, 2017

School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play is playing at The Lucille Lortel Theatre located at 121 Christopher Street. It runs seventy five minutes with no intermission. The play closes n December 10. 2017.

Locelyn Bioh is the playwright. She is also an actress, recently seen in, In the Blood at the Signature Theatre in 2017.

Rebecca Taichman is the director. She won a Tony Award for Indecent (2017).

The place is Aburi Girls Boarding School located in Aburi Mountains in Central Ghana in 1986.

Paulina Sarpong (MaamreYaa Boafo) is the leader of a group of girls she calls her friends. This is the in group of the school. They have to follow her rules. The girls are Gifty (Paige Gilbert), Ama (Nike Kadri) Nana (Abena Mensah-Bonsu) and Mercy (Mirirat Sithole). Each have issues which is how Paulina is able to manipulate them to do things she wants. She has Nana steal the files on some students from the headmistress office to have dirt on them. Ericka Boafo (Nabiyah Be) is the newest student. Paulina has her get the file on the new student. Ericak’s mother is American and white, her father is a rich business man and is from Ghana.

Headmistress Francis (Myra Lucretia Taylor) introduces Eloise Amponsah (Zainab Jah) to the students. She was 1966 Miss Ghana. Eloise is looking for the 1986 Miss Ghana. The students entertain her. Paulina and Eloise want the title. Ericka is chosen and hopes to win the Miss Universe title.

What happens, you will have to see his delightful play. Of course you will learn more about the students we meet.

Girls are girls not matter where they are.

Rebecca Taichman does an outstanding job. The cast shines. MaameYaa Boafo, Nabiyah Be and Zainab Jah do an impressive performance.

This is a must see show you won’t be disappointed in.

Review by Rozanna Radakovich.

Photo by Annazor.

To read a candid interview with the cast, scroll down to photos. Click on photos for this and other shows.