Writer: Amy Heckerlin
Songs: KT Tunstall and Glenn Slater
Director: Rachel Kavanaugh
The female-centric high school comedy has, somewhat surprisingly, become a fertile landscape for stage musical adaptations. We’ve had Legally Blonde, Heathers and Mean Girls, but now, probably the most iconic of these films has been given the West End treatment.
Loosely based on Jane Austen’s Emma, Clueless is a coming-of-age comedy that follows Cher Horowitz (Emma Flynn), a wealthy and popular high school student with an eye for fashion and a passion for makeovers. The story chronicles her well-intentioned but sometimes misguided attempts to improve the lives of those around her—particularly when she decides to give a makeover to new student Tai Frasier (Ramona Lewis-Malley). As Cher navigates the social complexities of high school, fashion crises, and her perfectionist tendencies, she gradually discovers that despite her confidence in managing everyone else’s life, she might be somewhat clueless about her own heart and what truly matters.
Amy Heckerling, who wrote and directed the original movie, has written the book but handed over the directing duties to Rachel Kavanaugh, whose pedigree includes Great British Bake Off The Musical, Half A Sixpence and The Witches Of Eastwick. Possibly surprisingly on the music front, the production pairs established musical lyricist Glen Slater (School of Rock, The Little Mermaid, Sister Act, and Love Never Dies) and singer-songwriter KT Tunstall, better known for her guitar-based rock songs than musical theatre.
The result, as they say, is a mixed bag that doesn’t quite hit the exceptional joys of the movie but is a pleasant enough distraction. On the plus side, the pairing of Slater and Tunstall seems to be a mini masterstroke. For the most part, the songs are a delight. Slater’s lyrics leverage the spoken tone of the characters and do their job of spotlighting key parts of the narrative. Tunstall for her part has delightfully wound the clock back to the 90’s and taken her musical cues from hits of the era. So, we get very obvious nods to the likes of Blink 182, Hanson, Backstreet Boys and more. High points include the vibrant opening number Perfect, the comedic She’s All That and a Bag of Chips, and the cutting Human Barbies.
Add to this a wonderfully on-point wardrobe by Paloma Young, that mirrors the movie’s iconic looks, and you’re comfortably anchored in the 90’s. The cast certainly looks the part, Flynn’s interpretation of Cher would please the most avid fans of the movie, and the rest serve their roles perfectly well.
There’s a delightful youthful glee in the performances but, somehow, they succeed in the musical performances but fall flat in the dialogue. This is compounded by a rather hurried direction and an overly truncated script that creates a staccato narrative that doesn’t engage or hang together well. What results are some fantastic musical set pieces interlinked by a flimsy narrative that, whilst overall funny, is a pale imitation of the movie.
Whilst many of the film’s memorable lines (including ‘She’s a full-on Monet’, ‘You’re a virgin who can’t drive’, ‘Do you prefer fashion victim or ensembley challenged?’) are included, they just don’t land with the zing they need. And, where the film is considered iconic, this musical is more whimsically entertaining. But there’s many a production out there that would kill for a review like that.
Runs until 27 November 2025
