“Heathers” will be the first premiere of the 2024/25 season in the Syrena Theatre. The musical, written by Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy, will be directed by Agnieszka Płoszajska. We just started the rehearsals for this production!
“Heathers” belongs to the “high school musical” subgenre, which tells stories about and for teenagers. It’s a story about an American high school which is ruled by three girls named Heather. The story takes an unexpected and bloody turn, after they are confronted by Veronica, the main protagonist, and her boyfriend, the school outsider J.D. The musical was first adapted in 1988 into a film starring Winona Ryder and Christan Slater (in Poland the film is known under the title “Śmiertelne zauroczenie”). The film’s plot, rock music, and explicit song lyrics are used to tell a story about the horrors of adolescence. Both the topic and the great music accompanying it were responsible for the musical’s success among teenager viewers, with the musical becoming a record-breaking hit on London’s West End.
The beginning of rehearsals is a mix of excitement, anxiety and happiness. But what dominates is curiosity. Will we be able to create a team with “chemistry” on stage? Will everything that I imagined earlier work out with this configuration of artists? In many ways, this is a cult classic, which makes it a challenge for us. My main responsibility is to lead the actors in such a way so that they can create full-fledged, believable characters who are not simply copies of the originals. We begin with singing rehearsals in which I always like to participate. It allows me to dig deeper into the subject, quickly get to know the cast, and the working style of each cast member.
Agnieszka Płoszajska, the director of the musical
We’re really happy that “Heathers” will bring many new faces to our theatre. This musical is difficult and specific: it requires top-notch vocal and acting skills from very young performers. We’re excited for Agnieszka Płoszajska to be directing a play for the first time in our theatre, alongside Michał Cyran, who is responsible for the choreography. This duo has recently been successful all over Poland, so it’s high time for their debut in Syrena!
Jacek Mikołajczyk, the artistic director of the Syrena Theatre
The cast of “Heathers” was selected during a nationwide casting process, with over 440 young actors and actresses applying from all over the country. Most of the cast will be debuting in Syrena. But the musical will also feature some of the biggest stars of the young generation of Polish musical actors, all of them well-known by our audience, including Natalia Kujawa (Stefania Grodzieńska in “Piplaja”, Katherine Parr in “SIX”), Aleksandra Gotowicka (Wednesday in “The Addams Family” and Anne Boleyn & Katherine Howard in “SIX”), Karolina Gwóźdź (Natalie in “Next to normal”), Marta Burdynowicz (Emma Shelley in “The Black Shakespeare”, Jane Seymour in “SIX”), as well as Syrena’s Beatrycze Łukaszewska, Agnieszka Rose, Michał Konarski and Albert Osik.
The cast will be working on learning the songs during music rehearsals up until the end of April. After a break in May, we’ll be returning to rehearsals in June and – after the summer break – in the middle of August. “Heathers” will premiere on September 7 and 8. The last tickets for the premiere set of the musical, which will last until September 22, are now on sale. Tickets can be purchased on our website: bilety.teatrsyrena.pl. The cast for the premiere set will be announced in June. “Heathers” will return to our stage in December 2024.
The official partner of the musical is the foundation Dajemy Dzieciom Siłę, which runs a 24h free and anonymous helpline for children and teenagers: 116 111 (116111.pl).
The musical is licensed by Concord Theatricals Ltd.
Creative Team of „Heathers” in the Syrena Theatre:
Direction – Agnieszka Płoszajska
Music direction and vocal preparation – Tomasz Filipczak
Translation – Jacek Mikołajczyk
Choreography – Michał Cyran
Set design and costumes – Anna Chadaj
Light direction – Artur Wytrykus
Sound direction – Jakub Niedźwiedź
Makeup – Daria Skrzypkowska
Production – Zuzanna Miladinović
Stage manager – Marta Skoczek
Prompter – Katarzyna Kulik
Cast of „Heathers” in the Syrena Theatre:
Veronica – Natalia Kujawa/Małgorzata Majerska
Heather Chandler – Aleksandra Gotowicka
Heather McNamara – Karolina Gwóźdź
Heather Duke – Joanna Gorzała
Swing Heather – Patrycja Jurek
JD – Maciej M. Tomaszewski/Bartosz Łyczek
Kurt – Karol Ledwosiński
Ram – Jędrzej Czerwonogrodzki
Swing of Kurt & Ram – Stefan Andruszko
Martha – Marta Burdynowicz/Klaudia Kuchtyk
Geek – Krystian Embradora
Top Student – Jakub Cendrowski
Hipster – Bartosz Łyczek
Party Girl – Małgorzata Majerska
Junkie – Klaudia Duda
Republican Woman – Klaudia Kuchtyk
Ram’s Father/Big Bud Dean/coach Ripper – Michał Konarski
Ms. Fleming/Veronica’s mother – Agnieszka Rose/Beatrycze Łukaszewska
Kurt’s father/Veronica’s father/Headmaster Gowan – Albert Osik
Swings of the women’s team – Dominika Łysakowska i Marta Skrzypczyńska
Swing of the men’s team – Dominik Ochociński