Jordan Ross, Lindsey Rosin, Roger Kumble
Bill Kenwright Ltd
York Grand Opera House
February 18-22, 2025; 2hrs
(Also at Manchester Palace Theatre, March 25-29; Leeds Grand, May 6-10; Hull New Theatre, May 13-17; Darlington Hippodrome, May 20-24)
There are productions that demand five stars for the quality of the acting, directing or writing. Then there are shows like Cruel Intentions: the 90s Musical that deserve high marks for the entertainment value and fun they deliver.
This musical reworking of the film about rich spoiled teenagers creating sexual havoc at a posh Manhattan prep school starts as it means to go on, with a pre-recorded announcement from no less than Buffy the Vampire Slayer herself - Sarah Michelle Gellar - who starred in the film on which this show is based.
Buffy warns the audience about using mobile phones and says, rather wickedly you might think, that if they’ve come looking for green people they’ve come to the "wrong effing place". The tone is set for a randy, raucous, ribald musical that retells the twisted school sex games played by step-siblings Sebastian Valmont and Kathryn Marteuil.
At the heart of the story is the pair’s cruel bet in which Sebastian challenges Kathryn to seduce new headmaster’s daughter Annette, a girl who puts love before sex. If Kathryn wins, she gets his car. If Sebastian wins, she’ll let him achieve his ambition to sleep with her. A gay couple and naive pupil Cecile, who has feelings for her music teacher, also figure among the complicated affairs of the heart.
Too many jukebox musicals fall apart because of a lack of a strong narrative – or in some cases, any narrative at all - to plug the gaps between the catalogue of hit songs. But Cruel Intentions: the 90s Musical, boasts an excellent pedigree. Not just the hit movie but also the novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, which was a hit on stage for the RSC and on film for Glenn Close and John Malkovich).
Who can resist watching rich kids engage in all manner of sexual shenanigans while belting out hits by the likes of Britney Spears, The Verve and Christina Aguilera? All tastes are catered for, whether you’re straight, gay or just like a good time. The phrase "guilty pleasure" springs to mind.
The staging (director Jonathan O’Boyle and choreographer Gary Lloyd) ensures there’s never a dull moment during the two-hour running time - which manages to cram in two dozen hits from the 90s.
As the pair of sexual schemers, Nic Myers (Kathryn) and Will Callan (Sebastian) ooze wealth, privilege and a total disregard for real feelings as they manipulate all those around them. Only Abbie Budden (Annette) demonstrates common sense as the object of Sebastian’s attention, while Lucy Carter threatens to steal the show as young Cecile learns the language of love.
More info and tickets here
