School Girls Ends Broadway Run With Livestreams

Six teenage girls at the Aburi Girls Boarding School compete for the title of Miss Ghana 1986 in the final days of School Girls on Broadway. The play ends its run this week with livestream broadcasts available on The League of Live Stream Theater's website. High school students can watch for free, while other viewers pay a fee. The production is written by Jocelyn Bioh, a playwright who has received a Tony Award nomination.

The story is set in 1986 in Ghana. It follows Paulina, the school's queen bee, who bullies her classmates over their looks. Paulina plans to win the Miss Ghana pageant after a recruiter visits the school. Her plans are disrupted when Ericka, a transfer student from Ohio, arrives at the school. Ericka exposes Paulina's behavior during a performance of Whitney Houston's Greatest Love of All. A clash follows between the school's headmistress and the pageant director over which student has the best chance to win Miss Global Universe.

Bioh said she was not actively thinking about the 2004 film Mean Girls when she wrote the play. She chose the subtitle after reflecting on the themes with her friend, actress Danai Gurira. Gurira described the characters as feral teenage girls. Bioh noted that the archetype is incredibly universal. The play examines girlhood and societal beauty standards using humor and humanity.

The production addresses colorism directly. Bioh said she wanted to write a play that could shorten the journey for young women who struggle to own their beauty. She described her own long journey to accept her appearance as a dark-skinned woman. She said the play resonates with people from different backgrounds, showing that colorism is a global issue. Bioh explained that the play aims to shift implicit bias as audiences move through the world.

The cast features Denée Benton as Paulina, Lucia Aremu as Ama, Nia Otchere-Sarfo as Gifty, Jordan Rice as Mercy, Erin Morton as Nana, and Jasmine Amy Rogers as Ericka. The cast is all-Black female and displays a wide range of physical appearances. Bioh stated that audiences see facets of themselves in the characters, regardless of their background. She said this connection is where the heart and beauty of the play lies.

The show has run on Broadway nearly 10 years after its Off-Broadway premiere. Bioh said the experience of seeing how the show stays with audiences is moving. She shared a direct message from Jenna Fischer, who watched the play a few days prior. Fischer messaged Bioh the following day to say she was still thinking about the production. Bioh said it was cool that someone who likely had no experience with colorism was moved by the play.

Bioh hopes audiences leave with a deep sense of empathy for the young girls and the adult women in the story. She asked people to shift their ideas about beauty standards by a small amount. She said that if audiences move their thinking just a little, she has done her job. The livestreams will be accessible through the theater league's website for the remainder of the run.

The play is set in a specific historical moment but deals with timeless questions. The characters navigate their identities in a rigid social structure. The audience gets to witness the interactions between the girls and the adults in charge of the school. The final performances will conclude the current run of the production in New York.