''Clueless'' (also known as Clueless, The Musical) is a

jukebox musical A jukebox musical is a stage musical or musical film in which a majority of the songs are well-known popular music songs, rather than original music. Some jukebox musicals use a wide variety of songs, while others confine themselves to songs perfo ...

with a book by

Amy Heckerling Amy Heckerling (born May 7, 1954) is an American filmmaker. An alumna of both New York University and the American Film Institute, she directed the commercially successful films ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High'' (1982), ''National Lampoon's Europ ...

based on her 1995 film of the same name, itself loosely based on

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

's 1815 novel '' Emma'', updating the setting to modern-day

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

. The musical premiered Off-Broadway on November 20, 2018, with an official opening on December 11, in the

Pershing Square Signature Center The Pershing Square Signature Center is a complex of three Off-Broadway theatres in the Theatre Row section of West 42nd Street in New York City. It is on the first floors of the 43-floor MiMa Building apartment complex. Pershing Square Signatu ...

's Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre. Performances ran through January 12, 2019. While financially successful, critical reception was mixed to negative in comparison to other teen movie musicals and to the movie. No other productions have been announced so far. As a non-traditional jukebox musical, the show uses '80s and '90s songs as the entire score, with lyric changes to fit the scene. It features classics such as " Torn" by

Natalie Imbruglia Natalie Jane Imbruglia ( , ; born 4 February 1975) is an Australian singer and actress. In the early 1990s, she played Beth Brennan in the Australian soap opera '' Neighbours''. Three years after leaving the programme, she began a singing car ...

, "

Say My Name "Say My Name" is a song by American group Destiny's Child from their second studio album, ''The Writing's on the Wall'' (1999). It was written by Beyoncé Knowles, LeToya Luckett, LaTavia Roberson, Kelly Rowland, LaShawn Daniels, Fred Jerkins I ...

" by

Destiny's Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...

, "

Kids in America "Kids in America" is a song recorded by English pop singer Kim Wilde. It was released in the United Kingdom as her debut single in January 1981, and in the United States in spring 1982, later appearing on her Kim Wilde (album), self-titled de ...

" by

Kim Wilde Kim Wilde (born Kim Smith, 18 November 1960) is an English pop singer, DJ and television presenter. She first saw success in 1981 with her debut single "Kids in America", which peaked at No. 2 in the UK. In 1983, she received the Brit Award f ...

, and " Beautiful Life" by Ace of Base.

Productions

Off-Broadway (2018)

The musical opened Off-Broadway at The

, produced by

The New Group The New Group, is a New York City Off-Broadway theatrical troupe founded by Artistic Director Scott Elliott, that produced its first play, Mike Leigh's '' Ecstasy'', in 1995. The New Group is run by founding Artistic Director, Scott Elliott, an ...

, on November 20, 2018, for a limited engagement until January 12, 2019. The production was directed by

Kristin Hanggi Kristin Hanggi (born: Murrieta Valley, California) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter; and theater director best known for the 2009 Broadway musical '' Rock of Ages''. The jukebox musical received five Tony Award nominati ...

, choreographed by

Kelly Devine Kelly Devine is a theatre choreographer. Her Broadway choreography credits include '' Rock of Ages'', ''Rocky'', ''Doctor Zhivago'', ''Come From Away'', and ''Escape to Margaritaville''. She was associate choreographer on ''Memphis'' and ''Jers ...

and the show's music supervision, arrangements and orchestration was provided by Ethan Popp. The production's design team included scenery by

Beowulf Boritt Beowulf Boritt is a New York City-based scenic designer for theater. He is known for his scenic design for the play '' Act One'', which earned him the 2014 Tony Award for Best Scenic Design in a Play. Early life Boritt was born to American Civi ...

, costumes by Amy Clark, lighting by Jason Lyons, sound by Gareth Owen, and projections by Darrel Maloney.

Characters and original cast

Musical numbers

Act I

* " Beautiful Life" - Cher and Ensemble * " Shoop" - Murray and Male Ensemble * "

Little Miss Can't Be Wrong "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong" is a song by American rock group Spin Doctors, released in October 1992 as the lead single from their debut album, ''Pocket Full of Kryptonite'' (1991). The song reached number 17 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and ...

" - Cher, Josh, Teachers and Female Ensemble * "

No Scrubs "No Scrubs" is a song recorded by American girl group TLC as the lead single from their third studio album, ''FanMail'', on February 2, 1999, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. The song was written by producer Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, forme ...

" - Cher and Ensemble * "

You Gotta Be "You Gotta Be" is an Contemporary R&B, R&B/Soul music, soul song by British singer and songwriter Des'ree, written by her with the producer, Ashley Ingram. It is the third track on the singer's second album, ''I Ain't Movin (1994), and the ...

" - Cher, Dionne and Ensemble * "

How Am I Supposed to Live Without You "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" is a song written in 1982 by Doug James and Michael Bolton. The ballad has been recorded by many artists around the world, in several languages, most notably Bolton himself, becoming something of a modern p ...

" - Mr.Hall, Miss Geist, Cher and Dionne and Ensemble * "

U Can't Touch This "U Can't Touch This" is a song co-written, produced, and performed by American rapper MC Hammer. It was released as the third single from his third album, ''Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em'' (1990), and has been considered his signature song. Along ...

" - Company * "

Supermodel A supermodel, also spelled super-model or super model, is a highly paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in ''haute couture'' and commercial modeling. The term ''supermodel'' became prominent in the po ...

" - Cher, Dionne, Tai and Ensemble * "

Barbie Girl "Barbie Girl" is a song by Danish-Norwegian dance-pop group Aqua. It was released in April 1997 as the third single from the group's debut studio album, ''Aquarium'' (1997). The song was written by Søren Rasted, Claus Norreen, René Dif, and Le ...

" - Cher, Dionne, Tai, Murray and Female Ensemble * "

Groove Is In The Heart "Groove Is in the Heart" is a song by American dance band Deee-Lite, released in August 1990 as their debut and lead single from their first album, ''World Clique'' (1990). Written and produced by the band, it was a hit in many countries, reachi ...

" - Tai, Murray and Company * " Torn" - Cher and Josh

Act II

* "

My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It) "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" is a song by American pop/ R&B group En Vogue, released in March 1992 as the lead single from their multi-platinum second album, '' Funky Divas'' (1992). The single reached number two on the US ''Billboard ...

" - Tai, Cher, Dionne and Female Ensemble * "A Girl Like You" - Christian, Cher, Dionne, Tai and Ensemble * "

Dammit "Dammit" (sometimes subtitled "Growing Up") is a song by American rock band Blink-182, released on September 23, 1997, as the second single from the group's second studio album, ''Dude Ranch'' (1997). Written by bassist Mark Hoppus, the song con ...

" - Cher, Josh, The Band and Ensemble * "Dammit (Reprise)" - Cher and Josh * "

Bye Bye Bye "Bye Bye Bye" is a song by the American boy band NSYNC. It was released on January 17, 2000, as the lead single from their third studio album '' No Strings Attached''. The song was written and produced by Kristian Lundin and Jake Schulze, with a ...

" - Cher, Christian and Company * " Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm" - Travis * " What's Up?" - Cher * " She's So High" - Cher and Josh * " You Get What You Give" - Cher and Company * "

" - Full Company

Critical response

''Clueless, The Musical'' received mixed reviews. Frank Rizzo of ''Variety'' called the narrative "lightweight" but praised the overall look and tone of the show. Rizzo, describing Kelly Devine's choreography, said "its teen-energy moves are a constant pleasure". Rizzo also said that "Beowulf Boritt’s design essentials are rad and Amy Clark’s costumes recall the too-cool-to-care designs of the period and its stylish plaids and pleats". Rizzo also praised the music selection for show, calling

's reworking of the lyrics "crafty". David Rooney of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' found the show "hit-or-miss". Rooney praised that the show stuck closely to the original's plot but criticized that there was no element of surprise. Rooney wrote that "in comparison to other teen classics retooled for the stage, like ''

Mean Girls ''Mean Girls'' is a 2004 American teen comedy film directed by Mark Waters and written by Tina Fey. The film stars Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, Lacey Chabert, Amanda Seyfried (in her film debut), Tim Meadows, Ana Gasteyer, Amy Poehler and Fe ...

'', '' Heathers: The Musical'' or ''

Bring It On Bring It On may refer to: Books * ''Bring It On'' (book), by Pat Robertson * ''Bring It On!'' (manhwa), a romance manhwa by Baek Hye-Kyung Film and stage * ''Bring It On'' (film series), an American series of teen comedy cheerleading films capit ...

'', the show rarely steps out from the shadow of its screen source with anything new to offer."

References

{{reflist, 30em

External links

''Clueless, The Musical''
at

Internet Off-Broadway Database The Internet Off-Broadway Database (IOBDB), also formerly known as the Lortel Archives, is an online database that catalogues theatre productions shown off-Broadway. The IOBDB was funded and developed by the non-profit Lucille Lortel Foundation ...

2018 musicals Jukebox musicals Teen musicals Plays set in the 1990s Plays set in the United States Musicals based on films Musicals based on multiple works Off-Broadway musicals