Cannibal Mean Girls at A Red Orchid Theatre

Jojo Jones' new play Veal is a terrifying and funny work about the viciousness of middle school. It is a must see if you are up for a wild ride of great theatre.  Because of where we are at as a society, it's a devastating commentary on our culture. 

Director Dado has somewhat cornered the market recently on plays featuring twisted surreal relationships that take you to places you might not want to go: 23 year old Chelsea (played by Alexandra Chopson -as uncanny here as she was in In Quietness) has become the Queen of North America after a horrible revolution. Her bruised and bloodied besties from middle school show up in her throne room seeking a boon. Before Queen Chelsea grants the lifesaving insulin that Frannie’s (played by Jojo Brown) sister needs, she makes the crew: Franny, people pleaser Lulu( played with absolute commitment by Carmia Imani even as she ingests a completely disgusting 13 year old Lunchable) and angst ridden Noa (played by powerhouse Alice Wu) re-enact events from their 8th grade year.  Her mysterious unnamed Male Concubine played by Jasper Johnson facilitates and observes, a factotum and silent audience. 

Lets face it, children can be hideous to their peers. And in retrospect, now grown up, Franny, Noa and Lulu see their childhood antics with a more compassionate and humane point of view. They are still the same people but tempered.  And there's that violent revolution happening which throws them back into the survival mode that marked being in middle school. The early teens is when you formulate and try out your identity even while trying to survive the piranha pool that is the social hierarchy. This play goes over the top, but the ending is almost plausible in this day and age; no spoilers here, but you will not expect what happens.

Tianxuan’s Chen’s set is an homage to childhood junk and is filled with little surprises.  Izumi Inaba’s costume design is a vintage teen dream. Ab Rieve’s disgusting moldy lunchables and other props are spot on. Every detail in this production helps you strap in to the rollercoaster of a middle school fever dream, and it's a ride you may want to try more that once.

Veal is running Thursday through Sundays at A Red Orchid Theatre, at 1531 N. Wells, through November 2. For tickets and information go to https://aredorchidtheatre.org/shows/veal/

No part of this review was created using AI

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