I Was A Teenage She-Devil ★★★★★

The first iteration of this production was in 2011 as Girlfriend from Hell: The Musical in a backwater East Village theatre. Fast forward to 2026; I Was A Teenage She-Devil has hit central London following its runaway success at Edinburgh Fringe last year.

This is 100 minutes of complete ‘Kapow-Boom!’ packed with comedy and 22 songs! Yes, another queer-conscious musical set in a U.S. high school context, but creator/writer Sean Matthew Whiteford can hold his head high and walk shoulder to shoulder with others.

The show is set in the 1980s and is loaded with references to the era, particularly the movies, and some of the scenes are set in a video store (remember those?) where Doobie (Jacob Birch) and Debbie (Ashley Goh) work part-time.

From the very spectacular opening scene, the tongue-in-cheek plot draws from Stephen King’s horror movie, Carrie, where the earnest but outcast Nancy Nelson (Aoife Haakenson) spends her time yearning for true love and belonging. The usual high school character tropes abound within the eight-member cast: the jocks, the mean girls, the affluent smooth guy, and the religious hypocrite. Cheerleader and head bully Tiffani (Caitlin Anderson) has no justification for her long-held antagonism against Nancy, but when she is banned from attending the school prom due to misconduct towards Nancy, Tiffani ramps up her vendetta, enlisting the help of her boyfriend, Big Rod (Jordan Fox); best friend, Heather (Charis Stockton); and social media captain, Todd (Louis Hearsay).

Nancy’s complete humiliation at the prom sets off a chain of events that sees her innocently selling her soul to Satan (Sean Arkless) and transforming from a wounded, feeble frump to a voluptuous, vengeful vixen. She becomes the archetypal succubus. However, Satan, trickster that he is, has got his own agenda…

Although the show is not littered with themes per se, where they are presented through comedy and music, the ring of truth is unmistakable: romantic/sexual love is not just a binary gendered concept, and true love is ever powerful. As a romping musical, it is an absolute triumph, with plenty of one-liners, irony, and innuendo. Every character is given the opportunity to shine and be known, which is great.

Particularly lovable are cognitively challenged Big Rod, the 35-year-old long-term repeating student; hard-core rock gal with the constant heart, Debbie; and zoot-smoking Doobie. Best enjoyed song is, “Doobie Knows Best.”

Every member of the cast is a wonderful singer.

The songs originate from Whiteford and were programmed by him. They are flavoured with his rock influences but not overly dominated by them. There are affectionate nods to Toni Basil, Huey Lewis and the News, Tina Turner, and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’.” The rock elements are intensified in the Satan/Hell scenes as is appropriate and so much fun to hear and watch. Given the production is staged in the theatre’s studio, which has a tiny stage, full use is made of the space both on and surrounding it.

Adam King’s creative use of lighting is to be commended, and the integration with the set design (Emily Bestow) is really cleverly done, given the space restrictions. Watch out for when the lights go out: gore follows but in the most comical and least gut-wrenching way. The show has a strong impact visually, where Juda Leah’s complete immersion in 80s costume design brings The Colbys, Back to the Future, and Pretty in Pink perfectly together.

This is a fabulous, forget-your-troubles and lose-yourself production, which from its inception has been lovingly nurtured over time, going through various readings, stagings, and concert presentations that have involved many creatives.

Director and choreographer Rachel Klein came on board at the turn of the decade, and it is evident that the teamwork definitely is the dream made real.