Interview with Georgina Castle, Mean Girls

The stage adaptation of Mean Girls is "a pink and glittering addition to the West End", debuting in the summer of 2024. Tina Fey’s cult classic is brought to life with electrifying energy, sharp humor, and irresistibly catchy musical numbers. Set in the drama-filled halls of North Shore High, Mean Girls explores the ups and downs of teenage life, friendship, and discovering where you truly belong. Taking on the role of Regina George, the queen bee of the school, is Georgina Castle—a celebrated West End star. We caught up with Georgina to learn more about her standout performance and to imagine which other beloved theatre characters might thrive in this iconic musical world.

Can you begin by introducing yourself to our readers and telling us about any key highlights from your career so far.. 

I’m Georgina Castle and I’m currently playing Regina George in Mean Girls which is definitely my number one favourite show that I’ve ever done. It’s such a fun character to play in a hugely fun show with a genius script from Tina Fey herself! Some of my other highlights include playing Doralee in 9 to 5 The Musical, which is the Dolly Parton role. That was an absolute gift of a part. It was such a giggle getting into character with her southern accent, big hair, big nails and big fake boobs (something I’m not used to having haha)!  I was also one of the evil stepsisters in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella, that was a highlight for me through lockdown. I never took for granted how lucky I was to have a job through that trying time for everyone in this industry. Although it is interesting to me that I was also  evil in that show…I feel like I’ve found my niche! 

So we’re here to talk about Mean Girls. How did you hear about the show prior to being involved? Did you know much about it,like the soundtrack etc?

The original 2004 movie was a key part of my adolescence. I was obsessed with the movie and then became obsessed with the musical. I have quite an unusual music taste…it’s either deep house or musical theatre so I knew the entire soundtrack long before finding out about it coming over here! 

I had heard rumours that it was coming to town. It was supposed to come before the pandemic so I was keeping my ear to the ground and waiting to hear about when I might get a chance to audition. It was when I was actually having brunch with a friend who mentioned she had an audition for Mean Girls. I called my agent immediately and told them I HAD to audition for the part and I got it!! 

The production itself has many different characters and you take on the role of Regina George. What was it about her in particular that drew you into wanting to play her character.

It was Regina or Karen that I thought I might connect with. Karen is also such a brilliant part, and she gets so many chances to be hilariously funny, which I love. Nothing makes me happier than making an audience laugh. But then I actually brought it up with my partner Simon and told him that I would love to audition for Mean Girls and I don’t know if I should be a Regina or a Karen and he’s like ‘you’re a Regina’. As soon as I read the script, I feel like it clicked. She's manipulative, sharp, quick, complicated and there's so much comedy to play too. It is such a juicy part. And I am so so glad that it's worked out the way it has. 

Then when you get the part how do you introduce your own style and interpretation of Regina George? Especially when she has such a recognisable character in the film and things..

That has been something to contend with, just because it is so well known and it's so well loved and everybody has their own idea of what Regina is to them. Perhaps there is even a specific person that comes to mind from they school days. Often I have found that people have a very clear visual about what she should look like too so that was definitely a part of the process for me at the beginning. I had to try and let go of any idea of what other people think or want from this role and strive to be true to myself and my interpretation of ‘Regina.’ I think that all of us are capable of having some of Regina’s darker traits inside us…everyone is human and no one is perfect. What Tina Fey does so amazingly is that she never completely condemns any one character. They have redeeming features or parts of them that we can relate to. I think Regina is ultimately quite insecure which is why she's mean.

This made Regina a lot more accessible to me, as well as working out her physicality, how she holds herself and what she presents to the world.  She’s always aware of how she looks from every single angle. There’s never a single part of her that is off, she’s always alert and considered.

Mean Girls has a fantastic score to go with it too! Do you have a favourite song that you have particularly joined getting your teeth into during every performance?

I love ‘World Burn’. I just love it. What a song and what a moment to be given as an actor. I get to strut downstage with my photocopier, chuck the papers around, be a total fugly cow, sing really high and really loud…oh and also the stage is on fire. It's such an exciting moment. But I also love ‘Someone Gets Hurt’. It’s sort of a Bond anthem. It’s very sexy and it’s great to do opposite Dan Bravo. He's amazing, it's a hard job for him because he’s just standing watching me, but he's always so engaged and responds to everything. We have a lot of fun doing that number together.

That’s what is really interesting about Mean Girls. It has a lovely blend of humour but it’s also a story which has underlying themes around friendship and kindness which are important. How do you find balancing that comedy with the depth of Regina’s journey?

I think how Regina serves that story is by being that thread that unites everybody else. It can sometimes feel quite alienating because you want to be (and she does become part of it at the end) the love. It’s ultimately about togetherness and embracing your individuality, which is amazing. But her role is to really be the thing that everybody hates on, and I think that's okay and if that is what serves the story best, then bring it on because it means that everybody's united with a mutual hatred of this other character, which ultimately brings them all together. 

Regina also has one of the most iconic wardrobes as well. Do you have a favourite costume or look from the show? 

I always thought it would be one of the pink ones, which I love, because obviously, when the plastics are together we're all in pink, which is so much fun. But my absolute favourite costume is my ice queen outfit for Halloween - It's amazing! It's this bejeweled, skin tight cat suit. When I first got into it I thiught, ‘oh my gosh, how am I going to  hide my dinner if I've had a burger in between shows or something’ (laughs). It’s not very forgiving, but on days when you're feeling good, it's so fun, because people who've seen the show have told me that it sparkles off the stage, and I feel powerful in it, which really helps in that number. 

If you could give Regina George one piece of advice what would you give her?

I would tell her that it’s all going to be ok, don’t try so hard. You don’t need any of this, you’ll find your people that like you for who you are. So stop being a fugly cow!

You previously mentioned you were a huge musical theatre fan so if you could give any other musical theatre characters a role as one of the Plastics, who would they be?

Immediately Sandy from Grease comes to mind as Cady and then she goes through a journey and gets a little bit cooler. The Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera would be a Regina, he’s just tormenting everybody at all times. He’s like the puppet master. Fagin has to be  Aaron Samuels because he’s my love interest in real life. Anna from Frozen or Amber Davies who played Judy in 9 to 5 The Musical gives Karen vibes. 

Finally, to wrap up our interview. Why should people come and see the West End production of Mean Girls?

Honestly, I can't think of a reason why they shouldn’t! It’s such a fun night out at the theatre. I know people talk about escapism, but it really is that, and it really is important especially - as we were talking about at the beginning of this conversation - the weather's a bit dreary and cold, and you just come to Mean Girls sit in the Savoy Theatre, which is beautiful in itself, and it's just this pink bubble of fun and laughter and silliness - it's just a great night out! Audiences seem to be really enjoying it so far, so come and watch it - you'll love it.

Catch Georgina in the West End production of Mean Girls, playing at the Savoy Theatre.