Broadway Review: 'Bring It On: The Musical'

Broadway's "Bring It On: The Musical" is a pep rally with heart, humor, and backflips that teens and tweens will love. It's a must-see for kids who love cheerleading and a fun ride for the whole family.

Spoiler Alert: Even though Broadway’s spirit-infused new hit Bring It On: The Musical is about two high school cheerleading squads going head-to-head for the ultimate “Rah,” there are no actual high schoolers in the company. Not a deal breaker, though—i.e., no need to “gimme an ‘awww’!”—as the polished, acrobatic stunts that fuel this flip-ilicious show are served up by a cast of fearless pros (median age: 23) who deliver the cheerleading goods without sacrificing all those way-too-familiar, multi-layered high school attitudes, from eye-rolling and smart-mouthing to mean-girl machinations and the harsh reality of “just fitting in.”

It’s tough to be a teenager. It’s even tougher when competition is a major part of the mix, which explains why teens and preteens are identifying with Bring It On’s theatrical slice of cheerleading life and scooping up seats at the St. James Theatre as fast and as often as their little wallets (or parental credit cards) will allow.

The Show

Key to the production’s success is its ability to get theatergoer adrenaline pumping (yes, grownups included). No wonder: The company, made up of equal parts actor/dancers and cheerleading vets, got their Broadway bearings from a creative team helmed by a confluence of Tony-winners, including director/choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler (In the Heights), co-composers Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) and Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights), and librettist Jeff Whitty (Avenue Q). Also in the mix is co-lyricist Amanda Green (High Fidelity), daughter of the legendary Adolph Green.

Sample lyrics:

“You never met me face to face

If you think cheerleaders are a waste of space—

We work, and we fight, and we train, and we hustle,

We get mani-pedis, but we’re made of muscle.”

Talk about your kid culture comfort zone vernacular: The audience response from the teen set was mind-blowing.

The Cast

Taylor Louderman, who rocks the lead role of Campbell—the “it” girl with the looks, the personality, the guy, and the desire to be the new cheerleading captain of the Truman High Buccaneers—says that the night of the show’s first preview on Broadway, the crowd was roaring after the opening number.  “I remember thinking, ‘I wonder if this is what it feels like to be Beyoncé!’,” she says.

I should mention that Louderman, along with 29 of her fellow cast members, are making their Broadway debuts in Bring It On—although you’d never know it watching their slam-dunk performances. And while it might not be an official “for the record books” tally—I recall a supersized marching band at the Broadway Theatre several years ago—30 newbies out of a cast of 36 is darn impressive.

Among this count are several handpicked all-star cheerleading team members and championship trophy winners recruited to execute the gasp-inducing acrobatics that put a show like this over the top. Still, all of the actors who play the musical’s leading characters managed to land their roles with zero cheerleading know-how. In fact, when polled on their experience in the gym or on the field, their responses ranged from “none” to “n/a” to “lol.”

And while it’s true you won’t be seeing Bring It On’s lead actors doing heart-stopping aerodynamic backflips off the top of a pyramid, they dazzle just fine, meshing their well-honed athleticism with Blankenbuehler’s explosive cheerleading calisthenics and freestyle dance crew moves.

The Plot

Our heroine Campbell is looking forward to her senior year as captain of Truman High’s cheerleading squad (the cool school favored to win Nationals). Along with her team cohorts, boyfriend Steven (Neill Haskell) and best frienemies—Skylar (Kate Rockwell) and her Mini-Me protégé Kylar (Janet Krupin)—she holds tryouts. Rejecting the plump Bridget (Ryann Redmond) due to peer pressure, she chooses sweet, innocent, uber-bubbly freshman, Eva.