‘Girls Night’ makes female bonding more convenient

For a four-word title, "Girls Night: The Musical" conveys a lot of information on who should see the show and even how.

Producers have realized women buy more than 80 percent of show tickets and that they go to musicals as bonding experiences: Gal pals going in groups to "Mamma Mia!" Red Hat Ladies steering buses to "Menopause the Musical." Moms and tweeners locking arms at "Wicked" and "Legally Blonde."

It was only a matter of time before new titles started chasing the trend. "Girls Night" producer Tim Flaherty once was involved with "Menopause the Musical," which he admired for a "demographic title" that was "brilliant in its simplicity."

When Flaherty was made aware of this British hit, a jukebox musical that likewise refocuses girl-power pop anthems to a broader spectrum of women, "I was shocked that no one had thought of the title 'Girls Night.' It was such an obvious, terrific, commercial title."

The thin plot brings five friends to a karaoke bar for an engagement party. They talk of dating, divorce and childbirth, when they're not belting out "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" or "I Will Survive."

"This is five women that can sing the hell out of each tune, and (the audience) can't help but sing along with us," says cast member Deborah Toscano.

Some of the women were cast from musical theater, while others have toured more with bands. "We all sing pop really, really well, so it obviously lends itself to this show," says castmate Christina Cataldo.

They weren't cast for showgirl physiques, because women detach when they see "Barbie dolls," Toscano says. "We're all different shapes and sizes and all different age groups. It speaks to every kind of woman that's out there, and I think that's really important. ... We're real women in a show having fun."

In three years, "Girls Night" has rolled up sales of more than 800,000 tickets. It has played everywhere from an off-Broadway club with 250 seats to a 3,000-seat performing arts center, producer Flaherty says.

Besides saving money on set decoration, Flaherty hopes this test run inside the MGM's Grand's Studio 54 nightclub will convince management it's a good fit for a space that otherwise sits dormant in the early evenings.

"I'm much more comfortable with a show this size, to try to sell a couple of hundred a night," he says. "I know I have the show. It is a party."

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.