Mean Girls at a Miss Ghana Pageant; How the Bowery Became 'the Devil's Mile'
In "School Girls: Or, the African Mean Girls Play," a group of students are competing to be selected for the Miss Ghana 1986 beauty pageant. Paulina (Denée Benton) thinks she is the shoe-in, and she lets everyone else know. But her reign as queen bee is threatened when a new student, Ericka, transfers in from the United States. Benton discusses the Broadway revival of the play alongside playwright Jocelyn Bioh and director Whitney White. "School Girls: Or, the African Mean Girls Play" is running now at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
The Bowery has a long history in New York. The neighborhood's reputation has evolved with the city, as one of the world's most recognized slums, to later as a thriving downtown artistic community. The New Museum has organized a new exhibit, The Bowery: Devil’s Mile, that traces the cultural and artistic history of the neighborhood. Lisa Phillips, curator and New Museum director emerita, discusses what's on view in the show, and what makes The Bowery stand out in New York history.
Photo by Matthew Murphy: Jordan Rice, Denée Benton, Nia Otchere-Sarfo, and Erin Morton in "School Girls: Or, the African Mean Girls Play"
