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Horse Girls takes place in the bedroom of one of the girls, Ashleigh (Olivia Macklin), president of the Lady Jean Ladies (presumably named for the Lady Jean horse ranch in Florida since the play takes place in that state). This is where the girls meet to discuss all things horsy, under the snarly glare of their leader, whose family owns the stables and the horses they all adore. Rule One: don't get on Ashleigh's bad side. She runs a tight ship. If your hair isn't long enough to touch your bra, you have to pay a fine, and if you should happen to miss two meetings, you will be banished forevermore. Ashleigh's room (designed by Daniel Geggatt) speaks loudly of her passion. It is decorated with stuffed horses, riding trophies and ribbons, and even a rocking horse. There's also a private phone line and intercom on which Ashleigh can buzz Luz Maria, the unseen housekeeper, to put in an order for virgin strawberry daiquiris, or even make calls to the White House, demanding to speak with Michelle Obama or, at the very least, to the girls' idol Ann Romney. The club members are gathered together waiting for one such meeting to begin. Ashleigh is busily bossing everyone around and deciding who will have the honor of braiding her hair. Just as they are getting started, Brandi (Katie Lawson) bursts into the room, running late and out of breath, brimming with terrible news. She has heard that the stables are being sold and the horses will be destroyed and chopped into meat—including Ashleigh's beloved Titus Andronicus! It is this news that triggers the phone call to the White House, but it also sets off an avalanche of emotional upheaval of the sort only 12-year-old girls are capable of experiencing. Insults are hurled, confessions are confessed, plots are schemed, and even blood is spilled as the play (running under an hour) zips along to its conclusion. While the format of the play resembles something you might catch on Saturday Night Live, there are some underlying truths about young adolescent girls, especially those who are given too much freedom and independence at an age when their social and emotional lives are prone to upheaval. The cast members, under Sarah Krohn's fast-paced direction, do a fine job of channeling the young characters. In addition to those previously named, they are Anna Baryshnikov, Eleonore Condo, Kaley Ronayne, Angeliea Stark, and Maddie Sykes.
Horse Girls
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