Elizabeth Teeter, McKenzie Kurtz, and Olivia Hardy Photo by Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade

The real world, not to mention the lives of high school students, has changed in so many ways in the past tumultuous decade, yet Heathers has managed to remain as fresh and as crunchy as a newly opened bag of corn nuts. Much of its spot-on success owes thanks both to the sure hand of director Andy Fickman (who has led multiple productions of the show in the UK and by now has polished it to a sheen), and to Kevin Murphy and Laurence O'Keefe's catchy score, clever lyrics, and smartly written book that manages to balance its dark humor roots and potentially disturbing plot elements with sheer entertainment.

Heathers, which is based on (but not lashed to) Daniel Waters' screenplay for the 1988 movie of the same name, is a show that its creators have tinkered with several times since its original production. And it's all been for the good. Tip too far in one direction, and you wind up with a too-genial update of Grease. Head too far in the other direction, and you wind up with the creepiness of Carrie. In a world that is replete with sad, sad stories of school violence, relentless bullying, the dark side of peer pressure, sexual abuse, and teen suicide, Heathers somehow manages to touch on all of these without ever dragging the audience into the abyss.

Meet the title characters, a trio of Heathers whose scathing glare and biting remarks could shrivel the hide of the Wicked Witch of the West, not to mention anyone on their lengthy list of losers and rejects. At center is Heather Chandler (McKenzie Kurtz), she of the withering look and acid tongue, the keeper of the keys to thumbs up survival or thumbs down misery for all who dare cross her path. She can generally be seen sandwiched between her two acolytes, Heather McNamara (Elizabeth Teeter) and Heather Duke (Olivia Hardy), as they terrorize the most vulnerable among their classmates.

Casey Likes and Lorna Courtney Photo by Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade

Meanwhile, into Veronica's life comes the new kid in town, the nihilistic if magnetically attractive loner J. D. Dean (Casey Likes, who starred on Broadway as Marty McFly in the musical Back to the Future). Romantic and sexual sparks fly, even as J. D. takes it upon himself to "protect" her from some of their more despicable classmates, leading to several sudden deaths and an even bigger scheme to rid the world of the whole kit and caboodle. Will Veronica make this a Bonnie and Clyde escapade, or will she reclaim her inherent decency?

If you are unfamiliar with the tale, I'll leave it to you to learn the rest. And I urge you to do so, because the plot unfolds in such an engaging way, and the performances by the 17-member cast are so uniformly strong, that this production of Heathers promises to be the hit of the summer and beyond.