HEATHERS THE MUSICAL Adds Kuhoo Verma as 'Veronica'; McKenzie Kurtz & Olivia Hardy Take Leaves
Lorna Courtney, who stars as Veronica Sawyer, will play her final performance on Monday, December 8.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Oct. 22, 2025
Heathers The Musical has revealed cast updates for production, which was recently extended through January 25, 2026. Heathers is playing at New World Stages. McKenzie Kurtz (Heather Chandler) and Olivia Hardy (Heather Duke) are both taking a temporary leave of absence from the production.
McKenzie Kurtz will return to Heathers in mid-November. Heather Chandler will be played during this time by Jodie Steele, who originated the role in the West End production of Heathers. Steele will start with the evening performance on Saturday, October 25.
Jodie Steele’s other theatre credits include Elphaba in Wicked, Katherine Howard in Six, Blanche Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde, Shelly Parker in Bat Boy, Sheila in Hair, and Sherrie in Rock of Ages. Plays include Roberta Kilgore in Picture You Dead and Diana in Filumena. Television: Lily Vernon in “Malory Towers” (BBC), “Professor T” (ITV), “Emmerdale” (ITV), and “EastEnders” (BBC). Film: A Rare Breed, Angling For Love, Empress Clawscream, Two Wolves, A Merry Royal Christmas, and Anthology.
Olivia Hardy will return to the production in early December. Heather Duke will be played during this time by Kiara Michelle Lee, who is a current Heathers ensemble member in the role of Young Republicanette. The Heathers company welcomes Thalia Atallah (National Tours: Mean Girls, Anastasia) to the cast in the role of Young Republicanette starting Thursday, November 6.
Thalia Atallah makes her Off-Broadway debut in Heathers. She is a California native and proud UCLA graduate with a BA in Theatre. National Tour: Mean Girls (u/s Cady, Karen, Gretchen) and Anastasia (u/s Anya).
Lorna Courtney, who stars as Veronica Sawyer, will play her final performance on Monday, December 8, prior to starting rehearsals for The Greatest Showman in the UK. The Heathers company is pleased to announce Kuhoo Verma (Film: The Big Sick, Plan B; Off-Broadway: Octet) as the production’s new Veronica Sawyer. Verma will play her first performance on Thursday, December 11. Standby Sara Al-Bazali will perform Veronica on Wednesday, December 10.
Kuhoo Verma is best known as the breakout star of Hulu’s original film Plan B. She has also starred in Space Cadet (Amazon) and Murder Mystery 2 (Netflix). In the world of theatre, Kuhoo starred in Dave Malloy’s Octet at Signature Theatre, for which she received the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical and the Drama Desk Award for Best Ensemble. She later reprised her award-winning performance at Berkeley Rep. Additional theatre credits include Nobody Loves You (American Conservatory Theater) and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Signature Theatre). A classically-trained vocalist and musician, she sang the title role in the opera Les Larmes d’Eugénie, which was presented by Cartier at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival and in 2023 at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. She has also performed in music venues all over New York City including Lincoln Center, Town Hall, Symphony Space, Little Island, and Joe’s Pub. @therealkuhoo
As previously announced, Kate Rockwell (Broadway: Mean Girls; Regional: Regency Girls) is playing the role of Ms. Fleming/Veronica’s Mom through Monday, November 10. Original cast member Kerry Butler returns to Heathers on Wednesday, November 12, after a brief leave of absence to perform in Bat Boy The Musical at Encores! at New York City Center.
Welcome to Westerberg High, where popularity is a matter of life and death, and Veronica Sawyer is just another nobody dreaming of a better day. But when she's unexpectedly taken under the wings of The Heathers – three beautiful and impossibly cruel classmates all named Heather – her dreams of popularity finally start to come true. That is until J.D., the mysterious teen rebel, turns up and teaches her that it might kill to be a nobody, but it’s murder being a somebody.
