The Prom
Reviewed by Dana Martin
Ahmanson Theatre
Thru Sept. 11
Prom night is a big theme at the Ahmanson this season, what with the January’s production of Everybody’s Talking about Jamie, and now The Prom (book by Bob Martin and Chad Beguelin, music by Matthew Sklar and lyrics by Chad Beguelin), which is the very model of a clichéd musical. The show aims to appeal to a younger generation by celebrating the acceptance and inclusion of queer youth in our communities while simultaneously relying on old-school musical theater tropes.
It’s post-opening night of the Broadway show Eleanor! The Eleanor Roosevelt Story, which stars Broadway old-timers Dee Dee Allen (Courtney Balan) and Barry Glickman’s (Patrick Wetzel). The New York Times has lambasted their self-centered performances closing the show as soon as it opens, so these aging Broadway babies decide that an image makeover is in high order. They recruit two other under-employed fellow actors to join them in adopting a cause so they can appear to care about others. These eager collaborators are Trent Oliver (Bud Weber), a Julliard alum who namedrops his alma mater at every opportunity and Angie Dickinson (Emily Borromeo) a veteran Chicago chorus girl, whose heart is set on the role of Roxie. A quick twitter troll leads them to Emma (Kaden Kearney), a small-town Indiana high school student whose school’s PTA has canceled the school prom after she invites her girlfriend to be her date. The quartet sets their sights on championing Emma’s plight with the intent of garnering favorable media attention — and a supremely self-righteous cause is born.
Meanwhile in Indiana, Emma is a high school pariah. The students bully her, and her girlfriend Alyssa (Kalyn West) is reluctant to go public with their love, especially since her mom Mrs. Greene (Ashanti J’Aria) is the head of the PTA. Principal Mr. Hawkins (Sinclair Mitchell) is sympathetic to Emma’s circumstance and involves the state DA. The feigning foursome crashes Emma’s public appeal to the PTA with plenty of pizzazz and an excess of eleven o’ clock numbers. While the unwelcome out-of-towners’ selfish dispositions render them mostly incapable of any real empathy, it doesn’t stop them from taking turns in the spotlight, vying for attention by advocating for equality.
The large ensemble is vocally solid and energetically supports the musical’s many bright, upbeat showstoppers. Courtney Balan’s performance as Broadway diva Dee Dee Allen is equally polished and broad. While Patrick Wetzel plays Barry with the panache of an old pro, the performance is largely phoned-in. Bud Weber is endearing as Trent Oliver, Julliard’s proudest. Kaden Kearney’s Emma is grounded and straightforward, while Kayln West finds sweet sincerity as Emma’s conflicted and closeted girlfriend, Alyssa. Sinclair Mitchell is refreshing as the school principal and voice of reason, Mr. Hawkins, and Emily Borromeo’s Angie is surprisingly endearing.
Director/choreographer Casey Nicholaw directs a safe, low-risk production. While his choreography is energetic, his direction is generic. Scott Pask’s set design is functional but lacks imagination. Ann Roth’s costumes are bold, splashy and fun and are further enhanced by Josh Marquette’s hair design. Brian Ronan’s sound design is crisp and well-blended, and Dean Balan’s music direction doesn’t miss a beat.
The Prom has all the ingredients of a musical comedy hit and even won a Drama Desk Award for Best Musical in 2019. There are plenty of moments of excitement and enthusiasm, and in this respect the production delivers. But — the story simultaneously celebrates queerness while diluting the dangers of discrimination and homophobia faced by LGBTQ+ youth, especially when perpetrated by authority figures.
The Prom is campy musical comedy that tries hard, perhaps a bit too hard, to win the audience’s affection — and L.A. theatergoers’ affection is admittedly hard-won. This is, after all, our second prom this year.
Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles; Tues.- Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2 p.m. & 8 p.m.; Sun., 1 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.; CenterTheatreGroup.org or (213) 927-4400. Running time: 2 hours and 30 minutes with one 15 minutes intermission.
