Posted: 10/23/18 at 10:54pm
I know I’m sort of new on here, but I had to post about The Prom. I was lucky enough to see this first preview tonight and I can’t remember the last time I laughed so hard. First off, the cast is so crazy talented. Beth has a solo in the second act where she leaves a room and then comes right back in with a slight costume change and just steals the damn show. The audience went ballistic. The actor playing the principal looked like he was as blown away by her as the rest of us. But then if that wasn’t great enough, about two scenes later there is Brooks doing his big solo. I don’t want to give anything away here, but I think what happens in this musical moment really sums up the whole joyous experience for me. His character is so over the top, very Nathan Lane throughout. But then something happens in the plot that causes him to really look within. Unlike some of the other characters, Brooks’ character, because of this particular song, is forced to look within. And what could have been this big splashy Peter Allan number turns out to be this explosion of happiness. I don’t think anyone in the audience was prepared for that moment. There really isn’t anything else in the show that tops it. That’s not an insult.
Those who have commented on the ugly set actually aren’t that far off. But what you can’t tell out of context is that it seems they want to present a very simple world. No glitz and glamour, like Mean Girls. And trust me, there is no attempt to make Hoosiers look stupid. Everyone is made to look stupid here. That’s the point of the show. It’s very subversive, actually, I thought. And that simplicity of the set with its rotating panels to change locations was a clever device and didn’t distract from the heart and soul of the story.
I think it’s a very old fashioned kind of musical, but again, that’s the point. It’s so sad that in this day and age this story is still relevant. So to see it handled in an old fashioned way seemed to me very smart. I especially loved the Lin Manuel reference!
I loved the music so much I can’t wait for the digital download to come out. My favorite songs were the Beth number in act two (The Lady’s Improving) and Brooks number (The Prom). Also, the principal has a ballad in the first act (Look to the Stars) that really took my breath away. A very quiet, beautiful melody that I can still hum.
I had two gripes. I’m not entirely sure why the tall leggy blond is one of the leads. She has a fun song near the top of Act Two called “Zazz.” But unlike all the other characters, she doesn’t seem to change by the end of the show. So the point of her song seems lost. The other characters have their big song and it relates directly to how they change. My other big gripe is that Beth has a joke in Act One about Applebees. But she is also a big Broadway diva. Ah, doesn’t she know there’s an Applebees right next to the Winter Garden? It’s been there for years. Either there is another joke opportunity there, or the two book writers have sort of failed the character in that moment.
The choreography is rather generic hip hop stuff via Broadway’s interpretation. There is one great number in Act One called “You Happened” when all the kids make prom proposals. That was the one time I felt the choreography really integrated into the story telling. Otherwise, it’s just a lot of dance at the gym sort of stuff. There’s also an extended bow section with lots of dancing. Not sure what that was all about, but boy was the audience up and cheering their asses off. Myself included. It’s sad we still have to tell this story, but if we’re going to tell it, I for one want to be entertained like this while I’m being served my medicine.
