THE PROM Previews — Page 8

Sorry to bring this up again, it will probably be the last broadway show of a great marathon and I still have an extra ticket orchestra for Sunday matinee

It’s orchestra center but I’m selling for something 40-60 depending whoever say first :)

Thanks in advance!

MadsonMelo said: "Sorry to bring this up again, it will probably be the last broadway show of a great marathon and I still have an extra ticket orchestra for Sunday matinee

It’s orchestra center but I’m selling for something 40-60 depending whoever say first :)

Thanks in advance!"

What row?

I’m pretty torn. My immediate reaction after seeing this is not positive, but it means so well. It’s just so eye roll inducing that I feel beaten to a pulp by charm. Overall, I wish it was actually as smart as it thinks it is.

The story was just...so random. They could’ve made a show about an inclusive prom, or made one about washed out actors, but in their attempts to smush the two of them together, every message is lost. I also don’t understand how a high school so diverse (and talented at break dancing?) can be so comically homophobic.

The book is...not good. The lyrics are worse. The music is actually pretty catchy. I think the structure of the musical is deeply flawed from a storytelling perspective, and it wasn’t interesting to watch. Opening the show with the broadway actors on opening night may be a fine idea, but to have it go on for >20mins is not. The show drags immensely in the second act, as it’s scene after scene of each principle getting a solo. Again, it was just boring to watch.

The cast is VERY talented, and are working hard. But this is made for one very very niche crowd, and unless they have a producer like HOH, I cannot see it lasting long. They genuinely should sell the concept to Disney and let them make another Disney Channel Original Movie musical a la Freaky Friday.

Lucy, I don't think it is that they weren't "up to writing that show", it's not the show they set out to write. JMO

---

I don't post on here that often, but I have to echo the sentiments of those who smiled their faces off at this show. Yes, I cringed at a few lyrics and at the 80s synthesizers, but I also teared up multiple times and laughed so hard at the inside-Broadway references that the lady sitting in front of me said she was enjoying me enjoying the performance. I apologized, thinking it was obnoxious, and she repeated what she said and that she really meant it.

At intermission, I texted a friend and said "Did I write this show??" (to which she responded, "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?". I said it because there were jokes that seemed written specifically for my enjoyment (I won't spoil them). I worry that the show is TOO inside-baseball for the general public, but I usually don't understand why the general public responds or doesn't respond favorably to things.

All I know is that it has been a LONG time since I wanted to buy tickets to see the very next performance of a Broadway musical. I am the very specific choir to which they are preaching, and I loved the whole shebang.

I agree. I was not expecting to enjoy this so much. I laughed out loud a lot (and even teared up once.) But, I too wondered if people outside of the industry will appreciate the story and the humor (i.e. laugh lines like “And I am, well— what we used to call--a Broadway gypsy.”
It definitely requires an extra dose of willing suspension of disbelief but the material is elevated and sold by the super talented and committed performers. It helped that the theatre was mostly filled with theatre folk when I saw it so the crowd experience was just great. Hopefully this will stay open another 6-7 months.

Updated On: 11/4/18 at 09:43 PM

I don't think the problem with THE PROM is that it's 'too inside baseball'-- the Atlanta crowd totally 'got' the Broadway jokes and most of the references (ok, the Drama Desk reference might have been under-appreciated...). These days, though, the 'inside' crowd is surprisingly large. The problem with THE PROM is that it presumes people outside of New York are clueless, uniformly homophobic and seem to be living in 1980s America. The rest of the country is more worldly and sophisticated than THE PROM gives it credit for...and that might turn people off more than some too-inside Broadway references.

THE PROM's saving grace is that it is hilarious and beautifully performed by its Broadway vets.

Regarding the comment that the Midwestern folks are portrayed poorly, I would also add that the New York Theatre characters are portrayed as over the top, anything for attention, self-centered. Nobody is left unscathed. I thought this was the point. I wasn't offended, I was amused that everyone get their due. Maybe the show is too gentle to really stir up serious controversy in the portrayal of the characters, but again, I thought this was the point. It seems to me the show is an old-fashioned musical and smartly uses those cliches and devices to tell this beautiful story.

I also wanted to post about Brooks Prom Tux at the end of the show. Brilliant. Keep an eye on the back of it!

Regarding the comment that the Midwestern folks are portrayed poorly, I would also add that the New York Theatre characters are portrayed as over the top, anything for attention, self-centered. Nobody is left unscathed. I thought this was the point. I wasn't offended, I was amused that everyone get their due. Maybe the show is too gentle to really stir up serious controversy in the portrayal of the characters, but again, I thought this was the point. It seems to me the show is an old-fashioned musical and smartly uses those cliches and devices to tell this beautiful story.

There is a difference between depicting a few 'famous' Broadway stage actors as over-the-top egomaniacs and depicting an entire community as close-minded, homophobic and unsophisticated. If the townspeople of THE PROM included a range of people then maybe I'd see things differently, but the show asks you to believe that this one single lesbian student has not one ally in the whole region (and seemingly can't locate one on the internet either). that includes the entire high school, her own grandmother, all the parents, all the counselors, the local press....etc. I guess one school administrator is somewhat mildly compassionate...but completely ineffective. Even the real-life story that likely would have inspired this plot had a lot more layers to it.

HugoP said: "her own grandmother, "

her grandmother took her in when her parents threw her out, and emma says she "loves the gays" so it's implied shes an ally

robskynyc said: "LimelightMike said: "Is Row A too close for this production? Also, is the stage high for this?"

seen it twice in Row A and it is a perfect spot. the stage is not high at all"

Any thoughts on legroom in Row A? Considering for this weekend, but I'm about 6'1, and the Longacre doesn't have the best legroom overall.

I have thought about it and I think it really is a great show.

Hugo, tbere are small towns like this. They exist. I feel like you missed something regarding the kids feelings. I won't mention it here (and no spoiler toggle has appeared here).

Also, in a lot pf these really small towns, even with the internet, things seem to get there slower (Fashion, music, etc.) and then throw in religion. Some of these towns are in a time warp. So the choreography, clothes, hair and 80's style music didn't bother me. JMO

---