“The Prom,” presented at the Kelsey Theatre from February 13-22, marked the first time the theater staged the musical. The production, by Thank You 5’s, was directed by Laurie Gougher and produced by Beverely Kuo-Hamilton.
“The Prom” is a musical that follows four Broadway actors, Dee Dee Allen, Barry, Trent, Angie, and Sheldon. Lamenting their days of fame, they travel to the conservative town of Edgewater, Indiana, to help a lesbian student, Emma Nolan, who has had her entire prom cancelled.
“The Prom” is an engaging production that brings lots of laughs and relatability. Although playful on the exterior, the interior presents important topics such as homophobia that are still relevant today.
The set design for “The Prom” was not elaborate; instead, the spaciousness of the stage was utilized. Especially in the scenes portraying the high school, locker props were used in order to effectively capture the school setting.
Unbeknownst to the audience, little bits of the actors’ personalities would be smuggled onto the stage such as Emma Nolan’s wall posters being actual interests of the actor who plays her, Tori Cavallo.
The lead selections for this production, Tori Cavallo and Christina Parke, who played Dee Dee Allen, exhibited powerful and emotional voices that demanded the attention of the audience.
Taking the stage with riffs, belts and dynamics, Dee Dee Allen’s haughty and self-absorbed attitude is captured excellently in the first act with: It’s Not About Me.
Similarly, Emma Nolan’s unabashed strength in her identity is displayed in her duet with Alyssa Greene: Dance With You.
Cavallo said, “I thought it was hard, because it was hard. But it was also very just beautifully eye-opening to kind of explore a side of my life that I’ve never really explored before”.
Cavallo additionally expressed, “I think the role speaks. That was a big, challenging take, just trying to find that balance of courage in both the character and in myself”.
Parke said, “Dee Dee is a vocal powerhouse, and she’s got to own it every single second. So for me, just kind of stepping back into that space and being confident that I can deliver that every time on stage has probably been one of the biggest challenges.”
Michael Zweig, who played Barry Glickman, said, “Barry’s portrayal is, shall we say, over the top, slightly inappropriate, flamboyant. But also, there is a heartfelt side to him that comes out throughout the show.”
Fabiola Bien-Aimé, stage manager of “The Prom,” states, “my vision for all shows is for people to come to see a good show, and for the actors to be a good show, be part of a good show, in the sense of when the audience comes to the show, it starts a conversation, like they saw something after the fact”.
Beverely Kuo-Hamilton, producer of “The Prom,” said, “It went beyond what we thought, really. We knew when we cast that we had cast a strong cast. And, but they like, super, they went over and above what we ever thought, could have happened.”
Kuo-Hamilton added, “I think a lot of people didn’t want to come see this show. But this is the kind of show that needs to be said during this time. You know, it really is about accepting yourself and accepting people that you are surrounded by, and honestly, I think that is such a strong message, especially in the times that we’re living in right now.”
The audience members were amused by the silly quips and lively personalities of the cast. Laughter rang throughout the audience, with some audience members repeatedly bursting with laughter.
Janet Quartarone, actor and director at her respective theater, said, “they did a beautiful job with this show. It’s very clever. It’s very witty. It has lots of heart and energy. And I have seen other productions that just didn’t have the heart. And I felt like they had everything here.”
Jaimie McMillin, a frequent spectator of the Kelsey Theatre’s productions, said, “yeah. It’s very important. I don’t want to single out the Kelsey Theater, but there are people here who have season tickets, they come to everything. And they might still be a little closed off, even though they love the theater, they still might be closed off to the realities of who does it.”
McMillin added, “it’s good to just like showcase it in a way that’s fun and relatable, honestly, especially for teenagers, because no matter what year it is, they’re still struggling. So to be who they are, and that’s a shame because they shouldn’t have to.”
Overall, “The Prom” was a charming and engaging production. The cast presented strong and entertaining performances, calling attention to the importance of showing audiences strong themes of homophobia, love, and acceptance.
