For many Americans, attending a high school prom is a core memory. It may be a good memory or a bad one, but it usually ends up lodged somewhere in brains and photo albums.
For Emma Nolan, the Indiana lesbian teen in “The Prom,” it starts out very bad but ends up very good.
San Diego Musical Theatre is now presenting the 2018 Broadway musical comedy its first local professional adult-cast staging. Written by Chad Beguelin, Bob Martin and Matthew Sklar, the musical takes a little bit of time before it hits its stride, but thanks to spirited direction by Gerilyn Brault, terrific comic performances by the cast, high-energy choreography by Xavier J. Bush, and some of the funniest song lyrics I’ve heard in a while, it’s a prom to .
Based on a real incident that occurred in Mississippi in 2010, “The Prom” is about an Indiana high school that cancels its prom rather than allow a lesbian student to attend with her date. In this musical version, four washed-up Broadway actors aiming to drum up publicity for themselves sweep into the fictional town of Edgewater, Ind., to protest the school’s actions and re-educate the students, teachers and parents on acceptance. But the spoiled and narcissistic actors arrive with their own prejudices about people in small-town America.
The musical, which runs 2-1/2 hours with intermission, is lavishly cast with 26 performers and they fill SDMT’s stage with one big production number after another. But the heart of the musical and its two cast standouts are Kylie Stucki, who plays Emma with subtlety, sincerity and a lovely singing voice, and Kürt Norby, as the larger-than-life gay Broadway actor Barry Glickman, who is hilariously over the top, but also sweet and vulnerable underneath.
Rounding out the Broadway quartet are the amusingly deadpan Wendy Waddell as Tony-winning grand dame Dee Dee Adams; Juliet Fischer as Angie Dickinson, whose Fosse-inspired “Zazz” song-and-dance number is a show highlight; and Dan Mason as Trent Oliver, whose awkward “Love Thy Neighbor” performance at a monster truck show with costumed “Godspell” actors is another great scene.
The show moves quickly thanks, in part, to Michael Wogulis’ modular scenic design which can transform into numerous locations in a flash. Chong Mi Land designed costumes, Michelle Miles designed lightin, Jordan Gray designed the sound and Van Angelo is musical director. The show is performed to a recorded score.
In “The Prom,” there’s never any doubt that Emma will get her happy ending, but the script takes some unexpected twists and turns to get there, and musical theater fans will appreciate the many playful homages to other Broadway shows and songs along the way.
Nowadays, American high schools are required by law to allow same-sex couples to attend proms, just like anybody else. yet while Emma’s story in “The Prom” is dated, its message of self-acceptance and ing others in need will never get old.
‘The Prom’
When: 7 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 2 and 7 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Through June 1
Where: San Diego Musical Theatre, 650 Mercury St., Kearny Mesa
Tickets: $65-$75
Phone: 858-560-5740
Online: sdmt.org
