REVIEW: The Prom
It’s Prom, and I Just Wanna Dance With You.
Welcome to Edgewater, Indiana where the PTA has shut down prom because heroine Emma wants to bring a girl as her date. Add four New York Broadway actors down on their luck and looking for better PR. It’s a sort-of Cinderella tale with four god-fairies. Watch as hilarious hijinks ensue, and lessons are learned along the way.
The Prom musical production is nothing like the prom I went to, and it is definitely worth the tickets. The music is good, the dancing is good, the handling of relevant and sometimes divisive issues is thoughtfully done. We all know Emma on some level: an adolescent navigating a world that is uncertain and sometimes unkind, trying to find her voice and live her truth, being told that who she is and who she loves is wrong. We also all know Emma’s love Alyssa, working tirelessly to be the person society tells her to be, longing to just be herself, hiding behind a carefully constructed image for fear of rejection.
Perhaps none of us know four zany, self-absorbed, but ultimately well-meaning Broadway performers in need of a project, who fail miserably on their initial mission and find success at a deeper level. The story has a happy ending, and it’s one that feels possible. The hero of this Cinderella story is Cinderella herself, as well as her entourage, who learn what it’s like to look beyond the stage, beyond the critics, and make change for the better.
The wonderful thing about this Prom is that you can bring as many dates as you want, of all ages. Experience the magic without the miserable shoes. And be reminded of what matters. Love is love is love. And there’s enough room for all of us.
The Prom is playing at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis from April 12-17, 2022. Ticket prices start at $50.
DEAL ALERT: In-person student and educator rush available for The Prom for Tuesday, April 12 to April 17, 2022:
• Proof of vaccination required before purchase
• $30 per ticket — CASH ONLY
• The Orpheum Theatre Box Office will start selling in person at 2 hours prior to curtain
• Students/educators may purchase up to 2 tickets per valid school ID
• Subject to availability
