The Prom - Original Broadway Cast Recording

The latest Broadway effort from writer Bob Martin ("The Drowsy Chaperone") and the musical team behind "The Wedding Singer" (Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin) is a light-hearted comedy about four larger-than-life personalities thrusting themselves into a small town's crisis over same-sex prom going. "The Prom" is out now in digital formats and will be available on CD on January 11th from Sony Masterworks.

Emma (Caitlin Kinnunen) wants to take Alyssa (Isabelle McCalla) to the prom. Unfortunately, they don't live in a liberal urban center, but in the middle of Indiana, so their attraction is taboo, especially given that Alyssa is the daughter of the head of the PTA, who would rather cancel the prom instead of having a same-sex couple attend it. However, little do they know that their plight is about to become a much bigger deal, when four nationally known actors, including celebrity egotists Dee Dee Allen and Barry Glickman (Beth Leavel and Brooke Ashmanskas), catch wind of their situation and decide to descend into the midwest homestead to improve both Emma's life and their own reputations, which have just been bashed in the New York Times.

The score doesn't reflect much of the supposed humor in this "musical comedy," and the music is a generic blend of pastiche, but there are some endearing melodies and heartfelt sentimentalities, which make this recording worth investigating. The opening number, "Changing Lives" is a stereotypical splashy sequence where Dee Dee and Barry are opening the New York production of an Eleanor Roosevelt musical, and when their performances are panned they gather two of the friends (Christopher Sieber and Angie Schworer) to go on the previously-mentioned excursion to Indiana.

Kinnunen has a nice, listenable voice that should appeal to the musical theater collegiates, and gets the opportunity to shine on "Just Breathe" and "Time to Dance." Leavel comes across like she is always chewing scenery, particularly on songs such as "It's Not About Me" and "The Lady's Improving," and her character's lack of sincerity is difficult to digest out of context. Sieber ("Shrek") comes across as the sidekick, once again, which should appeal to fans of his work, but doesn't break any new ground. His lead vocal on "Love Thy Neighbor" is right in his wheelhouse, but on the anthemic tune, "The Acceptance Song" his vocal falls into the chasm between inspirational and satiric, leaving the listener confused.

Overall, "The Prom" is worth looking inside, seeing who attended, and then going to the neighborhood diner, or the beach, with your date, regardless of their gender.

"The Prom – Original Broadway Cast Recording"
$13.69
CD and digital formats
www.masterworksbroadway.com