The Prom

The Prom is a ‘B’ grade Broadway musical with an ‘A’ list cast. Headed by Meryl Streep, James Corden, Nicole Kidman, and Andrew Rannells, it’s another production in the Ryan Murphy juggernaut that has elements of Glee and High School Musical with its set of heightened happy song-and-dance film-cliches, which the cast devour and deliver with pin-sharp accuracy.

The movie closely follows the plot of the stage version about ‘celebrity activism’, when a group of self-possessed Broadway actors descend on a middle-American town to help a lesbian teen take her girlfriend to the prom – a simple idea that worked on stage because it was a small, sweet show about acceptance, love and forgiveness.

The themes are still there, and so is the raft of Broadway insider gags. The tunes are intact, poppy and catchy, but the whole thing’s been blown up to mega-levels of overkill.

That’s not to say it’s not enjoyable in its own right. It is and will probably engender repeat viewing.

Streep is in a class of her own as the Broadway diva-of-divas, Dee Dee Allen. She’s sensational in a performance that’s a little bit of Tallulah Bankhead, a little Patti LuPone, and a lot of Miranda Priestly. Her vocals, especially on ‘It’s Not About Me’ are stunning (it’s hard to believe it wasn’t helped by the edit-suite), and one of the delights of the film.

Corden minces and camps it up as the ‘gayer-that-gay’ Barry and of course makes a meal of ‘Barry Is Going To the Prom’, Kidman’s can’t step-out-of-the-Chicago-chorus Angie Dickinson (no relation to the Point Blank actress) struts her Fosse-inspired ‘Zazz’ with panache, whilst Rannells’ as Juilliard graduate, and former sitcom star Trent Oliver, breaks out with back-up chorus in ‘Love Thy Neighbor’. staged in a Mall.

Although Streep walks all over everybody else, one of the best performances comes from Keegan-Michael Key as the school principal who has been a Dee Dee Allen fan for years. His ‘We Look To You’, when Streep informs him she might retire, could be the show-queen mantra of all time.

Best of the score is still the teen couple’s ‘Dance With You’, to which newcomer Jo Ellen Pellman (Emma) and Ariana DeBose (Alyssa) bring a show-biz glitz with their big Broadway-belts. DeBose makes the most of her centre-screen solo ‘Alyssa Greene’, Kerry Washington’s mother, Mrs Greene, head of the PTA, manages to be both authoritative and warm, whilst Tracey Ullman as Corden’s estranged Mom, Vera, makes a minute-on-screen cameo appearance memorable.

But it’s Streep’s full-frontal assault of the Broadway diva you remember. She’s brilliant!

Peter Pinne