Credit: Emily Cooper
Theatre Under the Stars (Malkin Bowl, Stanley Park) until August 25, 2023
Tickets from $30 at 1-800-514-3849 or www.tuts.ca
Posted July 13, 2023
If you want to ramp up your experience of Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS), take someone who has never been before. Go early and walk through the rose garden; check out the old Stanley Park Pavilion, built in 1911 as a concession and now a boutique, full-service go-to venue for wedding receptions and special events; admire the colourful summer annuals and the planting around fountain in the front of the Pavilion. Once inside Theatre Under the Stars, grab a fully loaded bratwurst (or something else, including a vegan option) and find a spot at a picnic table before making your way to your seat in the theatre under the stars. Dragonflies dart back and forth, keeping the mosquitoes in check, and if you’re lucky there will be an eagle sitting atop one of the tall, second growth evergreens that tower outside the fence.
And then there’s the show, the raison d’etre for your trip to the Malkin Bowl.
Two shows alternate from now until late August: The Prom and Matilda. I caught The Prom on opening night with a TUTS and Stanley Park newbie from Ontario. A gorgeous summer evening in a gorgeous make-Vancouver-proud setting. My guest was justifiably impressed.
Credit: Emily Cooper
The Prom, directed by Tracey Power, is a sweet story inspired by an actual news item about the cancellation of a graduation prom – north of the border we call it the grad dance – because Emma (Anna Pontin) and Alyssa (Brianna Clark) plan to go as a couple. Alyssa’s homophobic mom, Mrs. Greene (Amy Gartner), has spearheaded the cancellation; naturally, Emma and Alyssa’s fellow students turn against them. They want their prom.
Meanwhile, down-on-their-luck Broadway actors Dee Dee Allen (Caitriona Murphy), Angie Dickinson (Amanda Lourenço), Barry Glickman (Greg Armstrong-Morris) and Trent Oliver (Matthew Valinho) desperately search for a cause they can piggyback to kick start their stalled careers. They stumble upon Emma and Alyssa’s story in the newspaper and decide to take it on as a popularity enhancer. Opportunism? You bet. Off they go to a ho-hum hotel (What? No spa?) in Indiana with a bunch of protest placards.
Credit: Emily Cooper
But federal law trumps Mrs. Greene, according to Tom Hawkins (Kevin Khonje), the principal of Edgewater High, and the prom is on again, leaving the Broadway gang with nothing to protest. But it’s not over ‘til it’s over. Mrs. Greene snorts, “This isn’t America. This is Indiana”, and she has another nasty plan.
Of course it’s TUTS, it’s summer and it all comes to a happy conclusion.
Both Pontin and Clark have clear, sweet voices and they’re delightful together. Emma and Alyssa are young, they’re innocent and idealistic; Pontin and Clark have us rooting for their characters right from the start. “I Just Wanna Dance With You,” they sing and we get it. They’re in love.
Credit: Emily Cooper
Contrasting Emma and Alyssa are narcissistic Dee Dee Allen and Barry Glickman who are loud, self-absorbed, jaded and self-serving who, nevertheless, are sort of lovable. Murphy has a powerhouse voice and really rocks the Malkin Bowl with “It’s Not About Me” which, of course, it is. And Armstrong-Morris has a voice and a style to match. He’s also the considerable comic touch in the musical. There’s a turning point in the story that somewhat ironically falls to Trent, and Valinho, as Trent, does a fine job of “Love They Neighbour”; but it’s really Emma who turns the tide with her internet savvy, from-the-heart appeal.
Credit: Emily Cooper
Excellent choreography is by director Tracey Power; musical director is Sean Bayntun with his full, below-the-stage orchestra; set design taking us from Broadway to Edgewater High is by Brian Ball. Stephanie Kong designs the costumes and the final number will leave you wishing you had shares in a lamé company: so much sparkle!
The Prom is a good family show really well-suited to young adults from about ten or eleven. It’s timely and tuneful and kids these days are all over LGBTQ2Spirit. No big deal.
Above all, it’s about love. What’s not to love about that?