‘BootyCandy,’ ‘The Prom’: Theater for pride-filled weekend
Looking for theater on this Come Out With Pride weekend in Orlando? Two shows with LGBTQ themes are wrapping up their runs on Sunday. MAC Boys Entertainment presents the comedy “BootyCandy” in Orlando, and over at Theatre UCF, there’s a fabulous production of the heart-filled musical “The Prom.”
MAC Boys Entertainment’s mission is to elevate the Black voice in theater, so “BootyCandy” is a perfect choice.
Robert O’Hara’s semi-autobiographical subversive comedy is about growing up gay and Black. Originally conceived as 12 short plays, O’Hara wove them together to create “BootyCandy,” which debuted in 2011 in Washington, D.C. During a later off-Broadway run, O’Hara and the play’s actors were awarded a special citation by the Obie Awards. That run also
earned the play a Lambda Literary Award when it was named the best LGBT drama of 2014-15.
The New York Times has praised O’Hara as “a promising and energetic playwright with a healthy sense of the comic possibilities of bigotry and racial stereotypes” and applauded his “gift for deft pacing.” He would later be Tony-nominated for directing “Slave Play.”
Although I was out of town for both the opening weekend of “BootyCandy”
and “The Prom,” I was able to see the latter show at a weekday performance.
“The Prom” is a cheerful musical that uses humor to lampoon all sorts of things: The New York elite, the self-absorption of actors and the way intolerance is found in adults much more than youths. At the story’s center is Emma, who just wants to go the prom with her girlfriend. When the PTA says no, four Broadway actors swoop in to save the day, and shenanigans ensue.
Director John Gardiner hits all the right moments, with both the flamboyant comedy of the Broadway actors and the sweetly poignant moments for young Emma. He gets great physical work from his actors (a Crucifixion pose is particularly effective) and has an eye for detail (seeing a moment from the ill-fated Eleanor Roosevelt musical that kickstarts the plot is inspired).
Gardiner is helped immensely by the inspired choreography of Kyli Rae.
Theatre UCF has a big stage, which it uses to its advantage. This “Prom” is packed with students, but Rae has created clean lines and sequences of motion that build the emotion and dramatic thrust as much as the music and singers do.
The music, by the way, sounds great with a robust pit orchestra under the direction of Terry Thomas. All the sound is great, including the extras by sound designer Casey Deiter — the bustle of the high school gym, a perfect transition between a rundown motel room and a monster truck rally (really).
The student actors all inhabit their parts with aplomb. Alyssa Johnson makes a sympathetic Emma, who may be down for a spell but is definitely never out, and Lara Martinez nicely captures the conflict of her would-be girlfriend.
Reese Abrahamoff inspires both laughter and tears as a gay Broadway star who missed his own prom, while Paige Mason has mastered the aloof cluelessness of diva Dee Dee — and creates effective comic moments when she occasionally cracks.
Zachary Racine, as a bloviating Juilliard grad, and Jillian Cossetta, as a “Chicago” chorus gal, provide solid support, and Jordan Perez elevates his kind high school principal to add immensely to the show’s heart.
One fun offstage note: The students have posted real-life prom photos on the wall outside the theater. It makes a critic feel his age to realize those photos weren’t taken very long ago.
‘BOOTYCANDY’ Where: Orlando Family Stage Black Box Theater, 1001 E. Princeton St. in Orlando
When: 8 p.m. today, 4 p.m. Oct. 22
Cost: $20
Info: macboysentertainment. com/now-playing
‘THE PROM’
Length: 2:35, including intermission
Where: Theatre UCF on the University of Central Florida campus, 4000 Central Florida Blvd. in Orlando When: 7:30 p.m. today, 2 p.m. Oct. 22
Cost: $25 ($10 with UCF ID) Info: arts.cah.ucf.edu