The Evolution of Alyssa Green
You might have heard of “The Prom” because of Ryan Murphy’s Netflix adaptation, but the musical — and one of its protagonists, Alyssa — has been years in the making.
On Friday, December 11th, Ryan Murphy’s movie adaptation of Broadway musical “The Prom” made its streaming debut on Netflix. However, “The Prom” is far from a new show, and like other movie-musical adaptations (most notably “R.E.N.T.”) had quite a journey in its development. The story follows a group of down-on-their-luck Broadway performers who, in an attempt to create positive publicity for themselves, decide to travel to Indiana in support of high-schooler Emma Nolan who is being ostracized for wanting to bring her secret girlfriend (Alyssa Green) to prom. “The Prom” represents a lot of firsts, but beyond being the first mainstream movie-musical to revolve around the relationship of an LGBTQ+ couple, it paves the way for racial diversity that is often neglected in queer narratives.
As is the case with most shows, “The Prom” made its first debut off-Broadway, out of state at the Alliance Theater, located in Atlanta, Georgia. The Alliance has been home to other pre-Broadway shows including “Tuck Everlasting” and “Bring it On: The Musical,” so it made enough sense for “The Prom” to stretch its legs and shake out any kinks here. With a book written by Tony Award-winner Bob Martin and Tony Award nominee…
