Interview: Courtney Balan of THE PROM at Dr. Phillips Center

As Broadway reopens and theatrical tours resume, audiences all over the United States are getting the chance to experience the latest productions from the Great White Way. The thrill of once again sitting in an audience with fellow theatre lovers and hearing the first notes of an overture is palpable. And getting to enjoy a production that is both entertaining and thought-provoking makes the experience that much more meaningful. Such is the case for the national tour of THE PROM, which will take the stage at the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando December 7 - 12. Playing the role of the Broadway diva, Dee Dee Allen, will be Courtney Balan. I caught up with Courtney to find out more about THE PROM, her career and what it's like performing this show to excited audiences all over the country.

BWW: Courtney, thanks so much for taking the time to talk with me today. We are really looking forward to THE PROM here in Orlando!

Courtney Balan: We're excited to go. We could all use a little dose of sun in our lives right now. So we are really excited!

Is this the first thing you've done since the pandemic?

This is the first thing for sure. I closed a show in February of 2020 and about three weeks later everything shut down and I have not stepped foot in a rehearsal room or on a stage until THE PROM beautifully re-entered my life, which I'm thrilled for.

I am sure it's really exciting to return to a sense of normal.

It is for me, though it's actually a totally new experience in some capacity too because I've never toured before. This checks so many boxes. First of all to return to the theater, and a return to a show that I absolutely love and a role that I love. Plus to travel the country and share the story all over is truly thrilling.

Can you tell us a little bit about how you got started in the theatre?

I grew up in New Jersey, and so I was in a proximity to Broadway that gave me the ability to come into the city and see shows, which was such a gift. I went to school in the Midwest and so many of my friends had only seen national tours and I got to see Broadway and I'd never seen a national tour. I loved it, but I never really knew that I could do it. Then a music teacher recognized that I could sing - I guess I was 11 or 12 years old and so my parents bought me some classes and that was where it all started. From there, I went to summer camp for theater and played very mature roles that I shouldn't have been playing at the age of 16 and loved that and then went to school for theatre at The University of Michigan and the rest is history.

THE PROM is probably familiar to many of our readers, especially with the recent version on Netflix, but for those who don't know the story, how would you describe it?

THE PROM is about a 17-year-old girl who lives in a small town in Indiana and wants to bring her girlfriend to the high school prom. The PTA doesn't agree with it and therefore cancels the prom. That news shows up on Twitter and four down-on-their-luck Broadway actors who are looking for a boost of confidence and a little good press hear about it and decide to come down and shake things up. And, as we used to say on Broadway - shenanigans ensue. It's one of those odd couple stories where two worlds collide and everybody learns a very important lesson.

It's interesting because I think there's something in there about the power of human connection and the power of theater to bring people together and see different points of view. I think in today's world, especially with COVID and people not all being in the same place, the power of that is really strong.

Oh, I agree with you, I love that so much. I do think of that every night because we need to hear the other side, whether we initially think we will agree with it, or we do or don't by the end of the conversation. Having the conversation is a step in the right direction and every night we get to have that conversation and we get to take it to a whole bunch of different cities across the country. And maybe they will have conversations that they might not have had otherwise. Even in New York, we had young LGBTQ people coming to the stage door saying "this show made me feel like I can talk to my parents" or parents of LGBTQ children saying "I saw that I was Mrs. Green, and now I understand." It's amazing the power of art. We are hoping to create an environment for people to have these conversations.

So, you play Dee Dee Allen. Tell us about her.

Dee Dee is one of those characters that is not unfamiliar in the idea of Broadway - the one who has 13, 14, 15 Broadway credits, who has devoted her entire life to the stage, maybe at the cost of not having a personal life or any other ways to fulfill herself. As she's getting older she is realizing that maybe something's missing. I never say that anyone's all good or all bad but Dee Dee starts to show she's super lovable, despite the fact that she is this humongous narcissist. And even going down to help this young gal is for her own benefit. It's really fun to tackle a role like that because there's so much humanity that can be added. Nobody's just a narcissist. Someone's a narcissist because of something. They're lonely or they only get validated through their work or whatever. It's fun to discover who this person really is and why. You can tell by her friendship with the other four broadway people who come down with her that she's loved that she's respected, and so you have to make her lovable regardless of her negative qualities.

Are there any real-life personalities that inspire your portrayal?

I understudied the role on Broadway for Beth Leavel, who was an inspiration to me. So it was amazing to have all that history and then add my own choices, and of course, steal what works, as all the best do. As for other inspiration, our director Casey Nicholaw and I would sit in rehearsals together and watch videos of Shirley MacLaine and Liza Minnelli just to get ideas of what those grandes dames of the theater are like.

Have you noticed any differences in taking THE PROM on tour, compared to your experience with the show in NYC?

We've only been going for about a month, so it's still new to me. We get the same boisterous audience reaction. You can hear the same laughter, the same crying, the same gasps, all of those things and even through masks. We really know we're doing our job because not only do we hear it, but we hear it loud and clear. I was worried with masks, maybe we won't feel that energy from the audience, but we really do. And that's really thrilling. I noticed when we were in Cleveland and we have a couple of lines about the midwest that there's an ability to laugh at themselves in the same way as we actors on stage are able to laugh at ourselves and the silliness that we're doing. I'm looking forward to seeing how it lands in each different section of the country.

And I imagine that audiences are probably just thrilled they are able to get back in the theater.

Yes. Every night for the three weeks we were in Cleveland when the overture began people started clapping. I think they're just so excited to be in a shared space, as you said, and the energy of that overture is so exciting and joyful. It sets the energy for the audience. I think we are the first show that many people are going to after not seeing live theater for so long and to give them such a joyful experience in such a wonderful inclusive story, it feels really special.

What do you look forward to the most before you step out on stage each night?

There are so many moments, but I'm gonna say that my most favorite is the opening sequence - the first 15 or so minutes of the show. I don't want to give too much away, but it establishes the story, the worlds and how they collide, and the relationships between the five friends. It's so beautifully created and crafted by our director Casey Nicholaw, with the worlds intertwining and it's just so joyful. And when we start hearing the laughter from the audience as they become aware of what they are in for - that, to me, is the most thrilling part.

Have there been any surprises for you, experiencing life on tour for the first time? Any favorite things?

I love getting to live in a new city and to experience it for however long we are there. We were in Cleveland for three weeks and will be in Orlando for a week and in that week I'm going to just live in the city. I think that's really a fun gift when you've been home for so long. It feels really exciting. I will say what shocked me was that you have a whole new set of backstage crew, dressers, front-of-house staff, etc. every city. You just pull up on Tuesday, and you talk through some stuff and then you perform it that night. It's amazing the community and collaboration of it all. That's two of the things I love most about theatre. It was just surprising that it happened so quickly. It's really fun and it keeps you on your toes for sure.

What's next for you after THE PROM?

I haven't really looked too far ahead. I've never really been super planning in that way because in my career one day you have no job, and the next day you audition for something, and your whole life changes. So I've never really thought that far ahead unless I knew I had something. Especially over the last few years, I just feel like I'm going to live in this moment and enjoy every second of it.

So thinking toward the future, do you have a dream role that you would one day like to play?

Well, I played my dream role, actually, really close to Orlando. I got to do FUNNY GIRL at the Riverside Theater in Vero Beach. And that was one of the most fabulous theatrical experiences of my life. So I always am so grateful that I got to check off my number One Dream role. I would love something that's new because I have done a lot of new musicals on Broadway but I often understudied, but the few times that I've got to originate a role that's never been played before, that is the most thrilling to me. It's where all of my artistic juices really feel like they flow. If I had to pick something that already exists, I would say, Mrs. Lovett in SWEENEY TODD. That's been on my mind lately, with our recent loss of Stephen Sondheim. That's one of them that I'm starting to get in the right age range for.

Do you have any advice for young performers looking to make it into professional theatre?

I would say, first of all, go for it. Don't be scared. You can always change your mind if you hate it. The other thing I would say is the best advice I was ever given - know what you have to offer and go full-force with that. Figure out what you do best and do it better than anyone. If you're an amazing dancer then be the best dancer that you can be. If you can hit the highest note, hit a note higher than that one. Just be the greatest version of yourself and bring that into the room and if it works for the show, then they'll cast you, and if it doesn't then go to another audition. I think you just have to know who you are, what you have to offer in this business and give it.

Is there anything else you would like readers to know?

Just that THE PROM is an amazingly good time - a show where it is so perfectly crafted that you learn a lesson, but you don't even realize. There's so much joy and positivity. And in this time, that is exactly what everybody needs.

THE PROM runs at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts December 7th - 12th. Performances are 8:00 PM Tuesday - Saturday and 6:30 PM on Sunday, with matinees at 2:00 PM on Saturday and 1:00 PM on Sunday. Tickets are available online at https://www.drphillipscenter.org/events/tickets/2021/the-prom/ or by calling the Bill & Mary Darden Box Office at 407.358.6603. Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts is located at 445 South Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL 32801

Top Photo: Courtney Balan

Middle Photo 1: Courtney Balan, Patrick Wetzel, Bud Weber and Emily Borromeo in The National Tour of THE PROM. Photo by Deen Van Meer

Middle Photo 2, 3 and Bottom: The National Touring Company of THE PROM. Photo by Deen Van Meer

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