YOUNGSTOWN — If we wrote about college theater programs the way we write about their sports teams, “Zombie Prom” showed Youngstown State University Theatre has a bright future.

This year’s recruiting class already is paying huge dividends. The female lead in the Dana Rowe / John Dempsey musical is Brooke May, a true freshman in her first YSU production.

She plays Toffee, a student at Enrico Fermi High School in the late ’50s who falls for a bad boy named Jonny. You know he’s a rebel because he spells Jonny without an “H.” When her parents force her to break up with Jonny, he kills himself by throwing himself into the reactor of the local nuclear power plant.

But being buried with nuclear waste (and the sound of Toffee’s mourning voice) brings Jonny back to life as a zombie just in time for prom.

May is a multi-tool player reminiscent of Hall of Famer Debbie Reynolds here (for the generation who only knows her, if at all, as the witch in that Disney Channel seasonal staple “Halloweentown,” go watch “Singin’ in the Rain” to see what a compliment that is).

It’s her voice that scores in the 99th percentile. The power, pitch and control she displays on each one of Toffee’s songs made each number a highlight, particularly “Jonny Don’t Go” and “Easy to Say.” Give her the ball (or the solo) and listen to her run with it.

Jonny is played by Ryan Bedi, only in his second year. He brings a lanky physicality to the character as he lurches and contorts himself in his zombie-fied state. He has a nice voice, although he was the one actor who sometimes was hard to hear over the band. His wireless mic seemed to be set lower than everyone else in the cast.

Despite the youth in the lead roles, this team also had plenty of veteran talent.

Senior K.J. Hudson was one of the last actors in the 11-member ensemble (just like the starting lineup of a football team) to appear on stage, but Hudson made a lasting impression, reveling in the role of muckraking journalist Eddie Flagrante. Despite a civil rights allegory buried deep in its storyline, “Zombie Prom” is a campy, silly musical, and Hudson embraced those characteristics with his line delivery.

Doing double duty as dance captain, Hudson was nimble footed and displayed an impressive voice on “That’s the Beat for Me,” in the first act. A duet with junior Mallory Ehrhart, who played principal Miss Strict with a comically stern demeanor and a magnificent helmet of a bouffant wig, on “At the Dance” / “Expose” was another standout.

The entire cast — which also included Elise Vargo, Laynee Sanger, Chloe Downey, Sam Nabring, Nicholas Atwood, Sam Law and Emalee Chappa — worked together like a team and was well coached by director Adam Day Howard, vocal music director Joe Spurio, musical director Kent Engelhardt (the live band definitely added to the energy of the production) and choreographer Katelyn Cassidy.

Katherine Garlick’s uniforms were perfect for the late ’50s / early ’60s setting, and her work was filled with on-point little details, like having the teddy bear Toffee sings “Easy to Say” to wearing a jacket identical to the one Jonny wears in the opening scene.

“Zombie Prom” may not be a great musical, but it’s a fun show, and it proved to be a wonderful showcase for the talent on stage and on staff at YSU.

agray@tribtoday.com