Jo Ellen Pellman on Her Audition for The Prom and Being Surrounded by 'Broadway Royalty'

Jo Ellen Pellman landed a role of a lifetime when she was cast Emma in Ryan Murphy's film adaptation of the Broadway musical comedy The Prom, which arrives on Netflix on December 11. Pellman appeared on Broadway.com Live! to talk to Paul Wontorek about her love for the original production, how co-stars Andrew Rannells and James Corden are like her "big brothers" and more.

Pellman was still attending the University of Michigan when she first heard about The Prom in her musical theater history class. "We were talking about this new show playing at the Alliance Theatre in Georgia called The Prom, and I was like, 'This sounds like a really fun show. I want to see this someday,'" she said. She ended up taking in the show, which follows a troupe of down-and-out Broadway actors supporting Emma, an Indiana teen who wants to take her girlfriend to the prom. "My mom and I went to go see it because hit home for us," Pellman said. "I'm queer and my mom is gay—we're from Cincinnati, Ohio, and we love musicals. We just laughed and cried our way through it. I remember leaving the theater feeling that this is why I wanted to become an actor. Sometimes you strike gold."

Pellman shared her audition story for the starry screen adaptation of the show she loved: "I practiced it a million different ways. I broke down all the beats and went in there and did the best I could," she said. "A month went by before I heard anything. I was working my retail job at the time and I was in the back stock room when I got the call that my tape was going to be sent to Ryan [Murphy], and there might be a callback." She went on to describe going in for Emma and not knowing who would be reading for her love interest, Alyssa. "I [saw] Ariana DeBose's name on the sign-in sheet, and I can't even overstate how floored I was," Pellman said. "She's Broadway royalty and we're just sitting making small talk ahead of the chemistry read. [The audition] went really well, and I remember at the end, Ryan gave us both a hug, and a hug from Ryan Murphy is like you won the lottery. The next day I got the call while I was at a thrift store in Bushwick, Brooklyn that I got it, and here I am."

Surrounded by stage and screen legends on set, Pellman quickly drew close to co-stars Andrew Rannells and James Corden. "We're still in a group chat, and I feel like the luckiest person in the world," she said. "I do feel they were like my older brothers on set. So often they would just be laughing and making jokes and they would be sure to include me in on it. I would just be like, 'Oh my gosh. They want to hang out with me. I feel so cool.' I literally love them so much. I was such a fan girl for Andrew. I remember the first time I saw his Tony performance of "I Believe" [from The Book of Mormon], and I was obsessed. I was like, 'This is acting. This is the epitome of owning a stage for five minutes.' Then to see him in person and be the funniest human. I've never laughed so hard as I did with Andrew and James on set."

With The Prom's Netflix arrival, Pellman is dreaming big for the future. "I want Broadway to come roaring back," she said. "I want everyone who was employed before the shutdown to get their jobs back. I want to be cheering them on. Then, if down the road, there is a place for me on Broadway, I would love to. That's been my dream!

Watch the full episode of Broadway.com Live! below and be sure to find your own zazz when The Prom hits Netflix on December 11.