Cast Of ‘The Prom’ Give Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade First Gay Kiss, Conservative Groups Protest

The Prom, Broadway’s newest hit show, directed by Casey Nicholaw, tells the tale of a high schooler in small-town Indiana who wants to take her girlfriend to prom. When the school PTA finds out about the LGBTQ relationship, they decide to entirely cancel the dance.

The play was given the chance to leave the stage and join the parade this Thanksgiving as part of  Macy’s 92nd annual Thanksgiving Day Parade. The cast performed a musical number and then leads Caitlin Kinnunen and Isabelle McCalla shared a kiss on live television. The kiss appears to also be the first LGBTQ kiss in the parade’s history.

“The first #LGBTQ kiss in the Parade’s history,” cast member Josh Lamon wrote on Twitter. “We here at @ThePromMusical have never been so proud. #LoveIsLove.”

The musical’s producers Bill Damaschke, Dori Berinstein, and Jack Lane stood by the show’s kiss in a joint statement. “Broadway’s The Prom is grateful to Macy’s and NBC for their acceptance and inclusivity of a community and a story that is about acceptance, tolerance and love. These are some of the themes reflected in our musical comedy and we are very proud to be the very first LGBTQ kiss on the Thanksgiving Day Parade,” they wrote.

The LGBTQ kiss brought on homophobic remarks but it marks another advance in the LGBTQ movement and brought joy to many.

“At Macy’s, we are guided by our corporate values of Acceptance, Respect, Integrity and Giving Back,” a rep for Macy’s told EW. “We hope that viewers found the 92nd Annual Parade entertaining with its traditional mix of signature balloons, fantastic floats and performances from the nation’s best marching bands and musical acts. We look forward to next year.”

Conservative groups like ForAmerica attacked NBC and Macy’s for “blindsiding” parents with the kiss.