Jason Robert Brown's Tony Award Winning Musical based on the seminal trial of Leo Frank in 1913 Atlanta, Georgia. The murder of a young girl ignites dormant prejudice as a media frenzy incites a community to revenge. Co-Conceived by Harold Prince
Nearly a decade after it had its short-lived New York premiere, the two-time Tony Award-winning musical Parade received its long-awaited London premiere last night (24 September 2007, previews from 14 September) at the Donmar Warehouse, where its limited season continues until 24 November (See 1st Night Photos, 25 Sep 2007).
In Atlanta, Georgia in 1913, a Jewish man from Brooklyn stands accused of the murder of a young factory worker. Based on the true story of Leo Frank convicted of the murder of 13-year-old Mary Phagan, Parade recalls the press frenzy and public hate surrounding the trial, and Lucille Frank’s crusade for justice for her husband.
The negative judgement of the New York Times may have cut Parade’s life short on Broadway, but London’s first night critics have heartily welcomed the musical’s arrival on this side of the Atlantic. They all applauded book writer Alfred Uhry’s ability to tackle a serious subject and make it utterly “gripping”, and admired Jason Robert Brown’s “powerful” score, with inevitable, and usually favourable, comparisons drawn between Brown and his American elder, Stephen Sondheim. There was praise too for Rob Ashford’s “extremely well cast” production, in particular leads Bertie Carvel and Lara Pulver. Despite the furore over musicals taking over Theatreland, there’s not a single note of opposition to this one - Parade, say the critics, is “a musical of real substance”, a “must-see”.
Michael Coveney on Whatsonstage.com (four stars) - “There is no question that Parade is a significant and highly charged new American musical and that choreographer Rob Ashford’s production – his first as a stand-alone director – at the Donmar is a triumph … Jason Robert Brown is one of a group of young-ish American composers who labour unavoidably in the shadow of Stephen Sondheim. In this case, there’s a lot of Sweeney Todd. But this wonderful score has other influences, too, notably that of Charles Ives, no slouch at incorporating traditional anthems into his vitally original musical. Not only does Robert Brown sing the blues very effectively, he also knows how to develop narrative with sustained underscoring and superb vocal decoration. Ashford’s production, beautifully designed and lit by Christopher Oram and Neil Austin, is extremely well cast, too, with Bertie Carvel giving a wonderfully detailed, nervy performance as Leo that makes him both a sucker for punishment and a sad victim. Lara Pulver is excellent as his wife Lucille, and there are fine contributions from Steven Page as an old soldier, Shaun Escoffery as the black janitor who perjures himself and Mark Bonnar as a corrupt prosecuting lawyer. A must-see musical.”
Michael Billington in the Guardian (four stars) – “I wondered whether it would work even better as a docudrama? But, in the end, the music and lyrics of Jason Robert Brown serve to reinforce rather than subvert the gripping story Alfred Uhry's book has to tell ... The musical doesn't have time to set the story in context: in particular, the wave of anti-immigrant hostility that swept early 20th-century America. But Brown's music constantly underscores the key narrative points … The director, Rob Ashford, is best known as a choreographer and he shows a priceless ability to allow dance to erupt naturally from the action. He is also well served by the cast. Bertie Carvel as Frank has just enough neurotic primness and clinical detachment to suggest why his initial reaction to the crime aroused misgivings. Lara Pulver also conveys clearly the sexual frustrations of his neglected wife. And there is staunch support from Shaun Escoffery as the black felon, who has a fine second-half blues number, and from Gary Milner as the mind-changing Georgia governor. Musicals primarily deal with romance: it is refreshing to find one that deals so eloquently with the roots of Southern prejudice.”
Paul Taylor in the Independent - “The Donmar Warehouse once again vibrantly vindicates an American musical cold-shouldered by its homeland in this immensely impressive production, directed and choreographed by Rob Ashford. It establishes Parade as an admirably ambitious, musically daring piece that deserves praise for attempting to intertwine the political and the personal, even if in that respect it's uneven as a piece of music drama … For me, the best bits of the show are the scenes where public and private collide dangerously … At its finest, the score has a similar volatile, democratic impulse to send incongruent musical styles (military marches, hymns, dances, popular songs) swarming against one another in a rich, riddling mix. And this urge brings out the best in Ashford, the choreographer. One thinks of the jubilant cake-walk that rudely thrusts into the proceedings after the conviction, with Leo hoisted in a chair like an ironic victor or the revivalist energy that launches the lynch mob. There are some great voices in this show, most notably Shaun Escoffery who is sensational as the black perjuring janitor who ends up on a chain gang. To my taste, the private relationship between Leo and Lucille is under-written and sometimes sounds like a sub-Sondheim Sunday in the Prison with Leo, but the beautifully lit and designed production handles the trial and its ramifications with focus and finesse.”
Nicholas de Jongh in the Evening Standard (four stars) – “I cannot remember when the narrative and plotting of a musical last kept me engaged, let alone gripped. Parade, book by Alfred Uhry, manages the feat at last. Here is that rare thing: a piece of musical theatre, deftly executed on a bare, galleried stage by director Rob Ashford, that dares to be serious … I must admit, though, that Jason Robert Brown's music, with its blues, hymns, spirituals and anthems, is indebted to Stephen Sondheim almost to the point of insolvency. It often sounds like an eloquent pastiche, particularly of Sunday in the Park with George. Brown's often ponderous lyrics miss out on Sondheimite wit and cleverness … Thanks to Carvel's fraught performance as Leo, this superintendent of a pencil-making factory emerges as a nervy, charmless outsider, uncomfortable in his own skin and this location, irritably at odds with his devoted wife (a shrill-voiced Lara Pulver) … The second half flags: Uhry and Brown spend too much grieving over the dead girl and turning the Franks into passionate lovers, too little in showing what a national furore the case caused. Despite these flaws, Parade makes a devastating, emotional show.”
Charles Spencer in the Daily Telegraph - “In a West End awash with froth and stage remakes of old movies, here at last comes an original musical of real substance … Written by Alfred Uhry, best known for Driving Miss Daisy, and with a powerful score by Jason Robert Brown that takes in gospel, blues, ragtime and hymns, the piece concerns a notorious, real-life American miscarriage of justice … Uhry's script, co-conceived with the show's original director Hal Prince, sometimes recalls Arthur Miller's The Crucible in its depiction of just how easy it is to fan horror into vengeful hysteria, and the piece undoubtedly makes for uneasy watching for those of us who work in the inky trade … Bertie Carvel gives a splendidly compelling performance as the deeply repressed Leo Frank, whose nervy manner and inability to respond to his wife's unconditional love arouses suspicion in the audience as well as the jury. Lara Pulver is deeply moving as his loyal spouse, and there is strong support from Shaun Escoffery as a deeply unreliable witness, Mark Bonnar as a corrupt prosecutor and Gary Milner as the Governor who changes his mind.”
There is no question that Parade is a significant and highly charged new American musical and that choreographer Rob Ashford’s production – his first as a stand-alone director – at the Donmar is a triumph. Why, then, has it taken ten years to cross the Atlantic and find favour, as it surely will, with discerning audiences in Covent Garden?
Because it received one bad review from the all-important New York Times, that’s why, and closed after a mere 84 performances at the Lincoln Center. Like Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s Caroline, or Change, Parade will have its reputation enhanced, if not necessarily commercially endorsed with a West End transfer, by this London reprieve.
The script by Alfred Uhry (Driving Miss Daisy) tells the chilling true-life story of Leo Frank, a Jewish factory manager in Atlanta, Georgia, who, in 1913, was falsely convicted of murdering a teenage girl on the grounds that he was the last person to see her alive. The twist in the tale comes from the fact that he’s a white victim of racist hysteria. His wife stands by him, fighting to commute his sentence, deepening their attachment until all is undone in a frenzied climax and tragic coda.
It’s not exactly Hairspray, but nor is Ashford’s production too hard to sit through, though there are longeurs in the first act. That may be a result of a sensational opening number – one of several ensemble explosions - which elides a soldier’s lament in the Civil War with a rumbustious company dream of Atlanta. But the rest of the show - “co-conceived” and originally directed by Hal Prince - fully exploits a rich seam of the vision of an integrated society scuppered by human flaw.
Jason Robert Brown is one of a group of young-ish American composers who labour unavoidably in the shadow of Stephen Sondheim. In this case, there’s a lot of Sweeney Todd. But this wonderful score has other influences, too, notably that of Charles Ives, no slouch at incorporating traditional anthems into his vitally original musical. Not only does Robert Brown sing the blues very effectively, he also knows how to develop narrative with sustained underscoring and superb vocal decoration.
Ashford’s production, beautifully designed and lit by Christopher Oram and Neil Austin, is extremely well cast, too, with Bertie Carvel giving a wonderfully detailed, nervy performance as Leo that makes him both a sucker for punishment and a sad victim. Lara Pulver is excellent as his wife Lucille, and there are fine contributions from Steven Page as an old soldier, Shaun Escoffery as the black janitor who perjures himself and Mark Bonnar as a corrupt prosecuting lawyer. A must-see musical.
I'm very surprised to see such harsh reviews. I greatly enjoyed the play, if 'enjoy' is the right word for such a bleak piece of drama. All the performances were excellent, and I loved the set. The play was reminiscent of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf' though I felt it lacked Woolf's underlying warmth and was almost relentlessly nihilistic. I think it could have benefited from more humour to relieve some of the longer exchanges. But overall I found it moving and thought-provoking. Admittedly it's not in the same classic league as Woolf, but that's a big ask, isn't it? - LDE
19 Mar 10
If this had been my first experience of going to the theatre I would never go again and so thank god it wasn't! It's only when you see bad theatre do you appreciate good. The writer doesn't help, but the director is most probably to blame, I'm sure the actors were up to the job, but the job they were given was so wrought with tedium it defied belief. I have to confess I didn't stick it out and left at the interval, but I do not believe in any way shape or form it could have redeemed itself in the second half. This play may be better with another director, but I shall never know it because he managed to turn me off the play so much I will never give it another chance - life's too short! - rds
05 Mar 10
Bought the CD several years ago and was unimpressed: saw the show on impulse and was bowled over. Like Assassins,Sweeney Todd and Passion, this is not a show for big commercial stages and the Donmar's intimacy served it well. Performances were outstanding and (my current bete noire) the use of mic'ing was
admirabl restrained with every voice sounding natural and bell-clear. The emotional impact was impossible to resist, the combination of lyrics/music and storytelling making the hair frequently stand on end and involuntary tears flow. After such indiffernet duds as Bad Girls and the Rent 're-mix' this show reveals the wonder of a well-written musical theatre piece - but one that has to be seen rather than just listened to in the comfort of one's onwn home. - cjb
25 Nov 07
Why have the Donmar put this on? I guess I can answer that question myself from a simple two lines, which could go almost unnoticed in the program, which thanks Arielle Tepper Madover for her generous support. Support which seems to have extended to influencing artistic control. This is not a good musical. It has been undoubtedly well staged and cast with talented actors - in particular the mesmerising Bertie Carvel as the protaganist Leo Frank - perhaps the most compelling performance I have seen on stage this year. But why the songs though? I know, I know it's a musical. There is something about American theatre, and by that I mean New York theatre, which will try to turn anything into a musical. I can't wait (Oh! yes I can) the arrival of "Anne Frank - the Musical". Everytime the songs stopped my interest returned until I got jolted out of the drama again by another number. OK, some of the music was, well, OK - but so what. Perhaps only Mr Sondheim should have had the nerve to attempt the subject of this show - unfortunately he didn't! - rds
17 Nov 07
Briliant, Brilliant, Brilliant, if I could give this production ten stars I would as rarely in the west end will you see a more superbly acted and sung musical with a great story too. This musical needs to be seen by a wider audience and transfered to another west end theatre as soon as possible after this limited season at the Donmar. - ILS
15 Nov 07
Wow. Just as the West End needs successful feel-good commercial shows of high quality (like Hairspray), they have to be accompanied by this sort of show. The writing is absolutly sensational and the show draws you in and takes you on the emotional journey intended. So much so that I found i was totally exhausted when I walked out the theatre. Much of this is due to the fact that the show has found the perfect theatre for it. Parade requires an intimate venue because it maximises the power of the plot, and the Donmar affords it this setting. The vocals of the performers cannot be equalled either. The staging allows the audience an integral part in the show (especially at the end of Act One in the courtroom). Of course, the issues tacked and the plot itself, are at times deeply disturbing and uncomfotable; but performed appropriately. The subjects tacked are IMO far from inappropriate- in fact its by tackling them that we are reminded of existing prejudices and the dangers of stereotyping and blaming minorities. It is a must see whilst at its current location, and when it does close at the Donmar, deserves a transfer to a theatre of similar size so it can continue to move people. Its a rare peice of original, and intelligent musical theatre. - Richard
03 Nov 07
I'm a big fan of musicals and some of my favourites have serious subjects - Romeo & Juliet, The Hired Man, Billy Elliott to name but three. Though I admire the staging and craftsmanship of this one, I'm afraid that on this occasion the subject matter - rape and murder - just doesn't work as a musical for me. Based on other reviews and the audience reaction, I am clearly in a minority though! - Gareth James
31 Oct 07
Parade features a variety of musical styles abd the second half flags a bit. It is also possibly too big for the Donmar as being so close plays havoc with the sound balance at times. However, this is really nitpicking because Parade is a very impressive, powerful and moving show. The victim of this notorious miscarriage of justice is cleverly portrayed as a less than sympathetic figure but it is the efforts of his wife which make the eventual outcome so emotional. It is astonishing that one review apparently killed off this so American musical in New York but Broadway's loss is certainly our gain. In a West End now overflowing with too many trivial cash-in musicals Parade reminds us what a superior art form it can be. - David Baxter
24 Oct 07
At last, a musical with a heart and soul! Sondheim, eat your heart out!
Best directed and choreographed theatrical performance I have seen for years. - Derek Palmer
08 Oct 07
Why not make a musical out of "The Crucible"? Here, superb music, excellent songs, and fine acting are wasted on a piece that pushes an already melodramatic script over the edge to ludicrousness. Just imagine Judge Danforth breaking into song during the trial, or Proctor singing "No, They Can't Have My Name" and you have this production in a nutshell. - Kevin Hoggard
Whatsonstage.com - Discount London theatre tickets, theatre news and reviews, Theatre videos, Theatre discussion, National Theatre Listings. Covering London's West End, all of Theatreland and all UK theatre. The best
for London Theatre Tickets Discounts.
