Not many shows lull audiences into pindrop silence. It’s no small miracle that “Parade,” now in its San Francisco leg of its national tour, bears multiple moments where a packed house goes silent, save for sniffles and tears.
Originally conceived in the 1990s by writer Alfred Uhry and director Harold Prince, with music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown, the show revolves around the true story of Leo Frank’s 1913 trial, imprisonment and eventual lynching. Frank, a Jewish man living in Atlanta, is accused of the rape and murder of 13-year-old Mary Phagan, who worked in his factory. As the trial unfolds, the hateful prejudices of the South condemn him, but his wife, Lucille, fights to the bitter end for justice.
Revived in 2023, this production won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical, and it’s clear to see why. Imbued in this show is a fiery outrage at the bigotry that perpetually rears its head in this country that so many call home.
The opening prologue number, “The Old Red Hills of Home,” is a sweeping and romantic declaration of devotion to the hills of the South during wartime, for the cause of the Civil War: states’ rights, specifically to keep slavery intact. The horrors of the celebration are rendered with such elegant bombast that one gets swept up in the goings-on, just as many do today. Nationalism and determinism often sound so sweet — the promise of a state for us, by us, at the expense of those who are not.
This intentionally frightening juxtaposition runs deep through the show. Brown’s inimitable score is composed with a haunting beauty, always serving as a Broadway spectacle while never once forgetting the tragedies it depicts. Alongside the clear-cut antisemitism the Franks face, the racism of a postwar South is enmeshed in the DNA of the show as well. Uhry’s book works overtime to excise these prejudices that run through American history.
Max Chernin, who was originally an understudy on Broadway, and Talia Suskauer step into the roles of Leo and Lucile on tour, and the duo soars. Chernin’s calm and composed remove holds the stage so steadily that his explosions of emotion in “How Can I Call This Home?” and “This Is Not Over Yet” electrify. Suskauer makes the most of her smaller role and makes “All the Wasted Time” one of those showstoppers where all the audience could do was watch in awe with tears.
At its core, one may find issues with the show’s construction, inherent to the original production. Making a spectacle of such tragedy can often rub people the wrong way and for good reason. The bombastic showmanship of this production makes for an unforgettable night on the town, one that will almost undoubtedly move you. However, there’s a cognitive dissonance one must engage in to enjoy it. This isn’t to say that “Parade” makes light of murder, but the emotional grandeur of the show can certainly read treacly at times. Striking a balance between saccharine and sweet is difficult, but this show pulls it off.
In the vein of many Broadway showstoppers before it, “Parade” takes a piece of history and blows its emotions up on stage. The best songs of the show are powerful enough to make your heart flutter and break, while the show’s more dubious moments never threaten to derail the production. How frail a moment in history can be, where one action or the other can tip a man’s life and fate. How stinging the pain might be reflected back decades on. How heartbreaking it is to witness the story of a person simply trying to live in a land populated with people who will not accept him for who he is simply because of that very reason. And they’ll still wake up the next morning, singing “Dixie” once again.
This story has been corrected. Talia Suskauer was misidentified as a former Broadway understudy.
