Ben Platt in “Parade” is a Landmark Event on Broadway

Photo by Joan Marcus

The opinions reflected in this review are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of staff, faculty and students of The King's College.

Originally staged in 1998 at Lincoln Center, Jason Robert Brown’s “Parade” returns to Broadway this month at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre as the musical event of the season. Set in the deep-south state of Georgia fifty years after the Civil War, “Parade” tells the true story of Leo Frank, a Jewish-American factory superintendent falsely accused of the murder of Mary Phagan, a 13-year-old factory worker. It stars Tony-Award winning actor Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen, The Book of Mormon) as Frank and Micaela Diamond (The Cher Show) as his wife Lucille.

When Phagan is killed in the Atlanta factory Frank oversees, he and the night guard, an African-American man, are brought in for questioning. Desperate to calm the public outcry, Georgia Governor John Slaton tells the investigator to “convict one of them.” Seeking a more powerful message than “hanging another black man,” the prosecutor fuels antisemitism in Atlanta and indicts Frank.

Abuses of power follow as the prosecutors coach and blackmail witnesses into existence to reach a guilty verdict. Frank is convicted of Phagan’s murder and sentenced to capital punishment. However, after intermission when “Parade” picks up the story two years later, Frank is still awaiting his execution and one man has had a change of heart. Prompted by Frank’s wife, Governor Slaton conducts his own informal investigation and discovers for himself that the prosecution brought false witnesses to Frank’s original trial.

Against the wishes of Georgia’s citizens, Slaton commutes Frank’s sentence, removing the death penalty and ending his own career in politics. Protesters demand that Frank be executed. Shorty afterward Frank is kidnapped from his prison cell by a group of men from Phagan’s hometown and lynched in Marietta, Georgia, just outside of Atlanta.

The story of “Parade” is a tragic one, and a relevant reminder of the problematic stances our society has held throughout its history. Those problems are not absent from our society today, either. Last month at the first preview of this production of “Parade,” protestors from the National Socialist Movement (the predecessor of the American Nazi Party) organized a demonstration outside the Jacobs Theatre, harassing audience members and shouting antisemitic phrases.

Directed by Michael Arden, this production of “Parade” is not without its missteps. It is highly produced and choreographed – a benefit to the many full-cast, high-energy musical numbers, but a drawback to emotional, darker scenes. Sequences that depict Lucille visiting her husband in prison lose most of their emotional impact and raw heartbreak among the too-perfectly curated staging.

The cast of this production is generally fantastic. Alongside Platt and Diamond are a large group of supporting actors, many of whom take on multiple roles throughout the show. None of these actors stand out amidst their peers, but that is because there is not a weak link among them.

The two leads are perhaps the least-perfect casting of the entire company. Platt sings the role of Leo Frank spectacularly, but his acting is a mere alteration of his most famous character—Evan Hansen. He does somewhat manage to step more into this new character as the narrative shifts to darker scenes that are more obviously distinct from his role in “Dear Evan Hansen.” But, after seeing this production of “Parade,” one has to wonder if Platt is truly capable of playing anything other than the socially awkward outcast.

Diamond gives an equally stunning vocal performance as Platt, but her Southern accent is laughable at best and she doesn’t get enough stage time in the first act to convince the audience she’s anything special. All is forgotten, however, during her second act showstopper “This is Not Over Yet.” A beautiful powerhouse of a song, this number is the crown jewel of the score and the singular best five minutes of both Diamond and Platt’s performances.

The production itself is engaging, unique and fitting for “Parade.” It doesn’t grab attention for itself, but compliments the show wonderfully. Brown’s score is the best reason to love “Parade.” He won the Tony Award for Best Score in 1998 following the original production, and it’s easy to hear why. The music is soaring, unsettling, romantic, patriotic, all exactly when it needs to be to tell Leo Frank’s story in a captivating way. It captures the spirit of the Confederate South, both its pomp and its lurking evil.

Despite a few misses, this production of “Parade” is not to be missed. It’s a landmark production that will not soon be forgotten, nor should it be. There’s no show this season that better captures the grand feeling of sharing in an iconic musical event on Broadway.

“Parade” is currently running at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre through August 6, 2023.

Eli Johnson is the Theatre Columnist for the Empire State Tribune. He is a sophomore at The King's College majoring in Business. He is an avid theatre-goer and always enjoys a game of chess.