Parade Touring Reviews

The heart of the show is assigned to Leo and his wife Lucille, played by Max Chernin and Talia Suskauer. The pair is charged with embracing the Franks’ rough edges — his aloofness, her initial desires to cling to her privileged life and flee the ...

The heart of the show is assigned to Leo and his wife Lucille, played by Max Chernin and Talia Suskauer. The pair is charged with embracing the Franks’ rough edges — his aloofness, her initial desires to cling to her privileged life and flee the hardships of her husband’s trial — and eliciting empathy. Chernin’s Leo is a heartbreaking, tightly coiled ball of anxiety, one that softens with the desperation of his final courtroom plea, "It's Hard to Speak My Heart.” Lucille glows with fiery determination for justice and fierce love, thanks to Suskauer expertly calibrated performance, and the pair's chemistry makes the Franks’ reignited tenderness in act two palpable.

The cast of nearly three dozen is flawless in their approach under the direction of Michael Arden. The choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant creates wonderful pictures framed on Dane Laffrey's scenic design, Heather Gilbert'...

The cast of nearly three dozen is flawless in their approach under the direction of Michael Arden. The choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant creates wonderful pictures framed on Dane Laffrey's scenic design, Heather Gilbert's lighting, Jon Weston's sound design, presented in Sven Ortel's production design. Charlie Alterman leads the cast of this nearly entirely sung through musical pitch perfectly as the Musical Director and Conductor.

Leo and Lucille are respectively played by Max Chernin and Talia Suskauer. They are a handsome couple, and Suskauer has a special voice that she uses for the dramatic effect that defines Lucille Frank. Particularly in the second act when she sings he...

Leo and Lucille are respectively played by Max Chernin and Talia Suskauer. They are a handsome couple, and Suskauer has a special voice that she uses for the dramatic effect that defines Lucille Frank. Particularly in the second act when she sings her aria, “Do It Alone,” and the duet with Chernin, “This is Not Over Yet,” her voice and her dramatic ability are riveting. Chernin is her vocal mate, although his character is calmer and more complacent, and this limits his dramatic impact in their music.

At the heart of the production are the extraordinary performances of the leads. Max Chernin delivers a nuanced and deeply empathetic portrayal of Leo, capturing both his intellectual reserve and his vulnerability. His voice, rich and expressive, brin...

At the heart of the production are the extraordinary performances of the leads. Max Chernin delivers a nuanced and deeply empathetic portrayal of Leo, capturing both his intellectual reserve and his vulnerability. His voice, rich and expressive, brings Jason Robert Brown's complex score to life, particularly in the haunting "It’s Hard to Speak My Heart."

This is a super production of a perhaps slightly flawed show. Starring are an excellent Max Chernin as Leo Frank and an as good Talia Suskauer as Lucille Frank. Chernin comes direct from working as Ben Platt’s understudy in the Broadway production...

This is a super production of a perhaps slightly flawed show. Starring are an excellent Max Chernin as Leo Frank and an as good Talia Suskauer as Lucille Frank. Chernin comes direct from working as Ben Platt’s understudy in the Broadway production. Suskauer was last seen as Elphaba in the Broadway company of “Wicked.” Both are tremendous performers. Chernin is easily one of the best male stage voices I’ve heard in many years.

Shaker Heights native, Max Chernin, is nothing less that astounding as Leo Frank. He does not portray the character; he inhabits his persona. His up-tight, hand-wringing, Yankee frustration with Southern tradition, especially the Jewish southern at...

Shaker Heights native, Max Chernin, is nothing less that astounding as Leo Frank. He does not portray the character; he inhabits his persona. His up-tight, hand-wringing, Yankee frustration with Southern tradition, especially the Jewish southern attitudes, is encompassing. He does not give a copy of Ben Platt, who recently played the role in the 2023 Broadway revival, he presents his own impressive interpretation. His vocals "How Can I Call This Home?" and "It's Hard to Speak My Heart!" were spell-binding.

Shaker Heights High School Alum Max Chernin is compelling as Leo Frank as his trust in the legal system is shaken to the core. Talia Suskauer as his wife Lucille shows a rare kind of fortitude standing up for her husband. Both have amazing singing vo...

Shaker Heights High School Alum Max Chernin is compelling as Leo Frank as his trust in the legal system is shaken to the core. Talia Suskauer as his wife Lucille shows a rare kind of fortitude standing up for her husband. Both have amazing singing voices that truly shine when they perform duets. Jack Roden as Prosecutor Frankie Epps does a fine turn as the conniving public servant bent on furthering his own career. Lastly, there is Ramone Nelson as Black Janitor Jim Conley who is tasked with two incredible show stopping solos.

What “Parade” offers, however, is a reflection. It urges us not to shy away from our past, but to confront it, with the hope that understanding it might one day help us break the cycle. This is where Uhry’s book and Brown’s lyrics truly shine...

What “Parade” offers, however, is a reflection. It urges us not to shy away from our past, but to confront it, with the hope that understanding it might one day help us break the cycle. This is where Uhry’s book and Brown’s lyrics truly shine, making the show as essential to see as “Wicked” or “Hamilton,” albeit for entirely different reasons.

This version of the 1998 show — based on the 2023 edition that won a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical — has all the trappings of the big stage, including an inventive, tri-level stage set that covers the width of the Fisher proscenium and...

This version of the 1998 show — based on the 2023 edition that won a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical — has all the trappings of the big stage, including an inventive, tri-level stage set that covers the width of the Fisher proscenium and is lightly manipulated to convey courtrooms, offices, streets, prisons, the Frank home and the governor’s mansion. A raised platform in the center serves as the focal point for much of the show, but the carefully choreographed side action is important, too, thanks to a cast whose facial expressions and body language provide crucial dimensions. Related Articles One good example; during the investigation into the murder, while one suspect is being questioned on stage left, two officers use flashlights to cast suspicions on Frank as they stand on stage right. Those kinds of subtle touches surface throughout “Parade” — especially during the lengthy trial reenactment that ends Act I — and make the storytelling that much richer.

On the one hand, the evening is a sickening story about our society’s embrace of antisemitism, and the triumphs of mob violence, mendacity, and cowardice. Yet it also celebrates the radiance of love, reminding us that the human race may not be comp...

On the one hand, the evening is a sickening story about our society’s embrace of antisemitism, and the triumphs of mob violence, mendacity, and cowardice. Yet it also celebrates the radiance of love, reminding us that the human race may not be completely lost.

Yet Alfred Uhry’s book hammers home its points and populates the courtroom with hissable villains: the openly smarmy district attorney, the obviously perjured and nearly hypnotized witnesses, the incompetent blowhard of a defense attorney. The tria...

Yet Alfred Uhry’s book hammers home its points and populates the courtroom with hissable villains: the openly smarmy district attorney, the obviously perjured and nearly hypnotized witnesses, the incompetent blowhard of a defense attorney. The trial scene in “To Kill a Mockingbird” looks like a marvel of legal jurisprudence by comparison.

People often see musicals as a means of escape, a way to forget about the real world for a little while. But ‘Parade’ asks us to remember. The trial of Leo Frank was highly publicized at the time, and the show calls attention to reality through e...

People often see musicals as a means of escape, a way to forget about the real world for a little while. But ‘Parade’ asks us to remember. The trial of Leo Frank was highly publicized at the time, and the show calls attention to reality through enlarged photos and newspaper clippings splashed on a screen behind the action. When a new character is introduced, we see photos of their real life counterparts. When the action moves to a new location, the set stays the same, but the photograph changes. The use of screens in theater has historically been a touchy one for this critic, but here, the photographs serve as a reminder that this all really happened. The set itself stays in its courtroom formation for the show’s entire run, a wooden platform surrounded by chairs where cast members sit and silently watch the horror unfold, but do nothing to stop it."

This is simply a super solid production of an underdone masterpiece, and you need to catch it. And so, with my three-letter rating system I give the North American Tour of “Parade” at the 5th Avenue Theatre a “let’s try and learn from the pas...

This is simply a super solid production of an underdone masterpiece, and you need to catch it. And so, with my three-letter rating system I give the North American Tour of “Parade” at the 5th Avenue Theatre a “let’s try and learn from the past” YAY. We still seemed to be doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past, but with theater and stories like this, hopefully we can learn to overcome even a little bit of our own prejudice and ignorance.

Expect to feel a roller coaster of emotions as we’re led through a journey of shock, hope, redemption, and tragedy. Chernin poignantly conveys the feelings of utter helplessness and despair that Leo Frank must have experienced, while Suskauer embod...

Expect to feel a roller coaster of emotions as we’re led through a journey of shock, hope, redemption, and tragedy. Chernin poignantly conveys the feelings of utter helplessness and despair that Leo Frank must have experienced, while Suskauer embodies a woman pulling from reserves she doesn’t know she has. Parade is a spectacle of class and grace, and its themes of anti-Semitism, racism, politics, and injustice are incredibly relevant today.

The problem is that the story, and thus the cast, is so bloated, it’s difficult to track. It would land much more powerfully if it had been trimmed, both characters and songs. Another problem is that the music doesn’t really pop. There’s a lot ...

The problem is that the story, and thus the cast, is so bloated, it’s difficult to track. It would land much more powerfully if it had been trimmed, both characters and songs. Another problem is that the music doesn’t really pop. There’s a lot of it, but not much is memorable, which ends up being true for the characters as well. There are so many, it’s hard for them to stand out. It also means many of them are so thinly characterized, they’re not fully realized, so there’s no significant connection to them, no emotional tie.

“Parade,” which delves into antisemitism, systemic bias in our judicial system and the power of a wily demagogue to stoke atavistic hatred for self-gain, has a disconcerting timeliness. But the production — momentous in its subject matter, huma...

“Parade,” which delves into antisemitism, systemic bias in our judicial system and the power of a wily demagogue to stoke atavistic hatred for self-gain, has a disconcerting timeliness. But the production — momentous in its subject matter, human in its theatrical style — lets the contemporary parallels speak for themselves.

omeone in my group wondered if this might make a better play than musical, because it feels odd to have dancing and singing about themes like Anti-Semitism and outright racism. It’s an odd juxtaposition, and it feels more tragically operatic than a...

omeone in my group wondered if this might make a better play than musical, because it feels odd to have dancing and singing about themes like Anti-Semitism and outright racism. It’s an odd juxtaposition, and it feels more tragically operatic than a pop music piece that we are used to on the stages these days. And that’s what makes PARADE important, alive, and vital. It refuses to take the easy road or find the easy answers. But it also refuses to not give you beauty to admire in the midst of all of this. A gorgeous punch in the stomach, and a musical you will be thinking about for weeks after.

Seeing productions like "Parade" come to Des Moines is an excellent reminder of why we do theatre, and why we see theatre. Each element of this show comes together beautifully to not just tell the story of Leo Frank onstage, but also to prompt us to ...

Seeing productions like "Parade" come to Des Moines is an excellent reminder of why we do theatre, and why we see theatre. Each element of this show comes together beautifully to not just tell the story of Leo Frank onstage, but also to prompt us to consider how quickly we form opinions about people. The show is a moving experience that will leave you thinking long after the final curtain.

The scaled-down ensemble compensates with singing out, as if it’s a grand opera chorus. The small orchestra plays with immense tenderness and expression. Great care is taken so that the sound design is never oppressive but waxes and wanes with the ...

The scaled-down ensemble compensates with singing out, as if it’s a grand opera chorus. The small orchestra plays with immense tenderness and expression. Great care is taken so that the sound design is never oppressive but waxes and wanes with the drama. “Parade” is the best touring musical of the year so far, but the run is short. Don’t let it pass you by.

But for “Parade,” which is a magnificent tour featuring far more organic and high-quality singing and acting than the nonetheless award-winning 2023 Broadway revival, all of that applies. Spectacularly so. Director Michael Arden clearly is still ...

But for “Parade,” which is a magnificent tour featuring far more organic and high-quality singing and acting than the nonetheless award-winning 2023 Broadway revival, all of that applies. Spectacularly so. Director Michael Arden clearly is still in charge. And I’ve seen enough of Jason Robert Brown in a rehearsal room over the years to know he does not mess around when performers are working on his music (I went all the way to Green Bay, Wisconsin, 25 years ago to see the first tour of “Parade” and found Brown in the pit, conducting his own score). All of that is self-evident at the CIBC Theatre, where I really can’t praise the two lead performers, Max Chernin and Talia Suskauer, highly enough.

Chernin’s Leo and Suskauer’s Lucille are at the nexus of “Parade.” Chernin is wondrously versatile, moving from the menacing, vaudevillian caricature of “Come Up to My Office” to the wrenching, twined ardor of “All the Wasted Time” wi...

Chernin’s Leo and Suskauer’s Lucille are at the nexus of “Parade.” Chernin is wondrously versatile, moving from the menacing, vaudevillian caricature of “Come Up to My Office” to the wrenching, twined ardor of “All the Wasted Time” with mesmerizing authenticity. Suskauer’s Lucille is an unswerving bulwark of goodness in a backwoods swamp largely defined by vile racism and antisemitism. Suskauer’s “Do it Alone” is a plea for connection and howl against bigotry, its lyrics (“I could start to scream/Across the whole damned South/And never shut my mouth”) powered by rage and terror. Together, Chernin and Suskauer have remarkable chemistry.

The acting and voices are all excellent, in all registers, from Binnicker (Tom Watson)’s oily baritone, to Tacconi (Brit Craig)’s frenzied tenor, to Knight (Newt Lee)’s rich, despairing bass, to Suskauer (Lucille Frank)’s lovely but strong me...

The acting and voices are all excellent, in all registers, from Binnicker (Tom Watson)’s oily baritone, to Tacconi (Brit Craig)’s frenzied tenor, to Knight (Newt Lee)’s rich, despairing bass, to Suskauer (Lucille Frank)’s lovely but strong mezzo. Ramone Nelson stands out as the amused, powerful, and evil Jim Conley.

“Parade” is both a warning and a promise of what America has been, is, and may become. This is musical theater at its most potent. Beautiful music, inspired directing, and a phenomenal cast merge for a once-in-a-lifetime production now in its fin...

“Parade” is both a warning and a promise of what America has been, is, and may become. This is musical theater at its most potent. Beautiful music, inspired directing, and a phenomenal cast merge for a once-in-a-lifetime production now in its final days. I doubt we will again see “Parade” so powerfully produced at so devastating a moment. Challenge yourself and “Parade” will stay with you well beyond the performance.