ParadePresented by SEDOS
The Bridewell Theatre, Bride Lane, Fleet Street
25/11/2009 - 05/12/2009
* Beautiful, Thought Provoking, and Challenging Musical Theatre
SEDOS may be London’s premier amateur theatre company, but the work that it produces holds up to professional standards. This is a company that pushes boundaries and takes risks when selecting its performance material and that presents theatre well worth seeing. Certainly, this is the case with their newest production of “Parade”. A riveting production written by Alfred Uhry and composed by musical theatre prodigy Jason Robert Brown, this difficult piece confronts head on the issues of racism, violence, and legal injustice. Focusing on true events that occurred in Atlanta, Georgia at the turn of the 20th Century, “Parade” is at once dramatic, beautiful, controversial, and heartbreaking. And, although there are areas for growth in this particular restaging, the overall effort is an admirable one.
In 1913, Atlanta was still bitter over the loss of the Civil War, rife with race and class tensions, and seething with contempt for the North. When a young girl was found brutally murdered in the basement of the factory where she worked, it was the factory’s supervisor, Leo Frank, who was charged with the crime. Despite the lack of any clear evidence and his insistent pleas of innocence, Leo Frank was wrongly tried, convicted, and sentenced to death. That he happened to be a middle class, Jewish industrialist from New York did not go unnoticed and newspapers throughout the major cities of the North called for his life to be spared, but to no avail. This is the premise of “Parade”.
This is director Alan Pavis’ debut at the Bridewell Theatre, and he has cast and staged his production skillfully. Despite technical difficulties that delayed the opening night curtain, these issues were quickly resolved and the overall impression of the sound and lighting design was very good. Furthermore, Rachel Williams’ choreography utilized well both the available space and the performers’ varying abilities. Nevertheless, some dance sequences did seem out of place for the tone of the subject matter, particularly the chorus’ employment of “jazz hands” during the trial scene.
Perhaps the most important part of “Parade”, though, is its score. Often described as the Sondheim of his generation, composer Jason Robert Brown is famous for creating beautifully melodic, complex, modern musical theatre. To that end, Musical Director Matthew Gould has obviously worked a great deal with an already very gifted cast, and it has paid off. From Richard Ash’s opening lines to the last note of the piece, “Parade” is beautifully and emotionally sung. The only major issue, then, is the placement and volume of the band. Sitting upstage center, directly behind the area where most of the action takes place, the band frequently drowns out the singer’s voices and makes hearing and understanding the lyrics difficult. In a piece with so little dialogue and where the plot is driven forward by the music, missing even a single line can be disastrous.
As a cast, there are some notable performances and a few very good ones. Ben Fuiava, with his powerful and soulful voice, is exceptionally good as Jim Conley. Paul Wooller as Frankie Epps is fantastically charismatic, and Jason Thomas is excellent as the prosecuting attorney Hugh Dorsey. However, the crucial relationship of the piece is undoubtedly between James Franey and Pippa Lloyd as Leo and Lucille Frank. In the First Act, their relationship seems almost too hostile and restrained and it could benefit from a bit more tenderness and humanity. While the tragedy of their relationship comes from realizing too late how much they have taken their love for granted, there still needs to be some warmth between them from the start. When the warmth is found, however, Franey and Lloyd provide the production with its most resoundingly beautiful moment. The second act’s “All the Wasted Time” is breathtakingly good, and if there was no other merit to this production, it would be worth seeing for these few brilliant minutes alone. Thankfully, though, there is plenty of merit to “Parade”, and it promises an enjoyable, thought provoking evening. 3 Stars.
Playing through December 5th at the Bridewell Theatre on Bride Lane, Fleet Street. Review written by Megan Hunter for Fringe Review: http://www.fringereview.co.uk.
