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re: My LA ten best list (Parade)

Posted by:	Pir8Jenny 06:53 pm EST 12/28/13
In reply to:	re: My LA ten best list (Parade) - Dr._L 05:51 pm EST 12/27/13

This one was much more straightforward. None of the business with the Southern Belle floating through the production -- and I didn't feel any attempt to relate "Parade" to any sort of current political debate like I felt at the one in the Taper. This production tried really hard to put the emphasis on Leo Frank himself -- they had blow-ups of newspaper articles and stuff all over the lobby, just drawing more focus onto this single act of anti-Semitism and injustice. Also, the guy playing Leo Frank could really sing it. I think he's the best of the three Leo's I've seen (the first was on Broadway). I still think there's something about "Parade" which the CD got right and none of the productions have -- which is the delicate balance between the townspeople being sympathetic characters (because they are grieving over the murder) and them being an unruly mob. To me, the CD hits this right -- with Frankie's youth, the reporter's desire for a big story, and the preacher's own motives sort of combining into a perfect storm. But I haven't seen a staged version where the town came off as anything other than biased assholes.

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