[NEohioPAL]Personal review of Beck's Parade

Fri Sep 27 06:02:02 PDT 2002

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       If you want a happy go lucky musical, fine, but if you want to see 
something that will make you think, go see Parade at the Beck Center. 
       Yes, there are some difficulties understanding all of the words at 
times due to microphone errors, but those soon become unnoticeable as the 
story takes hold of you. The performances in this production are so focused 
that you don't have to hear the words come of the actor's mouth's, you can 
understand them by their expression and demeanor. 
       Keith Gerchak portrays the role of Leo Frank, the Jewish man accused 
by his "peers" (please note the parentheses) of murdering a young child. He 
plays the role with ease, and watching the transformation he goes through is 
something you only hope to see in theatre. He also has a wonderful singing 
voice, and he gives the role the respect that it deserves. 
       More singing praises go to Sandra Emerick, who plays the role of 
Lucille, Leo's wife. She plays opposite against Gerchak's icy-to-begin with 
Leo. She is the woman who wants to help her husband but is told to stay in 
the kitchen. She finally convinces Leo that he has to listen to her and allow 
her to help if he wants to be freed. 
       Gerchak and Emerick balance each other out nicely, at the beginning he 
is cold and aloof, but she is warm and inviting. As he begins to allow her 
into his inner world even more, they begin to even out and understand each 
other better. 
       The ensemble is........wow. Let's just say that they all complement 
each other well, and can strongly sing Jason Robert Brown's emotional score. 
Everyone does something in this ensemble, and it sends shivers up my spine 
now as I think of them in the court room, and the ending sequence. A group of 
good singers and actors.
       The end of the first act is wrenching as you see the trial of Leo 
Frank, and the audacity of his lawyer (aptly played by Jim McCormack) to sit 
and watch the sham of a trial. 
       If AND WHEN you see this production, the second act, and especially 
the end of the act WILL haunt you. Numbers like Where Will You Stand When the 
Flood Comes? puts the question directly in your face. What would you do? 
Would you willingly sentence a man to death for the murder of a girl based on 
purely on speculation and not fact? 
       Well, you may say "No I would not stand for or tolerate that.", but 
unfortunately this IS a true story, and I'm positive that the people involved 
with it would have said the same thing as you prior to the incident. "I will 
not tolerate for injustice, I will seek the truth." Except what we mean is 
that we  want the truth, but sugar coated, and laced with happy endings, and 
if we can't have that, we change it to meet our needs. Sorry, life doesn't 
work that way. 
       Despite minor amplification problems, Parade turns out to be a 
stunning and chilling piece of theatre. The slow building of a hangman's 
platform onstage during bright and painfully happy musical scenes sets the 
true undertone for the second act. The set is multifunctional and serves its 
purpose well, and the costumes are gorgeous. The orchestra sounds great too, 
although a little loud at times. The bass player helped the conductor keep 
the cast with the orchestra when at times the cast can't see the conductor by 
keeping a steady and well defined beat.
       The lighting is very well done and sets the mood for every scene. I 
really enjoyed Parade, and I will probably go see it again, as I have a 
tendency to go see good productions at least twice. The final minutes of the 
show are too emotionally ripping to explain, but it includes a lonely parade 
of one at the end. A grieving and lonely woman who must live while under the 
constant watch of her peers, acting as spectators at a parade, wondering what 
they will see next. Leaving Lucille always wondering what life would have 
been like if justice had truly been served. 
       The box office number for the Beck Center is 216-521-2540

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<HTML>       If you want a happy go lucky musical, fine, but if you want to see something that will make you think, go see Parade at the Beck Center. 
       Yes, there are some difficulties understanding all of the words at times due to microphone errors, but those soon become unnoticeable as the story takes hold of you. The performances in this production are so focused that you don't have to hear the words come of the actor's mouth's, you can understand them by their expression and demeanor. 
       Keith Gerchak portrays the role of Leo Frank, the Jewish man accused by his "peers" (please note the parentheses) of murdering a young child. He plays the role with ease, and watching the transformation he goes through is something you only hope to see in theatre. He also has a wonderful singing voice, and he gives the role the respect that it deserves. 
       More singing praises go to Sandra Emerick, who plays the role of Lucille, Leo's wife. She plays opposite against Gerchak's icy-to-begin with Leo. She is the woman who wants to help her husband but is told to stay in the kitchen. She finally convinces Leo that he has to listen to her and allow her to help if he wants to be freed. 
       Gerchak and Emerick balance each other out nicely, at the beginning he is cold and aloof, but she is warm and inviting. As he begins to allow her into his inner world even more, they begin to even out and understand each other better. 
       The ensemble is........wow. Let's just say that they all complement each other well, and can strongly sing Jason Robert Brown's emotional score. Everyone does something in this ensemble, and it sends shivers up my spine now as I think of them in the court room, and the ending sequence. A group of good singers and actors. 
       The end of the first act is wrenching as you see the trial of Leo Frank, and the audacity of his lawyer (aptly played by Jim McCormack) to sit and watch the sham of a trial. 
       If AND WHEN you see this production, the second act, and especially the end of the act WILL haunt you. Numbers like Where Will You Stand When the Flood Comes? puts the question directly in your face. What would you do? Would you willingly sentence a man to death for the murder of a girl based on purely on speculation and not fact? 
       Well, you may say "No I would not stand for or tolerate that.", but unfortunately this IS a true story, and I'm positive that the people involved with it would have said the same thing as you prior to the incident. "I will not tolerate for injustice, I will seek the truth." Except what we mean is that we  want the truth, but sugar coated, and laced with happy endings, and if we can't have that, we change it to meet our needs. Sorry, life doesn't work that way. 
       Despite minor amplification problems, Parade turns out to be a stunning and chilling piece of theatre. The slow building of a hangman's platform onstage during bright and painfully happy musical scenes sets the true undertone for the second act. The set is multifunctional and serves its purpose well, and the costumes are gorgeous. The orchestra sounds great too, although a little loud at times. The bass player helped the conductor keep the cast with the orchestra when at times the cast can't see the conductor by keeping a steady and well defined beat. 
       The lighting is very well done and sets the mood for every scene. I really enjoyed Parade, and I will probably go see it again, as I have a tendency to go see good productions at least twice. The final minutes of the show are too emotionally ripping to explain, but it includes a lonely parade of one at the end. A grieving and lonely woman who must live while under the constant watch of her peers, acting as spectators at a parade, wondering what they will see next. Leaving Lucille always wondering what life would have been like if justice had truly been served. 
       The box office number for the Beck Center is 216-521-2540</HTML>

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