Is Parade due for a Broadway revival?

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:04pm

With all that's going on in the United States, do you think it's time for a Broadway revival of Parade?

[little_sally]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:15pm

I love the score but I can't imagine there's an audience for it. That being said, it would be great for CSC or the Signature to mount it as part of their seasons. 

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:18pm

I think so. But I'm not holding my breath. I'd love to see a production starring josh Radnor.

[wssinsider]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:20pm

Not at all. I saw the original 4 times to empty audiences. Is a very dark piece of musical theater that is impossible to sell. 

[After Eight]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:34pm

Alex,

How much punishment do you expect us to take?

I long for the day you'll posit the notion of revivals of Leave It to Jane, Good News, or Peggy-Ann.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:36pm

Beautiful show, but far too dark and depressing for it to ever find an audience. I don't think we'll ever see a full scale revival unless a huge star wanted to do it. 

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 12/14/16 at 7:41pm

If something is getting revived due to the political climate, I'd much rather see the return of Angels in America.

I do think this score is beautiful, but the chances of it even getting a non-commercial revival are just non-existent. 

[TFMH18]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 9:56am

If Jake G ever wanted to do this, his star power would draw audiences. Carmen Cusack as Lucille is pretty much a given at this point. 

[JBroadway]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:03am

TFMH18 said: "Carmen Cusack as Lucille is pretty much a given at this point. "

 

That's a bit of a strong statement, don't you think?  

 

[TFMH18]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:18am

It might be a strong statement if this video of her singing "You Don't Know This Man" didn't exist. There is simply no other option. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUz-2Dsn-lo

[newintown]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:22am

It seems unlikely, but who knows? Reviving flops is sort of becoming a thing, isn't it? What with Side Show, Gigi, Carrie, Sunset Boulevard, Jekyll & Hyde, Ragtime, etc.

[HenryTDobson]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:30am

I believe it could be successful if it were completely re-imagined, in the same vein as the current Color Purple revival. How about a star for Lucille? Amy Adams? 

[markypoo]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:48am

Daniel Radcliffe as Leo

[adamgreer]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:49am

Carmen Cusack would be an excellent Lucille, but she'd sell about 6 tickets. The show is an extremely tough sell to begin with given the subject matter.  Without two MAJOR stars in the leads, I just don't see this happening. 

[newintown]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 10:55am

"I believe it could be successful if it were completely re-imagined, in the same vein as the current Color Purple revival."

I'm sure that's what was thought about every flop revival. And the original Color Purple production recouped, didn't it? I don't recall it being thought of as a flop (although a two-year run isn't much of a big deal these days).

"Carmen Cusack would be an excellent Lucille, but she'd sell about 6 tickets."

That's probably true; musical theatre fans tend to have a highly exaggerated impression of the actual fame of musical theatre actors.

[TFMH18]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 11:02am

I never once said Cusack would be a ticket draw, nor implied anything about her level of "fame." She would be the most excellent choice for Lucille, that's just true. To sell the show, however, she would need to star opposite someone as actually famous as Gyllenhaal. 

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 11:15am

A brilliant show that is insanely depressing (much more so than the likes of Hamilton or Cabaret).  Even The Color Purple has a lift to its ending.  As much as I love the show, I can't see it ever being a commercial hit on Broadway unless it cast a major Hollywood star name that would guarantee a box office draw who would agree to perform the run until it recoups.

 

How much punishment do you expect us to take?

Why do you pretend to be so stupid?  If you feel you're being punished, I'm totally okay with that.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 11:23am

I can only imagine AfterEight back in 1875 as he and his friends fretted over the salacious events taking place in Act IV of that new opera Carmen. 

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 11:26am

markypoo said: "Daniel Radcliffe as Leo"

Talented as he is, there's no way he has the voice to sing this score. 

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 11:27am

newintown said: ""I believe it could be successful if it were completely re-imagined, in the same vein as the current Color Purple revival."

I'm sure that's what was thought about every flop revival. And the original Color Purple production recouped, didn't it? I don't recall it being thought of as a flop (although a two-year run isn't much of a big deal these days)."

I think what HenryTDobson meant was how the original production of The Color Purple wasn't so well-received the first time around, but John Doyle's production really made a difference.

Maybe Roundabout could produce a revival.

[newintown]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 12:48pm

"I think what HenryTDobson meant was how the original production of The Color Purple wasn't so well-received the first time around..."

The reviews may have been better (I still think it's one of the worst scores written in years), but the show itself certainly wasn't commercially better received, running a year shorter and in a much smaller house.

[Relevance81491]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 1:13pm

I think John Doyle and CSC would be a FANTASTIC  match for the material. I really hope they do it 

[little_sally]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 2:12pm

Relevance81491 said: "I think John Doyle and CSC would be a FANTASTIC  match for the material. I really hope they do it 


Definitely. I can see this working as a scaled down production at CSC.

 

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 12/15/16 at 6:52pm

After Eight said: "Alex,

How much punishment do you expect us to take?

I long for the day you'll posit the notion of revivals of Leave It to Jane, Good News, or Peggy-Ann.

 

"

LEAVE IT TO JANE was revived off-Broadway, I believe, and a studio recording was made. I have it. GOOD NEWS was revived in the 1970s and a new OCR was made. I have it, too.

"Where's That Rainbow" is a great song, but I've never read any historian who thinks the book of PEGGY-ANN has any value whatsoever. Perhaps a Rodgers & Hart revue would better serve.

Updated On: 12/15/16 at 06:52 PM

[markypoo]

Posted: 12/16/16 at 5:48pm

Daniel can do anything!  He could even play King Lear!