Parade - Manchester

Aw shame. I'm there for the matinee. The evening had sold out before I could get a ticket. Enjoy the final night!

I can only add to the praise about this incredible production. It ranks among my most memorable theatre experiences: stunning in every respect.

I'm genuinely excited about the future of this theatre- I saw in the programme that they're staging Hair later in the year. The thought of having more musicals and plays of this calibre and in the North-West is thrilling.

Thank you to this site for bringing the production to my attention as otherwise I would have missed it. I am eternally grateful!

Glad it went well! Were there any speeches?

Incidentally, I noticed that the pieces of paper that fell at the end of Act One each had a handwritten lyric from the court scene song. I thought that detail was neat.

No speeches. 

I could see the writing on them but not enough to realise that. I sat next to the jail cell tonight, so was very close to the action (not that every seat isn't close to the action!) and Laura Harrison (Lucille) is absolutely beautiful. 

A group of of youngsters, teen girls with one boy (!) were literally blubbing at the end. I mean open sobbing and hugging eachother. I think there was a bit of mass hysteria involved lol, and a lot of budding drama queens of course. 

That was one HELL of a production and definitely up there with the best things I've seen. I hope it's got this new theatre some recognition because it deserves it. 

I was sitting facing the stage on the front row and was marvelling at Laura's acting - crying and sniffing throughout the court scene. It was a detail I missed from the third row the first time but just two rows further forward and you notice so much more.

I can't wait to see what the Hope Mill has lined up in the future. I notice Urinetown is scheduled but I really hated the recent London production!

Sure Ive seen an advertfor Hair in the Parade programme and it has been mentioned before as the second of James Bakers shows at Hope Mill

My programme says that Hair is coming November 2016.

Interesting looking at the production history of this, this played the Vivianne Beaumount Theatre, which is a poor mans National Theatre in New York, it only played 84 performances with 39 previews, so this had no run at all, but why? Obviously the musical is excellent and affecting judging by what people have wrote on here, the musical is based on American history and a very dark time, which highlights anti sentism and a major injustice, could the failure of this, because Americans don't deal with self critism, the same reason why The Scottsboro Boys and Enron failed? I have heard it said that if Titanic was an American ship that hit an iceberg, the subsequent musical would have been a complete failure and would never of run more than 700 performances and wouldn't of bagged the Tony.

Interesting Harold Prince the original director, approached Stephen Sondheim to write the lyrics and music before approaching Jason Robert Brown, so this show could of taken a complete different turn.

I am not sure of the difference, but I hear the Donmar Warehouse recording is far superior. So would check that one out as a point of reference.

Can someone enlighten me of the difference?

Certainly agree it is a chamber musical.

Yes I would say that the Donmar recording is indeed superior.

You're totally correct that this should be a chamber piece, which is why the Southwark and this production completely thrived, and deservedly so. The OBC is far too over-produced and over-orchestrated. This is not a sweeping, romantic love story, this is a tender, often beautiful but ultimately tragic piece. The Donmar production reduced the orchestra to just a 9-piece and it allowed the intimacy and emotion to shine through, the stillness and emptiness - what's not being said is always as important as what is being said. The clashes in the music are harder to listen to (which is precisely the point I'd say, for example: when the "evermore lives the dream of atlanta" theme interrupts the prologue, and the battle of "factory girls/come up to my office"), the OBC made it sound far too 'pretty' - and not to mention the gorgeous vocal harmonies in songs such as Old Red Hills of Home & No, It Don't Make Sense To Me which, in my opinion, gets totally lost under the orchestra in the OBC. There are soaring melodies & glorious voices to be heard in the Donmar recording: All The Wasted Time, You Don't Know This Man, This Is Not Over Yet but also haunting and chilling moments such as It's Hard To Speak My Heart and Sh'ma, and the Donmar recording allows these songs to breath and just 'be'.

Not to forget that the Donmar recording also includes all dialogue from the show in full, so you get a complete musical in your ears!

This is probably my favourite musical - saw it at the Donmar without knowing much about it and was totally involved - and shocked at the end.

I bought the Donmar cast recording but later also the original USA one as well, as I heard JRB talking about the changes he made and wanted to hear the difference. The Donmar is far, far better -more emotion - and I prefer the revised version.

Also saw the Southwark production - definitely needs to be a small theatre. Despite now knowing the ending the I still came out with a beating heart - the projected picture at the end made it even more real and appalling.

So pleased that it has had a successful run further up the country.

Yes a few tracks, not the whole thing and I agree. Loads better than the OBC.