''Parade'' is a

musical revue ''Musical Revue'' is a live album featuring Prince Far I and Suns of Arqa released on ROIR Europe in 1988. The album was produced by Phil Rainford and features a live recording of Prince Far I with Suns of Arqa at Band on the Wall in Mancheste ...

with book, music, and lyrics by

Jerry Herman Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre. One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricist ...

. The original production was produced by

Lawrence Kasha Lawrence Kasha (December 3, 1933 – September 29, 1990) was an American theatre producer and director, playwright, and stage manager. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Kasha began his Broadway career as a production assistant for ''Silk Stocking ...

that opened originally at the Showplace in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and moved

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

The Players Theatre The Players Theatre, located at 115 MacDougal Street between West 3rd and Bleecker Streets in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan, is one of the oldest commercial Off-Broadway theatres in operation in New York City. The Players Theatre co ...

on January 20, 1960.

Productions

Original Production

In addition to writing the book, music and lyrics, Jerry Herman directed the show with choreography and staging by Richard Tone. The costumes were by Nilo and the production was designed by Gary Smith. The cast included

Dody Goodman Dody Goodman (October 28, 1914 – June 22, 2008) was an American character actress. She played the mother of the title character in the television series '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'', her distinctive high-pitched voice announcing the ...

, Richard Tone, Fia Karin,

Charles Nelson Reilly Charles Nelson Reilly (January 13, 1931 – May 25, 2007) was an American actor, comedian, director and drama teacher. He performed in the original Broadway casts of ''Bye Bye Birdie''; '' Hello, Dolly!''; and '' How to Succeed in Business With ...

, and Lester James.Atkinson, Brooks. "The Theatre: Parade", ''The New York Times'', January 21, 1960, p. 27 Some of the songs from ''Parade'' were later used by Herman in ''

Mame MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to emulate the hardware of arcade games, video game consoles, old computers and other systems in software on modern personal computers and ...

'' and ''

Mack and Mabel ''Mack & Mabel'' is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand (transformed from an artist's mo ...

''.Gans, Andrew; Jones, Kenneth
"Decca Releases Jerry Herman's 1960 Revue, 'Parade', on CD Oct. 22"
Playbill, October 14, 2002 For example, Herman used the song "Show Tune" with a new lyric and stronger B section, as "It's Today" in ''Mame.''Suskin, Steven
"ON THE RECORD: 'Oh! Captain' and Jerry Herman's' Parade'"
Playbill, November 3, 2002

Original Cast

* Richard Tone * Fia Karin *

* Lester James

Musical numbers

The songs and sketches reflected some topical and local subjects, such as Goodman and Reilly portraying New York Governor

Nelson Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich "Rocky" Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979) was the 41st vice president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford. He was also the 49th governor of New York, serving from 1959 to 197 ...

and his wife, explaining why he decided not to run for president in the 1960 election. "Jolly Theatrical Season" made fun of overly serious plays. In "Save the Village" Goodman poked fun at people who wanted to save Greenwich Village. William Ruhlman wrote that the romantic ballads – "Your Hand in Mine," "The Next Time I Love," "Another Candle" – "might have had a chance to live beyond the show if it had been more successful."Ruhlmann, William
" 'Parade: A Musical Revue' "
allmusic.com, accessed December 23, 2016 * "Show Tune" - The Company * "Your Hand in Mind" - Lester James and Fia Karin * "Maria in Spats" - Dody Goodman * "Confession to a Park Avenue Mother" - Charles Nelson Reilly * "Save the Village" - Dody Goodman * "Jolly Theatrical Season" - Dody Goodman and Charles Nelson Reilly * "Two a Day" - Richard Tone * "Just Plain Folks" - Dody Goodman and Charles Nelson Reilly * "The Antique Man" - Lester James * "The Next Time I Love" - Fia Karin * "Your Good Morning" - Lester James and Fia Karin * "Another Candle" - Fia Karin * Finale: "Parade" - Company

Recording

original cast recording A cast recording is a recording of a stage musical that is intended to document the songs as they were performed in the show and experienced by the audience. An original cast recording or OCR, as the name implies, features the voices of the sho ...

was released by

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

Reception

The show failed to make much of an impression. According to

Steven Suskin Steven Suskin is an American theater critic and historian of musical theater. He is a member emeritus of the New York Drama Critics' Circle The New York Drama Critics' Circle is made up of 23 drama critics from daily newspapers, magazines and w ...

, " 'Parade'...didn't cause much of a stir over the course of its 95-performance run." Dan Dietz noted that

Brooks Atkinson Justin Brooks Atkinson (November 28, 1894 – January 14, 1984) was an American theater critic. He worked for ''The New York Times'' from 1922 to 1960. In his obituary, the ''Times'' called him "the theater's most influential reviewer of his ...

"was somewhat cool to Jerry Herman's contributions...", Atkinson writing that the revue was more "in the style of 'Little Broadway' than 'Off-Broadway'." Dan Dietz wrote that the song "Maria in Spats", about the opera diva Maria Callas, sung by Dody Goodman was "memorable." Stephen Citron observed that "what these songs lack in craft is made up for in élan....The show end with what would become a Herman trademark, a reprise of most of the revue's twelve songs.... In spite of the ''Times'' pan, ''Parade'' was Herman's steppingstone to Broadway."Citron, Stephen
"College and Beyond"
''Jerry Herman: Poet of the Showtune'', Yale University Press, 2008, , pp 43-46

References

{{Jerry Herman Revues 1960 musicals Musicals by Jerry Herman Off-Broadway musicals