2000-06-20
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dan Hulbert

"Parade" sold 16,000 seats and grossed $437,000 for its weeklong run at the Fox Theatre, a "success in every way," says Christopher Manos, producer of Theater of the Stars.

A success, that is, for a musical drama based on the Leo Frank case, which paints a pretty dark picture of Atlanta at the turn of the century. As expected, the ticket sales represented only half the seats that were put up for sale in the Fox — one of the largest legitimate theaters in the nation. The same 16,000 tickets would have sold out the Vivian Beaumont Theatre at Lincoln Center, where "Parade" premiered and struggled for two months in 1998-99.

"We didn’t choose ‘Parade’ to make money," Manos said. "But we wanted to generate excitement, and from the feedback I’d say we did that. (Director) Hal Prince was ecstatic and feeling very upbeat about the coming tour."

The show travels to Memphis; Dallas; St. Paul, Minn.; Pittsburgh; Green Bay, Wis.; Denver; Seattle; and Cleveland. As original producer of the tour, Manos will receive a fee from those theaters and a percentage of box office, which he expects will cover the musical’s pre-production cost of $1 million.

Prince, one of Broadway’s most distinguished directors, has said that he would like to use the tour to demonstrate the show’s viability to financial supporters for a possible second New York run.


Credits: