The acclaimed Broadway musical “Parade” will launch its North American tour in January 2025. This Tony Award-winning revival will kick off at the historic Orpheum Theatre, bringing its powerful story of love, justice, and resilience to the stage. We sat down with Kittie Fahey, one of the show’s producers and a Minneapolis resident.
Tell me how you got started as a Broadway producer.
I’ve always loved Broadway, so I started out as an investor. I was investing more and more, and I really liked it. I decided I wanted to be on the producing side. Producers play a pivotal role in bringing theatrical productions to life by overseeing all aspects, from financing and casting to marketing and logistics, ensuring the show’s success on and off the stage.
How do you talk about the Minneapolis theater scene to outsiders?
I talk about it constantly, how great it is, and how we have one of the best theater scenes in the country. I talk about all the talent and opportunities we have here, whether it’s the Playwrights Center, the Jerome Fellowships, all the things that happen here. We have sophisticated audiences that fill our theatres. From theatre institutions like the Guthrie to new work in smaller houses, there is great theater all over the Cities, and we should put more time and money into developing new work for audiences here and for stages beyond Minnesota.
Why do you think Parade is relevant for 2025?
I think it’s more relevant now than ever. Imagine how unusual it was in that era to have a Northern Jew living in Georgia just doing everything he could to portray his faith and his humanity, and the way he was treated is so disgusting. Unfortunately, this is still how people are treated today—any group that is disenfranchised or an underrepresented group of people. There’s still so much hatred out there that it’s just hard to imagine and even watch on stage. I think it’s important for people to know this happened, and it happened in America not that long ago—a hundred years. It’s a heavy show but a story that needs to be told.
Photo by Joan Marcus
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