Bermuda Actor Praised for Musical Role

Bermudian actor Daren A. Herbert steals the dark-themed show in a new Toronto revival of the Broadway musical ”Parade”, a meditation on race, religion and bigotry in the pre-First World War American South by “Driving Miss Daisy” writer Alfred Uhry and composer Jason Robert Brown

The winner of two Tony Awards for best book and score, and the Drama Desk and New York Critics’ Circle awards for best musical, “Parade” has built an international following for its powerful narrative.

The Toronto production being staged at the city’s downtown Berkeley Theatre opened on December 30 and runs until January 22.

“Parade” has opened to mixed reviews — but Mr. Herbert has received stand-out notices for both his performance and singing.

“The songs are overall mediocre with the exception of the rousing ‘That’s What He Said’, brilliantly performed by Daren A. Herbert,” said one Toronto critic. “It’s what’s needed more of, some exposition, and the song whips the town into a frenzy of bloodlust for the accused. It should also be said that the second last song, ‘All the Wasted Time’ between the accused and his wife, while supposedly presented as one final heart-felt goodbye falls totally flat and had everyone grabbing for their coats.”

Based on real events, “Parade” has been described as “maybe the saddest musical ever”. The show is set in 1913 Atlanta, Georgia. When a teenaged factory employee is raped and murdered, Leo Frank — the young Jewish manager of the factory — is charged with the crime. By manipulating witnesses and tampering with evidence, the prosecution convinces the jury that Frank is guilty.

One of the most sensational trials of the 20th century, this case pressed every hot-button issue of the time: North vs. South, black vs. white, Jewish vs. Christian, industrial vs. agrarian. The musical recounts the press frenzy and public outrage surrounding Frank’s trial and conviction, including his crusade for justice amid religious intolerance, political interference and racial tension.

Born and raised in Bermuda, Daren Herbert has worked on stages and sets on the island, in Canada, the US, Korea and Japan. He earned a 2010 nomination for the Canadian theatre’s coveted Dora Award for his work in “The Toxic Avenger Musical” and won a Los AngelesDrama Critics Circle Award as well as an NAACP Theatre Award nomination, for work in the West Coast premiere of “The Wild Party”.

His film and TV credits include “Dreamgirls”, “2012″ and “Hot Tub Time Machine” and he recently completed filming a role alongside Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon in the upcoming romantic comedy “This Means War”. A Warwick Academy graduate, Mr. Herbert Daren holds a BFA in Theatre Arts from the University of the Arts, Philadelphia, as well as an MFA in Drama from the University of California Mount, St, Irvine.

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