Neo-Nazis Picket Broadway Show About Jewish Worker Lynched By Mob

NEW YORK CITY — Neo-Nazis picketed the preview of a Broadway musical about a Jewish man who was falsely accused of murder and lynched, according to the cast and producers.

The National Socialist Movement — among the nation's largest neo-Nazi groups and best known for staging protests in Nazi uniforms — appeared Tuesday night outside the Bernard B. Jacobs Theater for the preview of the musical "Parade," according to producers and reports.

"If there is any remaining doubt out there about the urgency of telling this story in this moment in history," they said in a statement, "the vileness on display in front of our theater last night should put it to rest."

The neo-Nazis carried antisemitic signs and screamed at ticket-holders, according to multiple reports.

"Romanticizing pedophiles," one the men tells patrons on video posted to Twitter. "Wow."

The musical tells the true story of Jewish factory superintendent Leo Frank, who it was later determined was wrongly convicted in Georgia of murdering a 13-year-old girl in 1913.

Frank's death spurred the creation of the Anti-Defamation League, who called Tuesday's events "vile antisemitism on full display."

"Parade" star Ben Platt took to social media Tuesday night to address the appearance of neo-Nazis outside the show.

"I don't usually address social media in this manner because I'm afraid of it," Platt said.

"It was definitely very ugly and scary," the Tony Award-winner said, "but a wonderful reminder of why we're telling this particular story."