All-Female JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR Releases Concept Album, Starring Morgan James, Shoshana Bean, Cynthia Erivo, and More!

In January of 2017, a powerful group of female performers came together for a sold-out concert of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar. The following year, the stars of the all-female Jesus Christ Superstar came back together, joined by some truly inspiring voices, for a long-awaited concept album.

The 5-track EP She is Risen: Volume One, is now available! The album reunites Broadway veterans and recording artists Morgan James (Motown, Godspell) as Jesus Christ, and Shoshana Bean (Wicked, Hairspray) as Judas Iscariot. The EP also brings together the stellar talents of Grammy and Tony Award winner Cynthia Erivo as Mary, Tony Nominee Orfeh as Pilate, and Grammy-nominated recording artist Ledisi as Simon.

Stream or download the album on all platforms here or visit www.she-is-risen.net for more information.

The project was helmed by an outstanding team that includes executive producers Dawn Kamerling and Richard Amelius, producers Meg Toohey and Morgan James, engineers Hannah Tobias and Vira Byramji, and mixing/mastering by Rachel Alina. It also features an orchestra of fourteen of Broadway's most sought after musicians.

"The amount of talent that came together to create this epic musical event is mind-blowing," said Toohey. "We wanted to make sure to give due respect to the original work and took a lot of time listening and trying to recreate tones and sounds that moved us so much while trying to remain true to our initial vision."

In 2018, Amelius and James partnered with PledgeMusic on a campaign to raise funds for the concept album. Sadly, PledgeMusic went bankrupt, absorbing the funds and derailing the initial release schedule. The EP's producers and extraordinary talent are proud to have seen the project through to fruition.

"This has been a labor of love and a passion project for me from day one," said James. "What started as a dream turned into a live concert event and then to this concept recording. We hand-selected some of the finest voices and artists in the industry, and what we created is incredibly special. We are so in need of female voices and leadership right now, and it gives me great joy to have brought these women together and shared in this music making."

With the all-female cast, the intent was to honor Rice and Webber's provocative and timeless story of revolution and persecution while offering an alternative gender identity and perspective. The EP's five tracks are "Heaven on Their Minds," "Pilate's Dream," "Simon Zealotes," "I Don't Know How to Love Him," and "Gethsemane" beautifully capture the intent and emotion of the 2017 concert, bringing to life this modern-day vision of a revolutionary who served as a spokesperson for the marginalized, and whose followers stood up in protest against the government.

"Jesus Christ Superstar is one of my favorite scores ever written," said James. "My amazing co-producer Meg Toohey and I wanted this recording to reflect our utter admiration and respect for the show and the original concept album in particular -and to that end, we didn't change a note. I hope you'll hear these classic songs with fresh ears - as sung and played with love by an incredible all-female cast and orchestra."

In addition to Volume One, the cast of She Is Risen plan to release Volume Two with five more selections, in addition to physical cds of the two together.