Review: JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, King's Theatre

Originating at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, this production of Jesus Christ Superstar is presented by David Ian for Crossroads Live and Work Light Productions. It is a sung-through rock opera first staged in 1971 with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice.

Loosely based on the Bible verse, Jesus Christ Superstar tells the story of how Jesus was betrayed by Judas and his eventual crucifixion. It features some of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's most loved songs such as "I Don't Know How To Love Him", "Gethsemane" and "Superstar". 

While there are a lot of less memorable songs, they are all given new life by fantastic vocalists. Shem Omari James plays Judas and Ian McIntosh is Jesus and both have some excellent big vocal moments. Hannah Richardson is also a musical highlight of the show, bringing a softness to the more gentle songs as Mary.

Tom Scutt's set design is brilliant with a huge cross serving as a platform for the performers throughout the show. Lee Curran's lighting design also really adds to the drama.

The sung-through format of the show depends on the audience already knowing this story as the narrative isn't clear. It's a loud show and occasionally the lyrics aren't clear. This particular performance was unfortunately affected by technical issues and after a late start to the show, they suffered a significant show stop a couple of songs from the end. Although it can't be helped, the stop did affect the impact of the final scenes. 

There's a real gig element to this production as the performers play their own instruments and use handheld microphones. Though it gives an electric atmosphere at times, some of the story and lyrics get lost in this format. 

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