REVIEW: The 50th Anniversary Tour Of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR Provides Contemporary Clarity To The Musical That Started Life As A Concept Album

Sunday 10th November 2024, 6pm, Capitol Theatre (Preview Reviewed)

Timothy Sheader’s (Director) Olivier Award winning production of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber (Music) and Sir Tim Rices (Lyrics) JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR arrives at Capitol Theatre 52 years after the rock musical made its Australian premiere on the same stage.  The production that originated at Regents Park Open Air Theatre in 2016 is presented with an Australian cast including soul and blues singer Mahalia Barnes and multi-talented cabaret icon Reuben Kaye, this work gives Lloyd Webber and Rice’s take on the Bible story a contemporary and often camp twist.

The sung-through rock opera started life as a concept album after Lloyd Webber and Rice contemplated a follow up piece to their earlier JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOUR DREAMCOAT.  Intrigued by the final lines in Bob Dylan’s “With God on our Side”, Rice shifted the focus of the project to consider what the Passion of Christ story would look like if presented from Judas Iscariot’s point of view.  JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR is as much Judas’ story as it is Jesus’ with the musical challenging the usual rhetoric that made Judas, along with Pontius Pilate and King Herod, to be the villains of the story whereas maybe more blame should be placed on Jesus who seemed caught up in his own hype, and the citizens of Jerusalem that turned on him demanding his death regardless of the fact Pilate had nothing substantial to charge him with. 

With an industrial aesthetic, dominated by riveted steel and concrete, designer Tom Scutt has created a multi-level stage, which holds references the underlying outcome of the story with a single reference to an outside world that is less affected by the lies and manipulation taking place within the “city walls”.  Scutt’s costume design draws on contemporary street styles of baggy pants, sports shoes and hoodies in monochrome palette, allowing the ensemble to gradually morph into more traditional stylings as the story progresses, even allowing an interpretation of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” to be recreated.  The officials and leaders that wish to suppress Jesus are each given a unique style with an ever increasingly camp and queer undertone, from Caiaphas, Annas and the Priests’ chest plates on bare chests, Pontius Pilate’s rocker leathers and King Herod’s extravagant gold creation.  Scutt’s costume design informs Drew McOnie’s choreography, particularly for the ensemble, drawing on street and hip hop with repetitive themes including expressing that Jesus’ followers were blindly following him in comparison to Judas who was questioning the merit of Jesus preachings though the choreography of the masses was at times disjointed and possibly the weakest part of the production. 

A work that is as well known as JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR hangs on the quality of the casting and this cast is incredibly strong.  Michael Paynter delivers a Jesus that is suitably self absorbed, drawn into his own hype, while being ignorant of the warnings that his friend Judas is trying to give him.  He has strong vocals with the requisite range and sensitivity to capture the emotion required.  As Mary Magdalene, Mahalia Barnes, making her musical theatre debut, makes the role her own.  Mary’s solos have been covered by many artists over the years, but Barnes lends her own styling to her interpretation to add more nuanced emotion and intention to a role that is written with little dramatic character depth.  Peter Murphy ensures that his Pontius Pilate is suitably conflicted as he has no legal reason to order Jesus’ death but is driven by the will of the people baying for blood.  Elliot Baker and John O’Hara as Caiaphas and Annas respectively are imposing and sinister in their calculated targeting and orchestration of Jesus’ demise.

The standouts of the production are Reuben Kaye’s one song appearance as King Herod and Javon King’s portrayal of Judas Iscariot, the man history has painted as the disciple that sold out his friend for 30 pieces of silver.  Kaye is a perfect fit for the over the top King, both in terms of his fabulous voice and stage presence that handles the choreography in heeled boots on a raked crucifix catwalk while giving the impression that he’s improvising in character like he does in his own cabaret shows.  As Judas, King carries the weight of the story with clarity to ensure that audiences will be questioning any previous notion that Judas was at fault.  He ensures that the emotional turmoil is clear while also expressing that Judas, unlike those following Jesus in blind faith, can see the hypocrisy of Jesus’s teaching versus his actions that echo any wealthy and extravagant leader that espouses the need for charity and looking after the poor while indulging in expensive pursuits. King has an incredible voice that soars through Lloyd Webber’s score while capturing the nuance and texture of the work. 

At a time where the world is being challenged by societies claiming to be called to action based on religious teachings and divided along religious lines, with each party trying to convince the rest of the world their view is the valid one and that they are justified in their vilification of another entity or their ‘defence’ against that entity, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR holds an ongoing relevance.  It turns the traditional understanding of the Passion of Christ on its head as it asks people to really consider what went on.  Presented with a clarity that many previous productions have not managed, at least not to this extent, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR remains a captivating rock musical for the modern age.

https://jesuschristsuperstarmusical.com.au/

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