Occupy Bethlehem! The current Jesus Christ Superstar does its best to drag Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rock opera kicking and screaming into the 21st century. It’s a well staged money spinner, however iPads and tweets are no match for Lord Lloyd’s dodgy ’70s freak-out jams. If there was ever testament to the understanding and forgiving nature of Christians, it is the continued existence of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar.
Cheap shots at one of the most successful pieces of musical theatre aside, this production does a remarkable job of turning a flawed concept (dated musical and a cavernous, unsuitable space) into thoroughly crowd-pleasing entertainment. The cast is near flawless in their respective roles. Winning his spot as a result of the British TV show ITV Superstar (think Idol for musicals) Ben Forster has a remarkable voice and does all he can in the lead role. While the show that takes half of its title from the first two words out of my mouth when anyone mentions Andy Lloyd Webber, it is actually about Judas and not Jesus Christ at all. Tim Minchin, proving he can in fact perform while wearing shoes, devours what is in essence the staring role. He clearly loves the show and this opportunity to brood and strut as the original turncoat of (fictional) history. A man with music and musicals in his blood, his natural timbre is perhaps a touch nasal in lower registers. Such quibbles barely matter, he excels in bringing passion and regret to the role, and the glee in his eye descending from the rafters for the title number could be seen to the very back seat.
Melanie Chisholm AKA Mel C AKA Sporty Spice is a prefect fit for Mary Magdalene, during Could We Start Again, Please? She achieves the near-impossible, managing to covey genuine emotion in a space where nuance is easily lost without resorting to ham. Even when she stood back as part of the ensemble it was a joy to see her simply dance. Jon Stevens has come the full circle of life, the last time JCS was at this venue he was Judas, now he returns as Pontius Pilate. (That’s a name that has fallen out of fashion, I would respect a toddler called Pontius.) If anyone can make counting slowly to 39 interesting, as his character does in this show, it’s Stevens.
What the production lacked in staging, a necessary compromise of arena shows, it made up for in strength of numbers. The supporting cast and ensemble are stellar and create a real sense of excitement. They are let down by chorography that has a whiff of a youth Rock Eisteddfod about it, but they managed to transcend these limitations. The art direction and staging essentially casts Jesus as the leader of the Occupy movement battling against the 1%, with all the associated Banksy style stencil art, going so far as to have Jesus in an Obama style Shepherd Farley Hope poster, JC’s of course reads Believe. If you are a fan of the Lloyd Weber brand or the show, this revival won’t disappoint.
BY JACK FRANKLIN
LOVED: Mel (The most talented Spice Girl) C.
HATED: The venue.
DRANK: Plastic cups of beer.
