Musical Review: Jesus Christ Superstar

Perhaps one of the most famous musicals in history, Jesus Christ Superstar has thrilled and moved audiences since its 1971 premiere. Not only is the score (with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice) chock-full of rock bangers, but the themes of betrayal, doubt, revolution and faith are indelibly timeless. It’s for this reason that I eagerly anticipated the Guild Musical Theatre Group’s (GMTG) production of the show. I’m happy to report, then, that this version of Jesus Christ Superstar is a wonderful piece of musical theatre, an excellent and satisfying production that will delight as much as it will break hearts.

A faithful Bible adaptation this is not: while the show chronicles the final week of Jesus’ life (honing in on his relationship with Judas), it also plays fast and loose with this logic. At some points, the tone is furious and bleak; at others, gleeful and camp. It’s largely a credit to the skilled ensemble that the whole thing gels and feels cohesive, gluing the tense and fragile story beats. Each cast member, clad in ‘70s band tees and bootcut jeans, never takes their eye off the ball, delivering intricate choreography (courtesy of the skilled Lucy Gradel and Julia Portsmouth) and singing complex harmonies without once sounding out of breath. Special mention must go to the dancers, who exude charisma to spare.

Oscar Gibbons […] toes the line between enthusiastic leader and doubtful servant perfectly

As a sung-through musical, Jesus Christ Superstar is vocally demanding, with quick and unrelenting lyrics, and some characters’ vocal ranges being so wide you could fit a bus through them (one gets the sense that mugs of tea and vocal steamers abound in the dressing room). Thankfully, this is a gifted set of principal performers, who are not only able to match the complexity of Lloyd Webber’s score but imbue the characters with the necessary emotion.

The two lead roles are perfectly cast. Oscar Gibbons, in the titular role, toes the line between enthusiastic leader and doubtful servant perfectly, and his rendition of ‘Gethsemane’ – one of the show’s most well-known numbers – sent a chill through the room. Yet this is as much a story about Judas, and Ben Coleman is deliciously bitter as the jaded Judas (the eyeliner was an inspired choice). Together, the pair of them make for fascinating foils, and as their petty spats grow into tragic mutual destruction, each brings suitably potent fury to the stage.

Ben Coleman is deliciously bitter as the jaded Judas

Elsewhere, Abi Cannon was luminescent as Mary Magdalene, with her solo number ‘I Don’t Know How to Love Him’ eliciting more than a few teary sniffles around me. Peter, played by Fraser Stevens, was gorgeously conflicted, and his denial was one of the most emotive points in a show full of them. Eliza Niblett, Alex Bower and Alice Cundick all assumed the respective roles of Pontius Pilate, Caiaphas and Annas with impressive ease, while Josh Levene was an Act Two scene-stealer as the gloriously evil, glitter-clad King Herod, whose sublime number came replete with a troupe of cabaret dancers.

Any production of Jesus Christ Superstar is either made or killed by its musical department. Here, the band is led with aplomb by co-musical directors Sam Ornadel (keys 1) and Annie Wright (conductor), playing their way through soft ballads and odd time signatures with their eyes shut. I particularly loved the keyboard effects, which never once felt out of place and added a uniquely ‘70s touch to a musical indebted to that period of music.

Added a uniquely ‘70s touch

As this was opening night, the show wasn’t without minor hiccups, notably issues with mics and, occasionally, lighting. Yet it’s a testament to the confident direction (Iona Berry and Sam Moore) that the cast’s attention and dedication never once wavered. It helped, too, that there were several memorable moments – the frantic urgency of ‘The Temple’, the bone-chilling horror of ‘Trial Before Pilate’, the banal tragedy of the final sequence – where the technical aspects coalesced into something truly special, and made me forget I was watching a university production.

GMTG’s production of Jesus Christ Superstar is as moving as it is outright entertaining (that is, if you’re willing to let the Biblical anachronisms slide). While it was an ambitious gamble for a university society, it is a gamble that has undoubtedly paid off with this juggernaut of a show.