Jesus Christ Superstar
Palace Theatre
Jesus Christ Superstar is arguable the original rock musical. Telling the story of the final days of Jesus, the sung through musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice hasn’t toured for a number of years, but seems to go through a revival every decade. This revival was directed by Timothy Sheader in his capacity as Artistic Director of Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre where this production originated, and where it won an Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival in 2017.
As an early disclaimer, Jesus Christ Superstar is one of my (Jo’s) favourite musicals. The soundtrack is played weekly, and Murray Head’s portrayal of Judas is one of the greatest musical theatre moments ever (possibly second only to the production of JC Superstar I was in at school). Boarding on superfan terroritory, expectations for this show were high. Happily, for the most part, this show absolutely delivered.
The set was simplistic but visually stunning. A fallen crucifix creates an elevated walkway on one side of the stage (not really centred or off-centred enough to be called truly off-centre), whilst on the other side is a multi-level structure that the musicians are on the top of.
Much of the set features concert regalia; microphones, standard ‘roadie’ type cases and cords / leads galore. This very easily gave the rock star image of Jesus that is synonymous with Jesus Christ Superstar. Arguably, the best displays of this rock concert symbolism is with The Pharisees who march onto the elevated walkway carrying what appear to be croziers, but when turned around are actually microphones at the bottom. This was brilliantly simplistic but incredibly effective.
Another fantastic use of the theming is when Judas dies. He is shown climbing the multi-level structure next to the musicians and then drops a microphone which is left hanging on the cord to signify his suicide. This was a very impactful piece of theatre and executed perfectly.
Away from the staging, the costumes were also outstanding. The followers of Jesus appeared in beige, hip-hop inspired outfits, whilst Julian Clary was a vision in gold as Herod.
Vocally, this is an incredibly strong cast. Ian McIntosh as Jesus is truly phenomenal. ‘Gethsemane’ is not an easy song to sing, nevermind to truly act the emotion of the song, but McIntosh totally nailed every element. Each inflection was perfect, and the entire auditorium was pin-drop silent throughout his rendition. He had the unique ability to draw every single member of the audience into the song, so that you really believed he was singing to you, and to you alone.
Hannah Richardson as Mary Magdalene had a similar ability during ‘I Don’t Know How To Love Him’.
In contrast, Shem Omari James’ portrayal of Judas felt somewhat flat. The level of anger required for the role was missing, and at times some of the enunciation of the lyrics was lacking. That isn’t to say his delivery was bad, there just wasn’t the wow moment that we saw with McIntosh and Richardson.
Julian Clary as Herod was a pleasant surprise. He was, as you could probably have guessed, incredibly camp. Rather than sing, he delivered his song more akin to one of his stand up routines which strangely works, even though on paper it shouldn’t.
Ryan O’Donnell’s Pilate was also captivating. The desperations as he pleaded with McIntosh’s Jesus was palpable. Finally, Jad Habchi’s Caiaphas and Matt Bateman’s Annas were brilliant. Their delivery of “He is dangerous” during ‘Hosana’ was perfectly chilling.
There are some elements to this production which didn’t quite work for us. Throughout the show there is a dancer on stage whose role remains a complete mystery to us. She seems to deliver a kind of interpretive dance throughout, but rather than being thought provoking or furthering the narrative, she’s an unnecessary distraction.
There’s also a brief moment where the disciples recreate Da Vinci’s The Last Supper, but the moment is over too quickly to really have the resonance it deserved. Inexplicably, Mary Magdalene also appears in The Last Supper recreation, perhaps to make up the numbers?
Finally, the 39 lashes is created with the use of glitter. This didn’t feel as powerful as it should have in person, though does translate very well on the production images.
One aspect where a glittery substance was used effectively was when Judas accepted payment for revealing where Jesus was. Shem Omari James dips his hands into a silver / white glittery paint substance that is within a chest delivered by The Pharisees. That substance remained on his hands throughout the production as a powerful symbolism of what Judas had done.
The end of Act 1 and the start of Act 2 was also hugely powerful. As the curtain falls, Judas is centre stage with his silver / white coloured hands. As the curtain rises for Act 2, Judas and the rest of the cast are stood in the exact same positions as if they hadn’t moved for the entire interval.
Admittedly, this show would have had to have some serious issues to not be rated highly. The parts that don’t quite work can be forgiven because the majority doesn’t just deliver it absolutely excels. This is a must see production and an outstanding piece of theatre.
The show is touring the UK, and whilst the Manchester run has concluded, the show is due to be at the Liverpool Empire between 23rd and 28th October. Full tour details and tickets can be found on the tour website.
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