Jesus Christ Superstar, the ground-breaking rock opera which reinvented musical theatre for the modern age, tells the story of the last week of Christ's life. The zeal with which Christ's followers are hailing him as the Son of God becomes a source of dismay to his disciple Judas Iscariot. Fearing that this tide of religious fervor will provoke brutal repression by the occupying Romans, Judas must make his fateful choice between faith and betrayal.
This production opened at Canada's Stratford Shakespeare Festival and transferred to the La Jolla Playhouse for a run in 2011.
McAnuff deserves credit for an admirable job of pacing—the show flies by at a little less than two hours—and a talented cast displays an array of powerful rock voices. Paul Nolan’s Jesus reaches the heights of anguish and yearning without going overboard. Chilina Kennedy has a lovely, liquid tone that subtly imparts Mary Magdalene’s need for totally accepting Christ’s love and her reluctance to give up her old wanton ways, especially on the gentle “I Don’t Know How to Love Him.” Special kudos to understudy Jeremy Kushnier, who stepped into the pivotal role of Judas for an ailing Josh Young. Kushnier meets the difficult requirements of the demanding score while making Judas more than a hissable villain. He makes the decision to betray Jesus understandable if not sympathetic. The reliable Tom Hewitt makes for a formidable Pilate. As the high priest Caiaphas, Marcus Nance has a bass that flows like melted butter, while Lee Siegel, as Simon, and Mike Nadajewski, as Peter, have strong moments.
Nolan transcends this one-dimensionality with a strong portrait, musically cresting with “Gethsemane,” whose anthem-rock style jars somewhat with the mood of a moment that the Gospels describe as “overwhelmed with sorrow”. But if the aim of Lloyd Webber and Rice was literalism, the show’s plot – an account of Jesus’s final days – would be an old-fashioned Passion Play rather than something that at its Broadway premiere in 1971 could still seem groovy.
1971 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
1972 | West End |
London Production West End |
1977 | US Tour |
Touring Revival US Tour |
1977 | Milburn, NJ (Regional) |
Paper Mill Production Milburn, NJ (Regional) |
1977 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
1995 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway Revival Off-Broadway |
1996 | West End |
London Revival West End |
2000 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
2002 | US Tour |
First Class National Tour US Tour |
2006 | Beverly, MA (Regional) |
North Shore Music Theatre Production Beverly, MA (Regional) |
2012 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
2017 | Off-Broadway |
All-Female Concert Production Off-Broadway |
2017 | St. Louis, MO (Regional) |
The Muny's Revival Adaptation St. Louis, MO (Regional) |
2017 | West End |
Regents Open Air Theatre Revival West End |
2018 | Motion Picture |
NBC Live Televised Production Motion Picture |
2019 | West End |
London Return Engagement at the Barbican West End |
2019 | US Tour |
2019 North American Tour US Tour |
2023 | US Tour |
US Tour US Tour |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2012 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | 0 |
2012 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical | Steve Canyon Kennedy |
2012 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Revival of a Musical | 0 |
2012 | Theatre World Awards | Outstanding Debut Performance | Josh Young |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical | Josh Young |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Shin/Coleman |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Stratford Shakespeare Festival |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | TheatreDreams North America, LLC |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Stratford Shakespeare Festival |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | The Dodgers and The Really Useful Group |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Latitude Link |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Tamara Kinsella |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Pelican Group |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Waxman-Dokton |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Joe Corcoran |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Detsky/Sokolowski/Kassie |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Florin-Blanshay-Fan/Broadway Across America |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Rich/Caudwell |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Kevin Kinsella |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Shin/Coleman |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | TheatreDreams North America, LLC |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Rich/Caudwell |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Stratford Shakespeare Festival |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | TheatreDreams North America, LLC |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Shin/Coleman |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Rich/Caudwell |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Broadway Across America |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Florin-Blanshay-Fan |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Detsky/Sokolowski/Kassie |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Joe Corcoran |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Waxman-Dokton |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Pelican Group |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Tamara Kinsella |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Kevin Kinsella |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Latitude Link |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | The Dodgers and The Really Useful Group |
2012 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Musical | Jesus Christ Superstar |
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