Godspell

Godspell first performed in 1971 with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and conceived and originally directed by John-Michael Tebelak is a musical retelling of the Gospel of Matthew set in New York City. I came to the show looking forward to seeing something I hadn’t seen before although familiar with some of the music.

This musical is very much an ensemble piece with the cast very rarely leaving the stage, and all having their moment to shine. They all enthusiastically delivered their solos and worked well together providing a genuinely happy feeling to their performances. One observation from someone not totally familiar with all the dialogue and lyrics is that the diction could have been a lot clearer as I did miss some lyrics. However, I particularly enjoyed Anne-Marie and Ella as they sung By My Side a favourite song of mine well delivered. Laura Adams as John the Baptist led the company in ‘Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord’ setting the scene and leading the way for Olly Brooks as Jesus. Olly was appropriately controlled and understated yet brilliantly engaging and really drew the audience in as he along with the company acted out the parables based on St Matthews gospel interspersed with song and dance numbers moving through to the last supper, the betrayal of Jesus by Ben Lea as Judas and a dramatic crucifixion. Olly’s interpretation of Beautiful City was another highlight for me.

Directed by Alison Cobb and assisted by Babs Harrison, there was a static set suitably adorned with a 70’s feel, effectively used with some great staging concepts and was extremely well thought out. The band led by Bradley Parker were elevated and fully incorporated within the set. Costumes were colourful and mostly in keeping with the themes. Ella Parker & Jessica Hughes did an amazing job with some very clever choreography totally in keeping with the various styles of music. Lighting was extremely effective enhancing the performance, the crucifixion scene in particular, worked very well. I did feel the band were a bit too loud, leading to an overall imbalance with the ensemble and solo singing.

Well done to the whole team. Thank you very much for your hospitality and I'm very much looking forward to seeing your next production.

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