JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR

Jesus Christ Superstar is a 1970 rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the Gospels’ accounts of the last week of Jesus’ life, from his triumphal entry into Jerusalem through to the Crucifixion. It depicts imagined personal struggles between Mary Magdalene, Judas Iscariot and Jesus and, as such, often draws demonstrations from religious groups who see it as blasphemous rather than a free interpretation of the psychology of characters therein.

Newry’s production team chose to present their show in contemporary manner, with Costumes and Props mostly modern. Costumes were in muted colours of grey apart from Jesus in white, Mary in red, Judas in black, Priests in black, Pilate in purple, and Herod in red (Greatest Showman style). The set was simple and basic – 4 trusses with 2 tiers of black risers at the back and 6 movable black cubes which became seats, bed etc. A wide set of grey steps from front stage to auditorium were printed with show quotes and biblical texts – they were well used by the ensemble during the show. Very few props were used – a trestle table and chairs for the High Priests deliberation “This Jesus must Die”, and fake alabaster jugs for oil and perfume. The only modern thing which jarred with me was the brightly polished silver goblet used at the Last Supper and Gethsemane.  Sound was well balanced and Lighting was ‘out of this world’. Shane Tumilty must be congratulated for his extraordinary lighting plot without which the show would only have been half as effective.
Every member of Newry’s cast from ensemble and dancers, minor roles with one liners to Principals, played an important part in this piece and fully committed to it. The Dancers were very well rehearsed and precise from the start and I was glad to see that more mature members were not left out of the Ensemble, who always added urgency when they arrived on stage and their combined voices were uplifting. The Apostles – Mark Beattie, Eanna Carr, Francis Farrell, Eoin Finnerty, Tiernan Kearns, Ben Keenan, Paddy Heaney, James McLoughlin and Frank McMullan – all fulfilled their roles with alacrity, always looking fully involved in the action. As Peter, Dara Evans sang well with Mary in “Could We start again Please” and Conor Matthews made a strong Simon Zealotes as he urged Jesus to lead his followers into battle. Conor’s tenor voice was impressive too.
Jim McGuigan, Ruairi McAlinden and Neil Heaney were very well cast as the High Priests. Jim’s bass voice coped well with the extremely low notes of Caiphas with Ruairi’s deep and threatening bass as Theopholis nearly as low. In contrast Neil supplied the counter-tenor of Annas in an equally threatening manner. With their specialist lighting, these three gave impactful performances.  Seamus Brady took the role of Pontius Pilate and conveyed his inner turmoil in dealing with Jesus, about whom he had had a dream. He sang “Pilate’s Dream” and later “Pilate and Christ” with great conviction. Damien Lavery had the pleasure of bringing the only comedic role to life as the flamboyant King Herod. It is always somewhat of a relief to be able to laugh during such an intense piece and Damien, together with his dancing girls, did a great job with “King Herod’s Song” – trying to persuade Jesus to prove his divinity by performing some miracles.

Judas Iscariot was played to perfection by Jordan Walsh, showing his inner struggle - loving Jesus but concerned that his fame will get them all in trouble with the authorities. I really liked his inclusion in “I don’t know how to Love Him” with both he and Mary keeping their distance from the sleeping Jesus and each other. It made sense and was very emotive. Jordan’s acting and vocal abilities were fully stretched in this role and he was successful on all fronts.  Courtney Burns portrayal of Mary Magdalene was so gentle and loving that it was truly memorable. Her singing of “Everything’s Alright” and “I don’t know how to Love Him” was just beautiful. Finally, Sean Harkin played his heart out as Jesus – strong, tired, triumphal, thoughtful, angry, passive, overwhelmed, tormented – he showed every emotion in his face and body language and his singing of “Gethsemane” was a masterpiece.

In fact, this ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ was a masterpiece - from the excellent Rock band under Danny O’Neill to the
speedy stage crew who were afforded great black-outs for their changes. David Cunningham made good use of the auditorium to bring the cast on and off and the steps for seating. He used the whole stage and risers well and everything moved at a good pace. Ann Marie lived up to her reputation with captivating choreography throughout – always suitable to the mood of the moment.

I am so glad that I was invited to this production and I thank everyone involved for the pleasure it gave me.
The “Buzz” was amazing!

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