Jesus Christ Superstar

As a dedicated theatre buff and former actor, producer and director, I find there is nothing more satisfying than taking my seat in a state-of-the-art venue to watch what promised to be an exceptional production. Having already chatted to director, Rich Kee, at another recent event, I was greatly looking forward to TADLOP’s latest staging of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ at Theatre Severn’s Walker Theatre in Shrewsbury - and it certainly didn’t disappoint!

With my NODA hat on, I have reviewed several productions at The Walker Theatre which is probably one of the most comfortable and well equipped venues in the West Midlands with a large stage, full flying height and the very latest in LED lighting and surround sound technology which I felt quite sure TADLOP (Telford And District Light Operatic Players) would take full advantage of to enhance this latest adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s all-time tour-de-force. 54 years on since its Broadway premiere, the show has stood the test of time and is still just as brilliant today as it always was then but what Rich and the TADLOP company had done with it was quite extraordinary. The production had been cleverly staged in the era in which it was written with scenery, costumes and props inspired by the tumultuous progressive movements of the 1960’s. And from the minute those haunting guitar chords rang out at the beginning, the audience was kept spellbound right through to the inevitable and moving conclusion at the end.

Gone were the sackcloth robes and tunics, belts and crude leather sandals which in biblical times were not only practical but expressed the simplicity and humility of ordinary folk. Instead the stage was flooded in colourful designer wear, gracing the whole ensemble, and the bespectacled Jesus himself sporting a stylish white shirt, grey waistcoat and trousers and Judas looking even more dapper in a silver suit bedecked with stars! But all this just added to director Rich’s new interpretation and exciting vision for the show in which the casting was conducted without gender bias and would provide us with a dynamic and compelling afternoon of theatre, delivering both the finest spectacle of rock-opera cleverly combined with the human drama at the heart of this classic work which is based on the last seven days of Jesus Christ’s life and focuses on the emotional tensions and troubled relationship with the traitorous Judas Iscariot.

In the title role, Joseph Childs gave a truly outstanding performance of great sincerity, making full use of his extraordinary vocal range and clearly demonstrating the pain and inner conflict of Jesus with great emotional skill and depth. In particular, the anguish and compassion he showed as he questioned God and begged understanding shone through in the spellbinding ‘Gethsemane’ which was a highlight of the afternoon. The sensitivity and spine-chilling drama of the crucifixion and the events immediately leading up to it were also especially moving and brilliantly portrayed.

As Judas, Katie Kinnon gave a very powerful and convincing performance, her vocal strength clearly matched with the intensity of the character. From her opening ‘Heaven On Their Minds’, in which Judas questions the crowd’s enthusiasm and curiosity in meeting Jesus, to the eventual betrayal and guilt for what he has done, Katie brought real power and strength to the story’s incredibly demanding situations and challenging musical numbers. The culmination of ‘Judas’s Death’ was a particularly clever piece of staging as she stood on top of the centre scaffold platform with a noose around her neck and then just dropped, leaving the sinister silhouette of Judas hanging from the rope, backlit from behind the white gauze!

Emily Preece’s gentle and heartful portrayal of Mary Magdalene was simply superb. She displayed a huge element of emotion and sensitivity in her relationship with Jesus, carefully reassuring him in ‘Everything’s Alright’ and gently questioning her personal feelings in ‘I Don’t Know How To Love Him’. This is probably one of the most famous and meaningful songs ever to come from a stage musical and Emily did it real justice as part of her very tender and beautiful performance.

Dressed as a typical city gent in a smart black suit, bowler hat and carrying a cane, the rich, deep and almost sinister voice of Tim Parkes as Caiaphas in ‘This Jesus Must Die’ sent shivers down my spine and together with the sly and scheming Annas (Alex Madden) formed a menacing and authoritative duo. Supported by the priests, they were determined to arrest and destroy Jesus and cleverly raised the tension into ‘Hoasanna’. Ordinarily carrying palms, the ensemble waived red letters in this song which was another clever modern-day slant on the production and perhaps even a touch political!

Jesus’ prediction of his betrayal and denial at ‘The Last Supper’ was an intensely moving scene and showed off the vocal strength of the apostles who, in this new interpretation,  were all seated on garden chairs around a very long table. Both Ryan O’Mahony as Simon Zealotes and George Price as Peter gave very strong and believable performances, not least of all in ‘Peter’s Denial’ scene. Peter’s duet with Mary, tightly clutching a framed picture of Jesus, and several ensemble members holding candle lanterns – ‘Could We Start Again Please?’ – later in Act 2 was very touching and particularly well performed with perfect vocal harmonies.

In the role of Pontious Pilate, Martin Sadd gave a very accomplished performance, initially quiet and thoughtful in ‘Pilate’s Dream’ and then by complete contrast, wrestling with his conscience and inner turmoil and ultimately the momentous decision he had to make in the ‘Trial By Pilate’ and carry out the subsequent ’39 Lashes’ sequence.

Lyndsey Bird in the role of King Herod brought a much-welcomed touch of comedy brilliance to lighten the mood in ‘Herod’s Song’, leading some very energetic and flamboyantly dressed dancers in a fast-paced ‘Charleston’ routine reminiscent of the Roaring Twenties.

Such was the intensity and brilliance of the crucifixion scene itself that you couldn’t have even heard a pin drop as Jesus stood on the cross painfully making his final declaration to God and bringing this most brilliantly staged drama to a fitting climax.

From start to finish, TADLOP’s production excelled with vitality and complete dedication from the cast and musicians. In addition to the main characters, the talent of every single member of the ensemble brought energy and passion to each of the scenes in which they were involved and the supporting characters they portrayed all maintained the same high standard of this production. In particular, the three Soul Girls - Emma Batham, Carla Bennetts and Kitty Walkden, dressed in glittering silver dresses and white boots, added greatly to the vocal strength of the company, especially in the closing title song ‘Superstar’.

The set had been deliberately kept simple, constructed from scaffolding with steps up either side to exits left and right and a central platform bedecked with white banners on which there were red painted slogans. Below this was a white curtained area behind which the band was situated. Everything else - the odd rostrum, tables, chairs, banners and larger props were seamlessly introduced when and where required by a very efficient stage crew disguised as soldiers. As I would have expected from previous visits to the Walker Theatre, the stage lighting and sound had been brilliantly designed and were both operated with equal brilliance.

But, as always, my final comments, and probably the most important, must go to Director, Rich Kee who had clearly communicated his new vision of this musical classic to every member of the company as every individual and group performance was of an exceptional theatrical standard. Rich was ably assisted by Jocelyn Owen-Evans who was also responsible for the breathtaking choreography and grouping. Amy Jones was her dance captain.

As a true rock opera, the whole story of JCS is told in song with the clever and wonderfully penned lyrics of Tim Rice and virtually no other script. As Musical Director, Charis Virgo had honed all the musical numbers to absolute perfection and no solo, duet or chorus number was anything other than exceptional in performance. The group harmonies were particularly superb and the small band of musicians headed by Charis herself as conductor and keys 1 were simply outstanding and at no stage overpowered the singing.

Thank you so much for inviting me to your latest production and for your warm welcome. I greatly look forward to making the relatively short journey from Stone to Wellington to see you all again at the Centenary Theatre for ‘TWISTED’ in April next year.

Chris Bell – Assistant Regional Representative.

It was my pleasure to also attend a performance of JCS performed by TADLOP albeit a different performance. Indeed Chris, as Regional Representative attended a matinee as I attending the evening on the very same day.

Chris had informed me on a telephone call while we were both traveling to / from the theatre about the quality of the performance and I can only concur with the statement.

I was delighted to be able to meet some of the cast post show as well as some cast from the last time the group performed this show. I was somewhat taken aback to hear the cross, somewhat pivotal in this show, was made for the show when last done and therefore brought out of retirement. The crucifixion seen was very well staged.

This production as detailed by Chris was well cast and directed. The costumes for me were symbolic of how many attitudes have not changed over 2000 years.

I also look forward greatly to Twisted – a show I do not know.

Well done to all concerned.

Andy Brown – NODA West Midlands Regional Councillor.

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