Jesus Christ Superstar

The early 1970s gave us two musical versions of the Gospels: “Godspell” was based on virtually the whole of St. Matthew’s account of the life of Jesus whilst this show restricts its action to the events of Holy Week.

It is written in such a way that the character of Jesus appears rather introverted and troubled and you almost wonder how he was able to attract the following he did whereas “Godspell” portrays him as a more lively and charismatic individual. After all, though, here we are within a few days of death and the struggles with the tragic figure of Judas, who thus becomes a central character in this show, culminating in his inability to resist the opportunity of earning those 30 pieces of silver for the betrayal of his leader.  This moment (“Blood money”) comes at the end of the first act and was memorable not only for the performance of Chris Hagyard as Judas but also for the way in which he was lit by a single pin-point of red picking out the character and his ill-earned spoils. Lighting and sound were provided by a local company (Tech 247) and added greatly to the atmosphere throughout. Good use was made of the colonnades on either side of the auditorium for the crowd scenes, particularly for the entry into Jerusalem complete with palms. Music was provided by an 11-piece orchestra which backed the singers without being overpowering, which can often happen with a score such as this, this balance providing another example of the excellent work by the sound/lighting desk.

Nathan Winn made a fine job of his role as Jesus, particularly with the drama of the crucifixion and the events which precede it. I found this much more moving than any number of Good Friday readings. Such humour as there is comes in Herod’s song and Richard Goodall, accompanied by his dancers, extracted every bit of fun. Terry Ford as Pilate and Martin Harvey as Caiaphas handled their songs with ease, in spite of the composer’s apparent desire to test the extent of their vocal range to the full.  Kelly Bolland as Mary had the task of performing perhaps the best known song (“I don’t know how to love him”) but hers was another excellent performance. The chorus provided a good sound and coped well with a steep rake which formed part of the otherwise simple but effective set. Iain Harvey has considerable experience as a performer but this was one of his first experiences as a Director and, on this showing, I am sure we shall see much more of his work.  

The Company has always achieved a good standard with its productions but, following changes in the roles of Director and M.D. which in turn have attracted new members, it has clearly made a decision to aim for even higher standards. On the evidence of this production, they seem to have succeeded; indeed, to borrow a Biblical term, it was something of a revelation.    

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