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Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
7th December 2007
A superstar he was – and, of course, to thousands and millions across the world he undoubtedly still is – and was certainly given top-of-the-bill superstar treatment by The Upstage Production Company’s recent, and brilliant, performance of Jesus Christ Superstar.
‘Sold Out’ notices went up soon after tickets for this Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber musical went on sale, and not one member of the four evening audiences will have gone away disappointed.
It was a marvellous show, superbly staged, with high-class singing from both the principals and the chorus, vivacious choreography and wonderful music –from the band. The rapturous applause, which greeted every performance, was indeed well-deserved.
Musicals and operas performed by amateur groups are often let down by a shortage of male leads - and not least of the many delightful surprises and great joys of Upstage’s scintillating Superstar was the number and range and confidence of the male leads.
From their first words Tom Snee (Judas Iscariot), Jared Evans (Jesus), and Cai Dale (Pilate) grabbed – and held - the audience’s attention. Their remarkable voices carried the show along. Excellent diction allowed us to hear every word, and splendid acting allowed us to be right in there, in the story.
If Alex Deutsch’s part as Herod was necessarily smaller in scale, his contribution, as the generations-known story came to its climax, was vital (in all senses of that word). His irresistible cameo performance came close to a show-stopper. One felt revolted, and yet sad, for this high-living quisling king.
Jordan Alfonso (Caiaphas) and Matt Milne (Annas), played their sinister parts to perfection, along with their fellow Chief Priests (Ella Blake and Jenny Jackson) as their black deeds and intentions were woven into the story.
If those key roles (as written by Rice and Lloyd Webber) provided the bold brush strokes of the show the important painting-in of the subtleties was splendidly offered by Kathryn Lewin (Mary Magdalene) and George Carter (Simon Peter) who delightfully and ably contrasted the enthusiasm and love of those committed to Jesus with the fear and horror at what was happening to him.
Sarah Hughes was suitably zealous as the Zealot’s leader, as were all the chorus members playing the parts of the other disciples and followers of Jesus, the locals who usurped the Temple, the lame, the Romans, the Chief Priests’ lynch mob, the singers and Herod’s entourage.
The lively and lusty music and singing of a wholly committed chorus (directed by Peter Fletcher) was yet another ‘plus’ of the show, as was the admirable choreography of dancers led by dance captains Amy Watkins and Robyn Powell.
Colourful (modern) costumes made their contribution to the dynamism of the performance. The setting was brilliant too. The use of stark scaffolding and elevated staging gave the show an added dimension, both literally and theatrically, taking the whole thing to another level. Here was the hand, and vision, of Colin Thompson.
And everything on stage was matched with equal zest and skill by the Band under the direction of the inimitable David Ventura, whose skilful nurturing of the Band’s individual gifts ensured the music highlighted both the brash elements of the show and those marvellously moving parts too.
All came together under Director Mat Walters, who had every reason to be thrilled with the triumph of this tour-de-force.
As, however, Mat made clear in his programme notes, this was a team effort by all associated with The Upstage Production Company. It was a team with as many working, dedicatedly and unsung, behind the scenes as on stage.
All contributed to Superstar’s success, and every single one of this successful team deserves our warmest thanks. Well done, team!
Don't forget to have a look at the fabulous photos from the show (taken by Ruth Bullock, Tutor of Business Studies and member of the College Marketing Unit) using the following link http://www.review.hereford.ac.uk/photoAlbums/