Jesus Christ Superstar - U.K. Tour

Did I mention I have an unprofessional recording of the Barbican version? 

I'll start off positively - overall very good.

Fantastic music, amazing singers, some very strong performances. Staging was good too - one minor point I'll get to later. The last supper was staged beautifully.

Ian's Gethsemane made me cry.

But what are the producers trying to do?

Is it a concert with dancers? Is it a modern dance ballet featuring the songs of Jesus Christ Superstar?

I found much of the dancing unnecessary and distracting from what actually was going on. As were the handheld mics and carrying stands back and forth.

I felt the handheld mics got in the way of acting at times - that it would be even more intense moments if they could have just sang using their head mics and acted out scenes.

The priests do not need to gyrate around their mics - their movements made no sense in light of the songs or moments.

There is no need for a dancer during Judas' suicide - the scene was acted beautifully by Shem, and the focus should be on him, and not taken away by a dancer contorting under him.

There already are big dance numbers in the show, it doesn't need more. Just act in some scenes, there is no need for dance.

As for the staging - the inverted cross was great, but I felt it should be a bit higher. I was sat second row stage right, and at times the performances on there were somewhat blocked by (unnecessary) dancers.

I found 'Jesus Christ Superstar' at the end underwhelming in staging. It's sort of meant as Judas' entry into the kingdom of heaven, hence why it's originally staged as a big show number with dazzling costumes. 

No shade on the performers, they were very good. My issues are with the producers.

Thanks ceebee . As I said, strong performances, just all the dancing was distracting. 

I thought to myself at the start of 'I Don't Know How To Love Him', 'If dancers come on now, the song is ruined.'. 

I initially feared they had reduced 'Gethsemane' to 'open mic night at the pub', but luckily that was switched up and it was beautiful in the end. 

In a new cost saving low (even for ATG), they’ve entirely sold out of programmes before Friday’s show……

Same. I travel from Brighton for tours so Saturdays usual for me. A recurrent problem at Manchester Palace/Opera House and Bristol Hippodrome. Drives me bonkers lol. I know it’s not unique to ATG. But like many things, anecdotally, it’s more of a problem there.

I really don't get running out of programmes. Surely the markup is big enough to risk over-ordering?

I wonder if ATG do this. May well be the way going forward.
The I do wonder if ATG would have the wherewithal to actually hold some back for people that had pre-ordered before they sell out. Suspect they may struggle!

Anyway, programme woes aside - was a great show. None of the sloppiness that various people have observed in recent venues so maybe the venue does affect it (despite ATG's best efforts, Bristol Hippodrome is a great venue).

First cast all on and on form.

I don't doubt that more punters on tour are a bit miffed by the choreography compared to London. So I guess that may affect the cycle of audience response and performance. (Not any kind of value judgement - audiences are simply different on tour).

But overall I still found it strong. Granted it's neither as big nor as thrilling as the Barbican indoor version; but as a one week per venue tour, I think it remains top end.

This post from WestEndUnderstudies on Twitter merits a mention: x.com/WestEndCovers/status/1770402704575082934?s=20

Luke Street will play Jesus at today's matinee and Judas at this evening's performance.

I doff my hoodie in Luke's general direction and liberally shower him with glitter with a smattering of silver paint.

Let me know what the theatre in Crawley is like :-)

Never been but it’s not far from Brighton where I live!

After hearing lots of anecdotal nonsense about Crawley, I found it very easy to get to. There's plenty of parking and I'd recommend using the upstairs area for drinks and relaxing as downstairs gets busy. The theatre itself is a functional versatile space. Seating is 'stadium' style plastic rack seating - I'd not want to do more than two hours sat on it, but it didn't spoil my enjoyment. Sound was so much better than the Bromley fleapit. There's a nice hefty metal fire curtain that comes down in the interval. For a 1980s theatre/ents space, I felt it had a lot of charm and it feels loved by patrons and staff alike. I felt very welcome by all staff who were very professional.

Oh, and I LOVE the announcement about taking photos/ videos in the show. Roughly paraphrased: "Welcome to this evening's performance of JCS. The show will begin in XX minutes. We'd like to remind you that we do not allow cameras or phones to be used in the auditorium while the show is on. If you take photos you will be asked to leave the theatre and we really dont want that because we just want you have a great time - so enjoy the show and remember, 'no photos'."

ALL theatres should adopt this no nonsense approach to phone use.

Hope you enjoyed it FJ - I thought Luke was sensational playing Jesus tonight. Am in awe of his talent.