Full Cast Announced for JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR on Broadway; Tom Hewitt is Pontius Pilate

[Rob]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 10:27am

Click Here to Read Full Cast Announced for JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR on Broadway; Tom Hewitt is Pontius Pilate

[thismyshow]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 11:20am

i really hate to say this because I hate that broadway has become this way, but will audiences care without names? (even though as a rocky horror fan I am excited to finally get to see Tom Hewitt on stage)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 1:08pm

How many "names" in Lion King? In Mamma Mia? JCS doesn't need names - though I will say, the inclusion of Tom Hewitt is the sole reason I'll be seeing this. He'll be a great Pilate.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 1:13pm

Well at least Kushnier still has a job...I imagine he's understudying Jesus and Pilate since he performed both roles at La Jolla.

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 1:18pm

Dunno if Pilate is on the docket, but yes, in addition to being hired as a chorus boy, Kushnier was also named as a Jesus and Judas understudy and has gone on in both roles. After the La Jolla run, I wouldn't be surprised if they add Pilate to his stack as consolation for being bumped to the back of the line.

[philly03]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 1:48pm

HA I'm with ghostlight - Tom Hewitt makes me want to see this. And the incredible Josh Young (pick up his solo albums - very talented!)

[ErinDillyFan]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 1:50pm

Saw this in Stratford. A great production. Too bad for Brent Carver he won't be with the rest of the cast...

[thismyshow]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 2:42pm

@ghostlight Lion King, has Disney. Mamma Mia has Abba and a hit movie version.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 2:50pm

Yes, and JCS has decades of revivals, many cast albums, and a hit movie. Your point?

[thismyshow]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 2:59pm

does anyone really care enough for yet ANOTHER jcs revival besides broadway fans? (i.e tourist?)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 3:13pm

Sure. Christians, people who haven't seen it before, and fans of Tom Hewitt.

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 3:18pm

I'm with ghostlight. You don't need names to sell a JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR revival.

In other news, while I'm happy that Hewitt is playing Pilate, I'm disappointed Kushnier isn't going to be playing a major role.

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 5:40pm

Did anyone expect thismyshow to have anything positive to say about a Jesus show other than Godspell? (Sorry, doll, life's a b**** and so am I. You'd point it out if it were me, and you earned it. Merry Christmas!)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 5:49pm

This board never ceases to disappoint. Could the two of you take your battle offline and let the rest of us discuss theater?

Interesting fact about this version of JCS - it's got the same lighting designer that the last revival did, the Tony award winning Howell Binkley.

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 6:04pm

And now I get to jump back on topic -- the last revival had lighting design by Mark McCullough, not Howell Binkley.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 6:17pm

I stand corrected! He did an earlier version, just not on Broadway. He had a different lighting cue for each of the lashes.

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 6:20pm

Oh... doesn't that seem a little, I dunno, much? A lighting cue per lash? I mean, I'm no lighting designer, and maybe that's a good thing, but I'd do something more simple, like a red laser flashing every time Jesus got smacked. (I also think it's more rock and roll to use the laser in such a way, and Webber's been ignoring its rock roots for almost 20 years now.)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 6:29pm

"Oh... doesn't that seem a little, I dunno, much? A lighting cue per lash? I mean, I'm no lighting designer, and maybe that's a good thing, but I'd do something more simple, like a red laser flashing every time Jesus got smacked." [bolding mine]

You do realize, of course, that what you've described equals a lighting cue per lash, right?

eta: ok, how about this? It will be (at least) the second time Binkley and Hewitt have worked together. They did The Acting Company's tour of Pericles together.



Updated On: 12/22/11 at 06:29 PM

[sally1112]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 7:03pm

I really, really want to see this production!

[bwaycrazy24]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 9:32pm

Isn't Josh Young a baritone? His voice is too legit for Judas... I want Bryce Ryness in that role. He has powerhouse vocals!

[BWNUT]

Posted: 12/22/11 at 10:02pm

Saw this in La Jolla and it blew me away. I was so surprised how much I loved it. Just great theater. The three leads' acting and vocals were brilliant. I loved the movie version (own the DVD) but this just felt so fresh and original. La Jolla had a sold out run. I was lucky to get the last ticket for a Sat. night show and they didn't come cheap. Some up to $200 a pop. Judging by the reaction of the audience here, I think it will make a big splash on B'way.

Kushnier did a good job belting out Pilate but I can see why they would go for Hewitt. Kushnier just seemed too young (younger-looking than Jesus and Judas) and modern-acting as Pilate IMO.

Updated On: 12/22/11 at 10:02 PM

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 12/23/11 at 12:41am

You do realize, of course, that what you've described equals a lighting cue per lash, right?

Not if the soldiers miss every few strokes. My feeling is that he has to be alive enough to carry the cross, and for that to happen the soldiers can't land every lash perfectly. If they did, as histories of the time would attest, 40 lashes or more would kill a man. It's enough to seriously injure him and unnerve Pilate, so that Pilate cuts it off at 39, but not enough to leave him half-dead, as most Jesii portray it.

[thismyshow]

Posted: 12/23/11 at 1:25am

I would just like to point out, I said im excited to see it for tom hewitt, my concern is do non broadway people actually care right now?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 12/23/11 at 2:00am

Gvendo, enough. Before you go and criticize the content of somebody else's post, please note your first contribution to this thread was to repeat what The Distinctive Baritone said, but with some air of authority, which anybody who has been reading you knows you have no right to claim.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 12/23/11 at 12:26pm

Not if the soldiers...miss...every few strokes?

Why would they miss? Also, fwiw, Pilate doesn't cut off the flogging at 39, that was the Roman law for the most amount of lashes that could be given unless the prisoner was sentenced to death by lashing. Christ was sentenced to die on the cross.

"im excited to see it for tom hewitt, my concern is do non broadway people actually care right now?"

About Hewitt? I doubt it. About JCS? Probably enough to run it for awhile. Many tourists love the familiar. It's one of the reasons the same revivals get revived. Audiences know what they're going to get and that's comforting to them. There's also the nostalgia factor.

I'm dying to see how Hewitt plays Pilate - will he camp it up as Barry Dennen did, or play it straight? Personally, I'm in the camp it up court. Nobody camps like Hewitt.

I've never seen Josh Young on stage, and I'm looking forward to correcting that error. He certainly has a lovely voice.