How would you stage Jesus Christ Supestar on stage? — Page 3

I feel so sorry for the real Mary Magdelen because she wasn't even a prostitute.

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Another thought I've always wrestled with has to do with the show's title song. It doesn't make sense within the show.

Ok, here is my take on that song. First of all, I think whole concept of the show really hinges on the idea of Jesus as a "Superstar" or celebrity figure as a challenge to the conventional acceptance of him as a deity (or offspring of a deity, if you will). The song was meant to be the only number completely set in modern times as if Judas is pointing out to Jesus that, as someone who was there, how effective was Jesus if thousands of years later, we are still questioning his actions and the events of the Gospel. And I think the placement of the song, when staged well, works since it echoes the sentiments of both Herod and Pilate, increasing the progression of doubt, but in the spirit of tough love that begs the response that perhaps Herod and Pilate weren't wrong. It's Jesus's "fever dream". His glimpse into the future that causes him to review the circumstances and shortly thereafter ask, "God, why have You forsaken me?" This is why I think setting the entire show in modern eras simply doesn't work because it is that song which gives meaning and purpose to the show's entire concept. I've seen the two different tour that have been rolling around for the last 15 years and they both pretty much relied more heavily on conceptualizing the show, trying to make the past seem relevant through costuming and makeup, when it ultimately weakened the pivotal moment of relevance, which was written into the show to begin with.

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That's just it, though. I don't mean to question you or anything, saying Judas is your dream role, but your dream role states his motivations right from the top in "Heaven on Their Minds." To quote Tim Rice in 1970, "We made him a type of Everyman. Judas did not think of himself as a traitor. He did what he did, not because he was basically evil, but because he was intelligent. He could see Christ becoming something he considered harmful to the Jews. Judas felt that they'd been persecuted enough. As far as what Christ was saying, general principles of how human beings should live together, Judas approved of this. What Judas was worried about was that as Christ got bigger and bigger and more popular, people began switching their attentions from what Christ was saying to Christ himself. They were saying that Jesus is God, here is the new Messiah, and Judas was terrified, because a) he didn't agree with it--he thought Christ was getting out of control and it was affecting Him, and b) Judas reckoned that if the movement got too big and people began worshiping Christ as a god, the Romans who were occupying Israel would come down and clobber them."

Right there, in the first song, Judas' reasons for betraying Jesus are spelled out. Judas is passionate, fiery, impatient, smart as hell, a real control freak, and clearly does not believe Jesus is the Son of God. It's important to remember that at that time there was dozens of men constantly claiming to be the Messiah, each with his own devout followers who believed utterly in their teacher. Judas thinks this movement has accidentally evolved into one of those. He believes this turn of events is contrary to Jesus' intentions. Judas' other concern is for his people. He knows that the minute Jesus becomes famous, the authorities will clamp down on him. He may be killed--they all may be killed. The Jews were an occupied nation under the tyranny of Rome. Judas sees Jesus' lessons of love and peace and brotherhood as a path straight to the gallows.

What follows, as we see Jesus losing sight of his mission (if you choose to believe that this was divinely inspired) and losing control of his temper, is justification or examples of all the reasons Judas thinks things are going wrong. Judas sees Jesus cracking under pressure and really believes that this is the best course of action he has available to help his friend. I like to say, along with actor Danny Zolli, that it's the musical theater equivalent of Hamlet, because Judas knows what he has to do and every action he might take is being justified right in front of him, and yet it takes him so long to just take action already that it's frustrating.

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Updated On: 8/7/09 at 05:43 PM

To continue on from my previous post before Mister Matt, where Judas differs from Hamlet is that we can also see the reasons he hesitates without needing to speculate about what they are.

The dichotomy between Judas and Jesus is a fascinating one. Judas is the practical one, concerned with image, message, public opinion, money, etc. Jesus is concerned only with the message. Interestingly, the relationship between Judas and Jesus mirrors the relationship between the show's twin antagonists, Annas and Caiaphas. Like Judas, Annas is the practical one, trying to see the obstacles ahead, worrying about public opinion; while Caiaphas is utterly single-minded, just like Jesus.

That central relationship shows us a mammoth tug-of-war between pragmatism, represented by Judas, and ideas, represented by Jesus. Each of them is missing what the other has. Judas finds himself constantly frustrated and confused by Jesus' refusal to look at the practical side of their situation, as verbalized in "Heaven on Their Minds," "Superstar," and the fragment of "Superstar" at the end of the Last Supper. They fight because they both care passionately about the cause and about each other. There are three main arguments that break out between them, during "Strange Thing Mystifying," "Everything's Alright," and at the Last Supper--the second two set to the same music. Judas acts as a kind of business agent and PR man, concerned over the political message they're sending out, at the perceived inconsistencies in Jesus' teachings, and the money wasted on Mary's ointments and oils. He believes in Jesus' philosophy, in his ability to lead, but not in his methods and his choices.

As for his anger at Mary, that's partly about the waste, and also because he sees Mary and her relationship with Jesus as a PR liability. He also seems at times to be jealous of her. He is a man full of frustration, and one of the ways that anger manifests itself is in jealousy against the one other person to whom Jesus is that close.

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Updated On: 8/7/09 at 05:53 PM