As the London Palladium production of Jesus Christ Superstar ‘officially opens’ (I saw it in previews), I’m not doing a standard review but instead reflecting on my long-time love of this musical.
It was composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber with lyrics by Tim Rice, and was their second major collaboration. The rock opera – no dialogue – started as a concept album, which you can buy on vinyl at the Palladium’s merch stand.
On that 1970 album, Ian Gillan (Deep Purple) was Jesus, Murray Head was Judas, and Yvonne Elliman Mary Magdalene. It was a hugely influential and popular recording, leading to over half a century of stage performances starting with Jeff Fenholt and Ben Vereen on Broadway in 1971.
In the West End, the original 1972 production had Paul Nicholas and Stephen Tate as the principals. This, along with the OBC, gave me my first exposure to a musical that has remained a firm favourite. The 1973 film with Ted Neeley and Carl Anderson cemented my JCS love.
The role of Jesus has been cast gender- and race-blind – Amy Ray and, more recently, Cynthia Erivo have tackled the role successfully. But you are probably here to find out about Sam Ryder. This is his first musical theatre role after soaring to success as our Eurovision entry with “Space Man”.
He joins what is essentially the same production previously seen at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and Barbican – the twist this time is that tickets are being sold to stand on stage, albeit in pens separated from the action of the show itself.
Ryder is a simmering Jesus who explodes in anger during his big number, “Gethsemane”. He is resentful of the path he has been placed on, and those who follow him. His scenes with Judas (Tyrone Huntley, who is superb) crackle with electricity.
Jesus is still presented in most productions as a white, Anglo-Saxon man, and Ryder is no exception. But he hits the high notes and offers a genuinely exciting and moving performance that will only get better as this run, the one at Drury Lane, and the tour progress.
I think of other portrayals of Jesus, not just in JCS but in Stephen Schwartz’s Godspell, also written and premiered in the early 1970s. Both were the target of the Christian fundamentalist lobby for showing Jesus as a man, not God.
This leads me to the choice of lyric for “Gethsemane” in this production. The original lines, still used in some shows, are “God, thy will is hard / but you hold every card”. Rice’s alternative, used in some productions including this, is “God, thy will be done/destroy your only son”.
It’s a significant change. The lyrics throughout JCS in songs given to Judas, Mary, Pilate and even Herod emphasise that Jesus is “just a man”, “a sad little man”, and so on. “Your only son” would seem to contradict and emphasise his divinity.
Let’s talk about Mary. She is now fully one of the disciples, part of The Last Supper – itself gloriously freeze-framed. She is devoted to Jesus but is scared to love him. Her main song is always a powerful moment of connection, no different in Desmonda Cathabel’s take.
I do miss the hand-held camera style of earlier productions. You can see this version at its best in the 2000 recording of the production with Glenn Carter and Jerome Pradon. Visceral, vicious, vivacious. When you were there in person, it was almost overwhelming.
Then there’s the aforementioned Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls. In 1994 she portrayed Jesus on record in Jesus Christ Superstar: A Resurrection, a grungy, loud, pulsing version of the musical. She also performed the role live, feeling a stronger connection with the material at that point.
The rock feel translates back to the Palladium, where hand-held microphones are used as props right from the start, where Ryder’s Jesus sets up to sing, and Huntley’s Judas steps in with the accusatory “Heaven on Their Minds”.
Caiaphas and Annas look more like refugees from Judas Priest than traditional Pharisees, with their contrasting deep and falsetto voices intact. This production, like many before it, does not include “Now We Are Decided”, written in 1973 for the film, and that’s a pity, as it gives the characters a little more depth.
Still, we have the film’s “Could We Start Again, Please?” for Mary and an underused Peter, who we don’t really notice until his three-time denial that he knows the man he gave up fishing to follow and become a ‘fisher of men’
If you know your Bible, you will realise that nothing Lloyd Webber or Rice say in this musical is against scripture. It is a fairly faithful depiction of the last days of Jesus’ life. No, Herod didn’t have a chorus line, and Simon Zealotes didn’t lead a full-on dance act, and it’s doubtful Judas returned from the dead as a glam rock star, but the Hosanna parade, the Temple, the Kiss, the 30 pieces of silver and more are here.
If you haven’t seen this production in previous versions, I will just say look out for silver, glitter, and a microphone lead of a different colour. The large cross that divides the stage does eventually rise, but it isn’t used for the Crucifixion.
The pens for the on-stage audience do not distract if you are watching from a traditional seat. I was in row X7 of the stalls and only had to lean to see one part of the staging at the extreme stage right at the start of Act Two. The sound was excellent, and from this position you see entrances and exits throughout the aisles.
Sam Ryder is not a musical theatre actor, but his inclusion in this JCS is not stunt casting. If you saw him sing “Gethsemane” on the Big Night of Musicals earlier this year, you will know he looks the part, and sounds it.
As well as working well with Huntley and Cathabel, Ryder is also electric with David Thaxton’s Pilate, a man who has been presented as conflicted since the days Barry Dennen created the role. This is a Pilate who fears Rome and his position, yet senses something is different about the man he refers to as “you innocent puppet”. Like Judas, he is a pawn in a game – which is why I miss the “hold every card” lyric.
One lyrical change that has thankfully been reversed for this production is the delightfully uttered 1970s “Jesus is cool” in “This Jesus Must Die”, uttered by Caiaphas in a grudging show of admiration. If “What’s The Buzz” can stay, so can that.
One other unique aspect of this Palladium production is the changing parade of celebrity Herods, from Boy George to Richard Armitage. Currently it is Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who is less playful than Herods past (Josh Mostel, Rik Mayall, Alice Cooper).
It’s one number, done and dusted, and you don’t see the character again. But see if you have a favourite and book accordingly. More have been announced for Drury Lane, and presumably the tour will continue the conceit.
I started reflecting on where JCS fits in the collected works of Andrew Lloyd Webber. I could easily compile my favourite five (including Aspects of Love, Sunset Boulevard, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Evita) but is JCS the ‘best’?
This production is easily five-star. It is well-designed, scored and presented. I can’t compare the most recent West End productions of Aspects, Sunset or Evita but have seen and heard multiple productions over the years. They are good, solid musical theatre shows.
Should you try to grab a ticket to this production on any of its stops? It’s important to acknowledge that decent tickets are expensive, even outside the capital. Ryder’s Jesus is rather more ‘hot’ than ‘cool’ when it comes to dynamic pricing. Even the programme currently weighs in at £14.
But, yes, I love the show. So when the opportunity came to go, I was sold. I wasn’t disappointed.
You may also enjoy my reflections on the film version of JCS, my review of the female-led projects A Resurrection and She is Risen, and reviews of the post-pandemic concert at Regent’s Park, and the Barbican production.
The current Jesus Christ Superstar is at the London Palladium to 5 Sep, at Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 16 Oct to 9 Jan 2027, and on tour from 11 Feb to 23 Oct 2027.
You can currently watch productions starring Glenn Carter, John Legend and Cynthia Erivo online, along with the 1973 film – and that film’s reunion documentary, Superstars. The surviving cast members also assembled for a 47th video anniversary reunion during the pandemic.
Cast recordings are numerous, but the OLC, OBC and the BBC Radio 2 recording (with Tony Hadley and Roger Daltrey) are worth seeking out. Also try Laibach’s avant-garde take, and don’t forget Petula Clark’s version of “I Don’t Know How To Love Him”, taped in 1987.
Photo credit: Johan Persson