Jesus Christ Superstar - Regents Park Open Air / Barbican

[Being Alive]

So, I caught the last matinee today. Had never seen it before, knew bits of music, but apart from that, pretty fresh.
For me, it doesn't work in daylight. Things like the crucifixion just happened - it didn't feel dramatic.
Tyrone was stunning though, as Judas. Loved him, and also thought David Thaxton did well with his moments as Pilate. However, I could not understand a bloody word Declan Bennett sang all afternoon. I could just about make out Gethsemane, and I know all the words to that song! Something very odd going on there...

I've come away glad I've seen it, but feeling like I didn't see what everyone else did, as I didn't get much drama from it (apart from Dre'ws insane choreography, which deserves a shout.)

[d'James]

I’m glad I wasn’t misremembering Declan from last year. As I said I had an understudy on Monday and understood him a lot better. Maybe that’s partly why I struggled understanding what was going on last year.

[ceebee]

Declan Bennett took the roof off the Open Air theatre this evening. The whole cast were fantastic in their final performance but DB really has finessed his performance. It has much more complexity than other interpretations and blows the previous efforts by Drew Sarich and Steve Balsamo out of the park. Tyrone Huntley was excellent again, and the whole ensemble gave a brilliant last show. It was a privilege to be there.

[Deleted]

Sept 23, 2017 23:52:38 GMT ceebee said:

Declan Bennett took the roof off the Open Air theatre this evening. The whole cast were fantastic in their final performance but DB really has finessed his performance. It has much more complexity than other interpretations and blows the previous efforts by Drew Sarich and Steve Balsamo out of the park. Tyrone Huntley was excellent again, and the whole ensemble gave a brilliant last show. It was a privilege to be there.

Wow! That really is miraculous! Given the great British weather they've weathered there this season, it might have been better if he'd managed to magic one on! 

Glad you enjoyed.  

(I've seen some great Jesuses over the years but I'm afraid DB won't be one I remember. TH, on the other hand... well, I hope we see a lot more of him in the coming years.)   

[Deleted]

Yeah i agree, DB for me is one of the weaker Jesuses ive seem too and probably the weakest of the cast. Font get me wrong, he is good, but he never wowed me

[ceebee]

Fair enough - it's an exceptionally strong cast and a brilliant Judas in TH. I didn't like DB's interpretation last year as it felt too safe. This year I felt he let go, was vocally stronger (though agree with a previous comment that some words got lost on stage occasionally). However I love the fresh approach he brought and was brave enough to go beyond the stereotype of man with beard in a dress wafting around preaching with piety. He brought angst and humanity to the role - I believed him. His performance has grown over the season and I hope he goes on to do other great things because he is clearly more talented than just being that bloke off Eastenders. I'll miss this show enormously.

[clairemb]

JCS was brilliant this year. Two visits to see it this year. Outstanding performances by all the cast especially David Thaxton (Pilate) but my highlight was the incredible Declan Bennett. Wow the emotion in Gethsemane- for which he got a standing ovation by some of the crowd.
Loved this show..CD would be great.

[Steffi]

I love Declan as a performer. He always brings a unique take to his roles. His Guy in Once was wonderful. Personally I think his Jesus has developed a lot since last season. I saw the very first preview last year and thought he was good but not perfect. When I returned this season his take made me cry (I do not cry easily at the theatre) - it was just so intense and real. :-)

[ceebee]

I agree. I like the way the cast broke the wall down and engaged with the audience more this year. DB's clever use of the microphone, holding it out to the audience / God (depending on your interpretation). I didn't think there was anything allegorical or theological about this production - it focused on mania, populism, the danger of pushing ideology so hard that reality and fantasy become blurred, with Jesus being the scapegoat for the excuses and idealism of followers who don't know what unintended consequences lie beyond their actions. This production challenged the concept of religion head-on, questioning the deification of mortals to an elevated status, and DB's portrayal as an existentialist rock god never seeking the complex burden of being messiah, with TH's fallible Judas provoking the question of how corruptive money can be. I felt that Annas pulled the plot strings in this production. A weak Caiaphas (character, not the actor's performance), just strong enough to control his caliphate, with the power-hungry Annas (also harbouring rock-god ambitions) leading the vocal push as a subversive narrator trying to quell the populist unrest. Personally, I thought Sean Kingsley was excellent. This production had so much dimension and depth in a minimalist staging. I'm in awe of the creative team and pray that a recording or a transfer follows - the sublime band deserve to be preserved as the musical benchmark for all productions that follow.

[Deleted]

Sept 24, 2017 9:32:33 GMT ceebee said:

I agree. I like the way the cast broke the wall down and engaged with the audience more this year. She's clever use of the microphone, holding it out to the audience / God (depending on your interpretation). I didn't think there was anything allegorical or theological about this production - it focused on mania, populism, the danger of pushing ideology so hard that reality and fantasy become blurred, with Jesus being the scapegoat for the excuses and idealism of followers who don't know what unintended consequences lie beyond their actions. This production challenged the concept of religion head-on, questioning the deification of mortals to an elevated status, and DB's portrayal as an existentialist rock god never seeking the complex burden of being messiah, with TH's fallible Judas provoking the question of how corruptive money can be. I felt that Annas pulled the plot strings in this production. A weak Caiaphas (character, not the actor's performance), just strong enough to control his caliphate, with the power-hungry Annas (also harbouring rock-god ambitions) leading the vocal push as a subversive narrator trying to quell the populist unrest. Personally, I thought Sean Kingsley was excellent. This production had so much dimension and depth in a minimalist staging. I'm in awe of the creative team and pray that a recording or a transfer follows - the sublime band deserve to be preserved as the musical benchmark for all productions that follow.

Wow. I definitely didn't take away any of that either of the times I saw it.

[ceebee]

No probs - we're all different.

[ukpuppetboy]

Sept 23, 2017 23:52:38 GMT ceebee said:

Declan Bennett took the roof off the Open Air theatre this evening. The whole cast were fantastic in their final performance but DB really has finessed his performance. It has much more complexity than other interpretations and blows the previous efforts by Drew Sarich and Steve Balsamo out of the park.

Well I don't know what Steve Balsamo was doing in the park but to compare DB's Jesus to what he did in the Lyceum is quite frankly ridiculous. And like other poster's have said I am a big fan of Declan in Once and his own writing..

[ceebee]

Big fan of Steve but his performance was rather traditional. Vocally excellent but average acting and stage presence, cast tended to be overwhelmed by John Napier's epic set. Just as Zubin Varla was an excellent Judas, Tyrone Huntley nailed the part. The Open Air production was as close to perfection as this show might get.

[Rozzi Rainbow]

I wanted to see this last year but couldn't get a ticket, so was pleased I was able to go yesterday afternoon. I made a snap decision on Wednesday night to book a ticket when I saw there were only two left (after there being a fair few left in the days up to that point).

I hadn't been to the Open Air Theatre before and loved it, it's a great venue. The setting in the park with the fountain and waterfall is lovely - I saw squirrels and ducks on the walk up to the theatre, and a butterfly flew past during the performance. We were so lucky with the weather, it was a glorious day and I didn't even need my coat. I had a great seat in row L, right near where the cast walked on.

The show itself wasn't quite what I was expecting, I thought it was a bit strange. I'd seen it a good few times before and really enjoyed it, but only ever the Kenwright production, which by comparison to this is very traditional (the cast wear Biblical-looking costumes and it's not so loud). Much as I do like rock shows, I thought this was too loud at some points, so much so that the music drowned out the singing and I couldn't hear/understand what was being said. Gethsemane was one of these points - for me it doesn't work as a rock song as I've always known it as a ballad, albeit a powerful one.

If I hadn't seen it before, I would've struggled to understand what was going on at times, although that could partly be down to there not really being much set. I also didn't have a clue who Pilate was till he started singing, and only then cos I knew Pilate sings that song. I agree with the post from a while back that in my opinion there's no resurrection. (Although I told my mum how it ended and she said she would view that as a resurrection.) Coupled with the fact it didn't show Jesus performing any miracles (unless I missed them) I think it's possible to view this version from the point of view that Jesus wasn't the Messiah (and I say that as a Christian).

I'm still really glad I went though as I loved the whole experience, and thought Tyrone was brilliant. I loved how his hands got tainted when he tried to grab what Caiaphas offered him in the chest. For me, I'm so used to a completely different production that there was too much to take in with this one, too many different things. Saying that, if I'd seen this production first I might have felt differently.

[Deleted]

It sounds like you had the perfect afternoon, Rozzi, and I love the image of the butterfly during the performance. You are probably right in thinking this version a bit strange; it's off the wall at times, with the decision to have lead characters play guitars, its wacky choreography and (sometimes inexplicable) striking symbolism. Different, yes, but all the more successful for that. The Kenwright version is like something out of the ark, lacking any originality at all really. You didn't miss any miracles. Jesus doesn't perform any in this. He refuses to heal the lepers which was considered outrageous at the time; Herod refers to them but in disbelief and ridicule, and -as you said before- there's no resurrection. Jesus is, in Mary's words, " ...just a man." This is one of those shows that can reinvent itself over and over again; I hope you see many more productions that'll intrigue and please you.

[theatremadness]

This is slightly off-topic for the Regent's Park production, but I needed somewhere to put this. Tim Minchin was just on The One Show, and they talked about the arena tour of JCS in which Tim played Judas. His story goes that he emailed ALW asking if he could audition for Judas and ALW emailed back saying they had just finished casting the arena tour and Judas was going to be played by....Seal!!! He then dropped out and, as we know, Tim played Judas. But this was the first I'd heard about Seal playing Judas and I'd like to see that immediately please.

[Deleted]

Well, I didnt know who Seal was, so googled him. I also googled his name with 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and turns out he's been cast by Fox for the Live Musical version coming out next Easter, but as Pilate. So your chances of seeing him in JCS are quite likely, just not as Judas.

[steve10086]

Oct 5, 2017 18:29:42 GMT theatremadness said:

This is slightly off-topic for the Regent's Park production, but I needed somewhere to put this. Tim Minchin was just on The One Show, and they talked about the arena tour of JCS in which Tim played Judas. His story goes that he emailed ALW asking if he could audition for Judas and ALW emailed back saying they had just finished casting the arena tour and Judas was going to be played by....Seal!!! He then dropped out and, as we know, Tim played Judas. But this was the first I'd heard about Seal playing Judas and I'd like to see that immediately please.

Shame Seal dropped out. Didn’t like Minchin at all.

[Deleted]

Let’s face it, a seal would have sounded better than Tim Minchin.

[Deleted]

I personally really enjoyed Minchin's Judas, except for the overzealous use of autotune on the video.

[Deleted]

All this talk of JCS makes me urge for an up to date cast recording. Not real fan of 70's recording or remastering.

[steve10086]

Oct 6, 2017 12:05:41 GMT @caiaphas said:

Let’s face it, a seal would have sounded better than Tim Minchin.

Love it!

[Deleted]

So it seems for the US tour of this production they're recreating the open air park vibe on stage, with trees and foliage.
Photo from the Chicago stop-off, prior to next years run.
Actually looks quite good and not cheap.

[Deleted]

Looks great. Bring it back to England ASAP I say. Best production of JCS I have ever seen by a mile.

[Deleted]

Beautiful photo (thank you for posting) which prompted me to look for more online. Found this too, which looks very impressive: