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Post by chernjam on Jul 9, 2019 2:15:10 GMT
I agree it's a hit-or-miss thing. This production is wonderful, though, and to be honest the only one I've truly enjoyed since the Lyceum one back in 1996 (incidentally, the 2000 Broadway revival production, which was subsequently released on video with a different cast, is not the same as the Lyceum production, even though it had the same director; everything about it was entirely different...I have no idea why they didn't take the Lyceum one to Broadway). If I remember correctly - the reason? $$$$ The Lyceum while seemingly sparse/simple staging was a bit more sophisticated and I don't think it was able to tour as easily as the subsequent one. The only thing that remained basically was the new logo. |
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Post by ceebee on Jul 9, 2019 7:28:51 GMT
If I remember correctly - the reason? $$$$ The Lyceum while seemingly sparse/simple staging was a bit more sophisticated and I don't think it was able to tour as easily as the subsequent one. The only thing that remained basically was the new logo. The Lyceum set was huge. An amphitheatre setting extending out into the auditorium, with a bridge that descended with the high priests on, that huge table, on stage seating for the audience. Too much complexity for smaller provincial theatres to manage as a truck tour, and probably economically unviable. |
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Post by Lemansky on Jul 9, 2019 7:55:56 GMT
Thanks very much for the cast recording recommendations! I will have to do some investigating which keeping my fingers crossed that they decide to record this production.
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Post by Stasia on Jul 9, 2019 8:41:02 GMT
Given the rave reviews on here for Tripolino & Afonso I'm wondering whether I should buy a very cheap seat & go & sit with my eyes closed for 2 hours, just to hear the score sung live. Go - you won't regret it. Barb usually does day seats so you might bag the back of the stalls for a tenner if they're offering them on this production. Does anyone know if they do dayseats for JCS? And where can I get them? Only been to Barbican once and it is an easy place to get lost.... @theatremonkey.com any info on dayseats, Steve? |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2019 9:07:55 GMT
I suspect there won't be day seats. They don't do these for all productions (I think the policy varies depending on the producer of each show), and this seems to be selling very well, and the back of the stalls are on sale for normal price. Also taken the plunge, booked for next Monday, have to admit Barbican membership is one of the best, saved £12 on a £45 ticket, membership this year has more than paid for itself and yet to see a dud. The Lee Krasner exhibition in the gallery at the moment is great so if you see that while you're there that's another £15 saved! |
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Post by theatremadhatter on Jul 9, 2019 9:32:21 GMT
Picked up a last minute ticket to see this tonight and can’t wait now with the comments here. Very interested to see how it’s transferred indoors.
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Post by richey on Jul 9, 2019 12:55:20 GMT
Just seen the production photos on WOS. It looks amazing (shame they've put one of the tableau in there tho as I wanted to see that as a surprise)
Really really excited about this now and can't wait to see it in August
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Post by Dawnstar on Jul 9, 2019 17:29:09 GMT
Whereas I've just seen the production photos & been put off all over again!
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Post by xanady on Jul 9, 2019 17:41:48 GMT
What’s that buzz? It’s JCS at the Barbican.....everrrrybody seems to be raving about this show.So pleased...one of the very greatest musicals of all time!!!
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Post by ceebee on Jul 9, 2019 21:01:02 GMT
Whereas I've just seen the production photos & been put off all over again! Don't be. It's sensational. |
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Post by d'James on Jul 9, 2019 23:04:13 GMT
Whereas I've just seen the production photos & been put off all over again! Probably a good thing. |
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Post by a12la on Jul 10, 2019 0:12:04 GMT
I saw it last night. Jesus, Judas, and Mary were all incredibly excellent. Having Judas look to be at least twenty years older than Jesus, instead of around the same age, lead to a super interesting dynamic between the two of them that I had never seen in any production before that I thought worked super well. I wasn't a huge fan of the choreography though, it was just too much. This isn't the kind of show where every single lyric needs people dancing to it. It worked in some places, like during Simon Zelotes, but there were far too many times where it was just distracting, and whenever the high priests were on stage, it was honestly awful. It doesn't matter how good their voices are, the high priests aren't intimidating when you have them doing half-assed boy band choreography. I wasn't sure this was an intentional choice or not, but it almost seemed like they were trying to turn Caiaphas and Annas into comic relief. Overall, this was an excellent production, but the choreography definitely lessened the experience a bit. That being said, it's still 100% worth seeing, for the performances alone.
{Spoiler - click to view}
Also, I thought the use of paint as the silver pieces was absolute genius, and Judas staring guiltily at his marked hands at the end of act one is an image I won't forget. Additionally, I loved how during Superstar, he had a ring of the silver paint around his neck. Very clever.
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Post by ceebee on Jul 10, 2019 5:31:15 GMT
As expected, the reviews published so far are excellent. Hunt them down online. "A must-see" and "definitive" are just a taste of the general view.
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Post by jgblunners on Jul 10, 2019 9:27:55 GMT
Wh*ts*nSt*ge only gave it 4 stars.
Blocked.
😡
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Post by ceebee on Jul 10, 2019 12:46:35 GMT
The Grauniad gave it 3 stars. Obviously, by their own standards, that's a clear typo.
Never been unblocked.
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Post by scarpia on Jul 11, 2019 14:30:13 GMT
I agree it's a hit-or-miss thing. This production is wonderful, though, and to be honest the only one I've truly enjoyed since the Lyceum one back in 1996 (incidentally, the 2000 Broadway revival production, which was subsequently released on video with a different cast, is not the same as the Lyceum production, even though it had the same director; everything about it was entirely different...I have no idea why they didn't take the Lyceum one to Broadway). This confused me for years. I saw the Gale Edwards/RUG tour in Bristol (and I also have the DVD based on it) and not having seen the Lyceum version just assumed that with the same director and producer it was the same production. Only found out years later that it wasn't. Everything I have subsequently learned about the Lyceum version puts it high up on my list of productions I deeply regret missing. I'd be very interested to know the reason why the Lyceum one never went anywhere else given how highly it was praised, and why Gale Edwards completely redid everything for Broadway and the tours. Someone told me back in the day that John Napier (who designed the Lyceum production) had fallen out with ALW for some reason or other (the Broadway/video version didn't have him as designer), but I don't know if that's true and it sounded like only speculation at the time. On the back on the praise of this production, though, and given how much I enjoyed it at Regent's Park, definitely going to go and see it at the Barbican. The use of mikes is interesting insofar as that was part of the concept of the Palace Theatre production that ran for yonks in the West End in the 70s. |
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Post by lovemusicals on Jul 11, 2019 17:59:32 GMT
I'm in two minds, still based on the WEL performance. The reviews here all seem good but I seen a production in Edinburgh during the Fringe last year and the two lead men were outstanding and better than the last two touring productions and Id have put them above what I heard on WEL also. But then people are correct in saying that a small segment on an outdoor stage won't be the same as seeing the full show.
Just to put out there, any JCS fans in Edinburgh for the Fringe this year and can't make the new London production, the company (Captivate Theatre) are bringing their production back. RUG must have liked it to let them have the rights again.
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Post by ali973 on Jul 11, 2019 21:41:58 GMT
Just saw it tonight. Well this Judas can sing, can't he?
This is probably the most concept JCS I saw. For the first act I thought, okay, the director outsourced all duties to the choreographer and left all the drama out, but it occurred to me by the second act that this is 'on purpose'. The costumes are hilarious, and it looks like the wardrobe department raided Lulu Lemon and dressed their cast in it. Overall, the star of this show is the singing, and if you're in it for the score, then it delivers.
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Post by Mr Crummles on Jul 12, 2019 23:01:20 GMT
I thought this was just brilliant. It was my second visit to this production. The first one was in Regent’s Park with Declan Bennett and Tyrone Huntley. At the time I remember thinking that JCS couldn’t possibly be bettered, and that I would never see another Jesus and Judas that could compare to them. Maybe I was a bit premature. Robert Tripolino and Ricardo Alfonso were outstanding and had the advantage of a more fine-tuned production. Robert’s vulnerability and sense of uncertainty and loneliness in Gethsemane was truly heart-breaking. You really had a sense of a hesitant son talking to a formidable father. Ricardo’s black despair in Judas's suicide scene was absolutely devastating. The final scenes, from the Jesus Christ Superstar song till the end, had an almost painful level of intensity. I think it was the first time I spontaneously jumped to my feet to give a musical a genuine standing ovation (I usually just tend to follow everybody else, but halfheartedly, especially as I’d rather see the actors on stage than people's backs).
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Post by Jon on Jul 13, 2019 17:03:47 GMT
What are the £18.50 seats in the upper circle like?
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Post by jek on Jul 16, 2019 18:54:51 GMT
Just been on the backstage tour for this at the Barbican and had to laugh at the number of times we were told that they were being careful not to give any spoilers. I know they meant about the production but I kept thinking that they were suggesting that people might not know how the story ends!
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Post by andrew on Jul 16, 2019 22:16:32 GMT
Just been on the backstage tour for this at the Barbican and had to laugh at the number of times we were told that they were being careful not to give any spoilers. I know they meant about the production but I kept thinking that they were suggesting that people might not know how the story ends! I'm so so jealous! If I could afford a Barbican membership I would buy it just for that tour. How was it? {Spoiler - click to view} I wanna know about the glitter  |
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Post by jek on Jul 17, 2019 8:06:13 GMT
andrew Feel a bit guilty now for having taken up a space on this tour as I haven't see the show - I just tend to take advantage of these Barbican membership freebies as it is so easy for me to pop in to the Barbican. I would say, though, that I would guess that the majority of the tour consisted of people who were Open Air Theatre members rather than Barbican ones - the Q&A session revealed there to be plenty of people there who had an in depth knowledge of the production and its history. And there was a lot of hugging in the foyer with the young woman who was gathering us all together - and she works at the Open Air Theatre. As you would imagine for such a sound heavy show the backstage area is full of electrical equipment. As the Assistant Director and the Lighting Designer explained there is a large focus on making sure that everyone has the right microphone at the right time. It was described as a very technical show with a real discipline needed to get people on and off the stage and through the quick change. The quick change area is just some black tents with some of the names of the actors/dancers - which were taped up with their costumes - being appropriately biblical. Answer to your question about the make up demands in spoiler quotes at the bottom. Obviously there are almost as many crucifixes in various forms as you would see even at the shop next to Westminster Cathedral which sells religious items (I'm Catholic - I know about these things!) They said that they had talked a lot about Kanye West's Sunday service in rehearsals and were interested in exploring the branding concept around a religious movement. We saw a bit of the production being rehearsed as there was a swing on last night. Although they said that the floor space is bigger than they had at Regent's Park it is clearly quite an achievement to get people across it without a pile up. The set has been designed to fit the constraints of the tour - the Barbican set up should fit wherever the production tours to. I didn't take any photos but lots of people did - so there may be some up on social media. {Spoiler - click to view}
The glitter is applied in a separate clear plastic tent. A sticky substance is applied using one of those sprayers I fill with soapy water to attack the greenfly in the garden. The glitter is then thrown at the actor. The constraint at the Barbican is that there is no possibility - as there was at Regent's Park - of hosing down the actors backstage.
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Post by Nelly on Jul 17, 2019 11:58:18 GMT
I saw this last night after seeing the production during its original run at the Open Air Theatre. I thought it was phenomenal then but was even better last night.
Ricardo Afonso was a particular highlight, his Judas was perfect and that voice, wow!!
Enjoyed Robert Tripolino's Jesus; I think he just about go away with his take on Gesthemane, it came accross as a bit chaotic but it worked. I liked the way he seemed to be playing it with a particular arrogance at the beggining, that he really beleived the hype around him.
Sallay Garnett I found a bit hit and miss, thought she was better in the second act, always nice hearing a different spin on very familiar songs though.
The rest of the cast were superb too, Cavin Cornwall and Nathan Amzi were really watchable with amazing voices. Matt Cardle also great and another breath of fresh air.
The production as a whole is just so so good. I loved the choreography even more than I did originally, they were very tight.
I sat through it wishing this cast would be immortalised on a cast recording but doubt we'd get that.
I really think, if you're thinking of going, just book. It will not dissapoint.
Great night out.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jul 17, 2019 22:05:11 GMT
Went along tonight to see this at the Barbican, having also seen this in its first run in Regents Park.
I like some of the songs, but I just can't form any kind of emotional connection to this at all, which is unusual for me. I do think it worked better outside.
The prices for this are rather high, so I was in Gallery B1, which is the back row on the aisle. No issues with the view, you see right over everyone's heads and get a clear view of the stage. It's high, but nearer I think than some of the seats at the Open Air Theatre.
You do lose bits of the right side of the stage though, but it's easy enough to work out what's going on. For £18 (£15 + £3 booking fee), it's a bargain seat and much closer to the stage than the centre of the Gallery.
If you get the choice though, go for the other side of the Gallery, as then you'll miss much less. You'll mostly just miss seeing the band members there.
I'm surprised there are no offers out or they're not doing Rush tickets, as there was a decent amount of availability left in the Stalls. The Gallery was under half full and there were loads of empty seats right next to me (I could have moved further down, but chose to stay away from a large group of children sat in the middle).
I can't really fault the performances. Richard Afonso had the strongest voice in the cast. But as I say, this didn't grab me. The crowd were generally polite though, so I assume they enjoyed it.
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