Hull New Theatre – until 7th October 2023
Reviewed by Dawn Bennett
5 *****
David Ian for Crossroads Live and Work Light Productions with Nederlander Producing Co.Uk and Michael Watt presents The Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre Production of Jesus Christ Superstar.
With lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber this musical is over 50 years old but you would have never known how old it was while watching it last night. The staging, choreography and costumes of this revamped musical gave it a very modern feel and the performances of everyone was just magnificent.
Jesus Christ Superstar covers the last 7 days of the life of Jesus (Ian McIntosh) and how he was betrayed by Judas (Shem Omari James). The other main characters were Mary (Hannah Richardson), Pilate (Ryan O’Donnell), Caiaphas (Jad Habchi) and Annas (Matt Bateman) they were all magnificent their voices and harmonies in the songs were unreal you could have heard a pin drop in the auditorium when they sang.
This musical is told by song and the lyrics really speak for themselves with very well-known songs such as “I don’t know how to love him” “Superstar”, “Gethsemane” and many others. The band under Musical Director Michael Riley played at the back of the stage and were visible to the audience and this really added to the rock concert vibe. The band were excellent and the sound levels spot on. I have never watched this musical before and I was able to hear every word that was sung which really added to my enjoyment.
The ensemble was a joy to watch, their singing, dancing and acting were off the scale. The choreography (Drew McOnie, Associate Chorographer Ashley Andrews and Resident choreographer Christopher Tendai) was definitely some of the best I’ve seen and the ensemble and the rest of the cast danced it to perfection. At some points it was difficult to know where to look as they all danced with such power and expression.
Normally, when I review, I write notes that remind me of who was good, and what stood out in the production looking back today at what I’d written I’d put “stunning”, “jaw-dropping”, “heartfelt” “spectacular” and I think I was right…this is a production not to be missed!