Published on Jan 7, 1999
Old joke – though we’re not referring to “Waiter” who requested
this review:
Diner: Waiter! What’s this fly doing in my soup?
Waiter: It looks like the backstroke to me, sir.
Same joke if written by Andrew Lloyd Webber:
Diner: Waiter! What are these 500 flies doing in my
soup?
Waiter: It looks like the backstroke to me, sir – in
synchronization.
That is, essentially, the truth about Andrew Lloyd Webber – why
just do something when it can be overdone? Nothing succeeds like
excess.
And Lloyd Webber’s excess is well on display with what is,
arguably, his most controversial and most musical effort,
Jesus Christ Superstar.
Let me just say at the beginning that if you come to
Superstar hoping for profound theological truths or even to
provide a musical background for your own faith, be forewarned:
Lloyd Webber has “Disney-ized” the gospel story from the Bible
stripping it of many of its most important and critical moments.
For instance, there is no resurrection, which is only the capstone
of the Christian faith and the culmination of Jesus’ life on earth.
Instead, at the end of this show Judas, the traitor, comes back for
an encore.
And that’s another complaint, Lloyd Webber and Rice have written
a musical ostensibly about Jesus Christ, but who takes center
stage? Who gets the best songs? Who gets the sympathetic treatment?
Judas. Jesus is the moody, hard-to-get-along-with character and
Judas is the one member of Jesus’ entourage who is not portrayed as
a buffoon. Go figure.
Anyway, let’s talk about the music. Like any Lloyd Webber
musical from
Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat to
Sunset Boulevard the music is the thing here. Story be
damned, listen to the tunes! Aren’t they gorgeous? And so emotive!
And in
Superstar there are plenty of good tunes to go around – all
of them presented in the most grand of grand arrangements. Swelling
violins. Crashing drums. Screaming guitars.
Screaming guitars? But of course, this is a rock opera,
remember? (Hahahahahahahaha! What a ridiculous concept! But, I
digress.)
There are a slew of
Superstars to review, but the one I chose was the original
concept album from 1970 – recorded before the musical ever hit a
stage. I grew up with this album (and it was vinyl then) and still
have the entire thing memorized. I will not comment on whether that
is a good thing or not.
The cast includes Murray Head as Judas, Ian Gillan as Jesus,
Yvonne Elliman as Mary Magdalene, Barry Denne as Pilate, and Mike
D’Abo as King Herod.
Head was, and still is, mesmerizing as Judas. You might recall
the name Murray Head as the artist credited with the quirky hit
“One Night In Bangkok” from the musical
Chess written by the men of ABBA. Anyway, as Judas he
presents a credible picture of a man torn between what he wanted to
believe and what he couldn’t believe. He sets the stage — and the
musical standard for the rest of the performers — with the opening
song “Heaven On Their Minds”:
My mind is clearer now/At last, all too well, I can see where we
all soon will be
If you strip away/The myth from the man/You will see where we
all soon will be
Jesus! You’re starting to believe/The things they say of you
You really do believe/This talk of God is true
And all the good you’ve done/Will soon be swept away
You’ve begun to matter more than the things you say.
Unfortunately, Ian Gillan (yes, he of Deep Purple fame) is
forgettable as Jesus. Ted Neely from the later movie version
defined the role much better. Gillan sings fine, but most of the
time he fails to find the humanity in Jesus, instead singing him as
a strident, misunderstood preacher who is more often impatient with
his congregation and disciples than pleased, nurturing or
loving.
Yvonne Elliman (disco hit “If I Can’t Have You” courtesy of the
Brothers Gibb) makes a perfect Mary Magdalene. Her Mary is a woman
trying alternately to soothe Jesus (“Everything’s Alright”) and
expressing her confusion at being unable to find a way to love him
in “I Don’t Know How To Love Him”. Helen Reddy mishandled this song
mightily, but she got the hit record. Elliman gives it the proper
amount of shading and has a far finer voice. You can sense her ache
as she tries to find a new way to love.
Other highlights: D’Abo’s turn as a campy King Herod in his song
“Try It And See” (“Jesus I am overjoyed to meet you face to
face/You’ve been getting quite a name all around the place/Healing
lepers, raising from the dead/And now I understand you’re God?/At
least that’s what you’ve said. … Prove to me that you’re no
fool/Walk across my swimming pool.”). Head’s tortured performance
in “Damned For All Time/Blood Money” is almost physically painful
to listen to, but his singing on the title tune is stupendous.
Also notable is Pilate’s lashing of Jesus 39 times (“The 39
Lashes”) and his useless attempts to disavow his role in Jesus’
death. This is another scene that’s hard to listen to, especially
for those who claim Christianity.
At times
Superstar sounds a little dated — it has all the rock and
roll electric guitars of its era (early 70’s) — but mostly it
hangs together well as modern musical theatre – but flunks roundly
as theology.
Superstar has been revived more times than a Southern Belle
in a nudist colony. If you’ve never seen the show, just wait. I’m
sure some local theatrical troupe will put it on sometime soon. Or
rent the movie. It’s not as good as a live performance, but it’s
readily available. Just remember, it’s only musical theatre, not
the Gospel.