Jesus Christ Superstar: Live Arena Tour

I never went to see this show at the theatre, didn't get the opportunity, but knew the music and saw snatches on TV over the years.

I watched the Arena Tour on TV - what a truly wonderful experience. I couldn't take my eyes off. It was now a proper rock musical - I haven't been so enthralled or impressed since I went to see Hair in 1969, but this surpassed that by miles. Well done, a wonderful show with excellent performances; Tim Minchin was just superb, as was Mel C, and Ben Forster was so powerful at times it hurt. The ensemble cast were wonderful too.

Changing the time worked very well, there are parallels with today which you cannot ignore and which made it even more dramatic. The set design was superb, the costume quite stunning.

Yes, I enjoyed it! I just wanted to be there soaking it all up!

First off, I should say that the filming itself of this production is well done. Good camera angles although the editing never lets them breathe enough. Still a well filmed live production I would say. I've given this a 6 largely in part due to the production value.

The production itself however is strange. They have really modernized it (nearly post-modernized it), which actually makes it feel more dated times. The dystopian hierarchy is a very cool change that I liked, but other changes like turning the temple into a night club just didn't work and ruined the integrity of the original scene.

They also auto tune a lot (if not all) of the voices, plus apply many other vocal effects, and it's really really noticeable.

Jesus also just was miscast. He can hit the high notes, but doesn't have much strength or power to them. Range isn't everything. His voice is far to smooth and soft for material that requires full voice screaming. Sounds like a Bee Gee instead of hard rock screaming. I must point out that sings the wrong vowel sounds quite regularly too, which really should have been caught by the music director.

Tim Minchin really does steal the show as he appears to be just about the only person on stage who really understands and is dedicated to the material. He gives it his all, and it's a real travesty that they auto tuned and smoothed out the grit in his voice as the role of Judas is not supposed to sound nearly as smooth at they made it.

Overall it's an interesting adaptation. If you're a fan of the musical in general, you might enjoy it just as a different take, but the vocal effects alone will ruin it for many classic theatre fans.

Ok, to be totally frank, NOT ONLY am I a huge Tim Minchin fan, I've watched all of his concerts & shows I could find and some of series AND I've been listening to the original JCSuperstar album since the early 70's. All of my kids, who are full grown adults now, love the album. When I heard about this UK arena tour video, WOW! I was so excited to watch it, but then I saw that Tim had been cast as Judas, that just added to my delight.

Now, I get that not everyone likes Tim's act, he can be fairly caustic to a gentle mind. But I just love his stuff. Swearing & all. You cannot deny the guy is super talented.

This production was placed in a rock arena, as creators ALW & TR had originally planned while writing it. With a huge flatscreen at top of the steps which lets the audience see better close-ups.

The 1973 movie was very good (8/10), but as talented as Ted Neely was, I would've preferred to have seen Ian Gillian in the Jesus role (he does Jesus on the original soundtrack). In this version, Ben Forster is pretty good as Jesus. The way the arena is set up, if you're familiar with the original Norman Jewison film from 1973, you'll know where each scene & character is 'supposed' to be. Tim is excellent as Judas. MelC ,as Mary, is easy to watch. I love her gothy/punk look.

So, maybe I'm not unbiased, I've watched this movie so many times since buying it. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes JCS or Tim Minchin or rock operas or just a good show to spend some time on.

PS: Another Tim Minchin achievement is "Matilda, the Musical", he wrote all the songs and they are brilliant! (Watch Matilda at least once with the captions on so as not to miss any of his sharp lyrics!).

Good adaptation to the modern time, but without Tim Minchin, it's not worth watching

This is surely the best attempt at rejuvenating Lloyd Webber and Rice's under appreciated work since the 1973 movie featuring Ted Neely and Carl Anderson. It does however fall into similar traps from previous productions, in so much as, directors incessantly feel the need to modernise or set it in some kind of wacky environment, sometimes at the expense of logic. The most bizarre example being Ponteous Pilate doing push up's after tennis, whilst pondering Christ's fate.

This production is for arenas and stadiums only; A gift to the awesome array of session musicians, who smash their way through the big numbers with aplomb, whilst still providing tenderness where needed. The cast also benefit from the size and scope of this production, but for different reasons. As a paying member of a 40,000 strong audience, one can imagine being swept away with Mel C's Magdeline, as would her voice have been swept away with reverb, and bolstered by the awesome accompaniment. But on TV, listening to the direct feed from the desk, her interpretation lacks all subtlety, and is harsh on the ears. No doubt her brief stint in the west end production of Blood Brothers, entertained Lloyd Webber's sensibilities both Musical Theatre, and commercial. Sadly, Ben Forster as Christ also disappoints due to a lack of rock authenticity. He seems to have the range (although he does seem to split his long held high note at the end of Everything's Alright - did that go unnoticed in post production? Or was it the 'warts and all' approach to editing live events?) but the higher notes are reached not unlike a choir boy. The 'screams' of Ted Neely and Ian Gillan are here replaced with a dulcet falsetto. And there is a lack of anger: Tim Rice's interpretation of Christ in his final days is as impatient and angry, as would any real man's mentality be. Forster however, is a whimpering victim, failing to find the good stuff needed for The Temple scene, and only marginally improving for Gethsemanie. Tim Minchin, however is a ray of light. There is no doubt that he delivers vocally in his big numbers, but that's where his focus seems to be, and not on the smaller moments where his voice is quite thin, and glassy. But due to the benefit of close up telly, his complete and utter emotional investment in the character, and what's at stake are undeniable. Whilst I'm not a massive fan of his tone, It's a great performance, with little attempt at hiding or covering up his own stylings, putting his own stamp on the character - a rock 'n' roll hallmark. Chris Moyles is adequate as Herod. This is to Superstar what Master Of The House is to Les Miserables, and is much loved, a lot of fun, and therefore, hard to get wrong. The 'wacky' re-imagining DOES work here, presenting the song as a live 'phone-in' /Jerry Springer-esque telethon of some kind. Bringing us round to design. It's done really well, with a huge screen covering various on stage moments, as well as providing storyline background ideas, atop a huge staircase. of which some steps retract or move.

On the whole, it's great to see Superstar given the treatment it finally deserves, and as a fan of the show, musician, and actor, my hat goes off to the rollicking band, and energetic supporting cast. Superstar rocks, again!