Jesus Christ SUPERSTAR

AN ACTUAL REVIEW!!! - 7/4/07 THE COMMENTS EXPRESSED ARE THE OPINION OF THE AUTHOR When you present a show as well known and well loved as JCS, comparisons will inevitably be made.... The show had it's bright spots and some not so good - overall I'm sorry to say that the bad outweighed the good. So, lets start with the good shall we... Lighting and set were great. Julie Fedele (Mary) - a lovely voice and it was a pleasure to listen to her. David Wallace (Annas) - Nice clear tenor with just the right hint of whininess (a good thing) Eddie Stowers (Pilate) - The standout performance of the night. Maybe not the best singer on the stage, but his performance was fantastic...Lloyd Webbers tortured Pilate to a tee. Clint Strindberg (Simon Zealot) - made the most of a small role. Paul Presbury and Paul Treasure for not needing mics. And the not-so-good..... The Overture - Why are the cast on stage??? Is the overture not meant to be a musical introduction to the show? Judas - Didn't have the vocal range or power to have me convince me. Jesus - Maybe it was an off night (I heard he had a cold), but he had trouble staying on key. Caiaphas - Actually I really enjoyed Ted's vulture like portrayal of the chief priest, if only he could find his starting note.. The Herod scene - I thought I was in a Rocky Horror show. I know its usually played camp, but it was a little OTT. Good job from Paul, though. The Leper scene - Didn't benefit from being halftimed. Judas' hanging - Yes, we know how tortured you are by what you've done - just kill yourself already. Jesus on the cross - also seemed to go on interminably. Chorus - on a whole were very good, but need to find the volume knob as they seemed a little over-zealous in places. SOUND - As someone who works on the tech stuff as well as on stage, I'm aware of the problems that amplified music and radio mics can cause. Sometimes I was unable to hear the vocals (Judas especially) above the band. It seemed that the cast were not confident with the mics (I better not sing too loud, I've got a mic on) and this came across as poor vocal technique. I couldn't help wondering if the show could have been improved by throwing away the mics and letting the actors/singers do their job. Well there you have it. My night at Marloo. (will someone get the cobweb broom out and have a look up please) I understand the countless hours that go into getting a production such as this on, so please take these comments in the manner in which thay are meant. And feel free to come along and crit my next performance...I'll take it like a man.