What’s the buzz? The first musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice to be produced for the professional stage, Jesus Christ Superstar has wowed audiences for more than 50 years. A timeless work, the rock opera is set against the backdrop of an extraordinary and universally known series of events but seen, unusually, through the eyes of Judas Iscariot.
Loosely based on the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Jesus Christ Superstar follows the last week of Jesus Christ’s life. The story, told entirely through song, explores the personal relationships and struggles between Jesus, Judas, Mary Magdalene, his disciples, his followers, and the Roman Empire.
Boston Conservatory at Berklee’s production is directed by Dawn Simmons with music direction by David Coleman.
This performance has been selected as part of Boston Conservatory at Berklee’s fall 2024 Center Stage collection.
Program Information
Dramaturgy Note
“If he’s a man, whether or not he’s a god, he has to suffer. He has to have doubts. [Jesus] was a human being. He had good points and bad points. He had strengths and weaknesses.”
—Tim Rice (qtd in Sarah Bahr, “‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ at 50: What Was the Buzz?,” New York Times, October 12, 2021).
Is Jesus Christ Superstar a retelling of arguably the most famous narrative in human history, or is it a study on the pitfalls of celebrity culture? For lyricist Tim Rice and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, the concept album-turned-musical retelling of the last week of Jesus’s life, told from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, offers a modern, rock-concert representation of Jesus of Nazareth’s humanity.
Famously, from the outset of its original Broadway run, Jesus Christ Superstar met with significant controversy. Multiple religious groups protested outside of the theater and released public statements decrying and condemning the show for what they believed was a blasphemous and disrespectful depiction of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ Superstar was not the first, nor would it be the last, theatrical retelling of Jesus’s life, conviction, crucifixion, and resurrection that invited public condemnation. The controversy itself is understandable when theatrical representation seems to humanize Jesus in a way that denies or ignores his divinity. But it is the conceit that drives the show’s message. By transforming Jesus into a modern rockstar, he becomes an entity a modern audience can understand: a celebrity put on a pedestal then violently ripped down from it. The depiction is what makes the show both universally relatable and objectionable: our protagonist inspires a movement and ideology, garnering him a pre-Common Era equivalent of viral fame that eventually inspires doubt, fear, and skepticism. For Rice and Webber, celebrity is an irrevocably human experience. Mary Magdalene sings, “He’s not a king, he’s just the same/As anyone I know/He scares me so.” Perhaps this is what makes Jesus Christ Superstar both appealing and appalling: by bringing Jesus into the 20th and 21st centuries and humanizing him, he stands as an example of our worst tendencies, including the cruelty we can impose upon those we love and admire because of our own anxieties and insecurities.
—Dr. Helen Lewis-Michelson, associate professor of theater, production dramaturg
Scenes and Musical Numbers
ACT I 1 Overture 2 “Heaven on Their Minds” – Judas 3 “What’s the Buzz” – Ensemble 4 “Strange Thing, Mystifying” – Judas 5 “Everything’s Alright” – Mary Magdalene, Ensemble 6 “This Jesus Must Die” – Caiaphas, Ensemble 7 “Hosanna” – Ensemble 8 “Simon Zealotes/Poor Jerusalem” – Ensemble, Simon 9 “Pilate’s Dream” – Pilate 10 “The Temple” – Ensemble 11 “Everything Alright Reprise” – Mary Magdalene 12 “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” – Mary Magdalene 13 “Damned for All Time/Blood Money” – Judas, Annas, Caiaphas, Ensemble
ACT II 1 “The Last Supper” – Apostles, Jesus 2 “Gethsemane” – Jesus 3 “The Arrest” – Peter, Apostles, Ensemble 4 “Peter’s Denial” – Ensemble 5 “Pilate and Christ/Herod’s Song” – Pilate, Annas, Ensemble 6 “Could We Start Again, Please” – Mary Magdalene, Ensemble 7 “Judas’s Death” – Judas, Caiaphas 21 Trial by Pilate/39 Lashes – Pilate, Caiaphas, Jesus 22 Superstar – Judas, Ensemble 23 Crucifixion 24 John 19:41
Cast
JESUS – Nick Potts JUDAS ISCARIOT – Paola Marcias MARY MAGDALENE – Ellen Roberts CAIAPHAS – Darrick Brown PONTIUS PILATE – Maddie Ritter KING HEROD – Steven Eckloff PETER – Lauren Manna SIMON ZEALOTES – Keegan Sells ANNAS – Candy Liu
ENSEMBLE JAMES Z. (APOSTLE) – Rachel Thompson THADDAEUS (APOSTLE) – Jackson Smith PHILIP (APOSTLE) – Isabel Leoni MARY (MOTHER OF JESUS) – Lexi Stephens JAMES A. (APOSTLE) – Aniya Jones THOMAS (APOSTLE) – Olivia Aniceto MATTHEW (APOSTLE) – Ashton Williams JOSEPH (JESUS' STEP-FATHER) – Connor Zeidman PULIUS (PRIEST) – Tati Arias ANDREW (APOSTLE) – Payton Hines JOHN (APOSTLE) – Angelina Ortiz BARTHOLOMEW (APOSTLE) – Marin Sori BIFF (JESUS’ BEST FRIEND) – Abbie Smith
UNDERSTUDIES Judas Iscariot – Lauren Manna Mary Magdalene – Isabel Leoni
Orchestra
CONDUCTOR David Coleman
PICCOLO Mia Mravle, BM '27
FLUTE Maggie Stuteville, BM '27
OBOE Christopher Mavrogian, MM '25 Coleton Morgan, MM '26
CLARINET John Azpuru Jr., MM '25 Julia Spretty, BM '27
TENOR SAXOPHONE John Azpuru Jr., MM '25
BASSOON Carson Saponaro, BM '26
HORN Jack Krugman, GPD '26
TRUMPET CJ Waldrop, MM '25
TROMBONE Sum Ho Tsui, BM '27
BASS TROMBONE Collin Good, BM '27
TUBA Lowrider James, BM '27
PERCUSSION Grant Mellone, BM '27
TRAP SET John Hanchey, BM '27
HARP Yinong Zhang, BM '28
VIOLIN I Adrian Atonya, BM '26 Tess O.B. Reed, BM '28 Joshua Rosenthal, BM '26
VIOLIN II Leon Baker III, BM '25 Rose Barranco, BM '26 Acadia Kunkel, BM '28
VIOLA Dylan Cohen, BM '27 Emily Tardif, MM '26
CELLO Hailey Brasser, BM '26 Lauren Roberts, MM '25
BASS Gabriel de los Reyes, BM '27
KEYBOARD Benjamin Laham, BM '25
GUITAR Jonathan Goldberg (Berklee College of Music) Kieran Griffin (Berklee College of Music)
BASS GUITAR Zach Friedman (Berklee College of Music)
Production Credits
CREATIVE TEAM: Director – Dawn Simmons Conductor – David Coleman Scenic/Props Designer – Justin Lahue Sound Designer – Brendan F Doyle Costume Designer – Zoe Sundra Lighting Designer – Deb Sullivan Dramaturg – Helen Lewis-Michelson
PRODUCTION STAFF: Director of Performance Services and Producer – Hanna Oravec Assistant Director of Production – Becca Donald Stage Manager – Bethany Rachel Intimacy/Fight Consultant – Angie Jepson Technical Director – Taylor Kaufman Assistant Technical Director – Caleb D. Harris Costume Shop Manager – Alison Pugh Assistant Costume Shop Manager – Leah Foley Wardrobe Manager – Blue Barber Costume Stock Manager/Draper/Stitcher – Becca Jewett Draper/Stitcher – Sam Martin, Caroline Seeley Sound Supervisor – Steve Deptula Audio Engineer/A1 – Maddy Poston Audio Assistant/A2 – Kait Kelly Lighting Supervisor – Jacob Inman Production Electrician – Gabe Goldman Props Manager – Hannah Spangler TPP Professor – Cassie Seinuk
STUDENT PRODUCTION STAFF: Student Assistant Directors – Isabela “Bela” Garcia Student Assistant Music Director – Ben Laham Student Assistant Stage Managers – Claire Flynn, Maisie Doerr Student Assistant Dramaturg – Sophie Lindwall Sound Crew – Justice Warner, Matthew Draper Lightboard Operator – Jack Terbush Wardrobe Crew – Azul Girola, Charley Baird-Hassell Run Crew – Chris Moody Follow Spot Operator – Grace Maran, Jersie Joniak Production Assistants – Lori Newsom, Kalika Reece, Karina Tejera Costume Assistants – Mai Beisley, Samantha Fleeter, Amber Lew
CONCERT SERVICES STAFF: Senior Manager of Concert Services – Luis Herrera Coordinator, Concert Services – Matthew Carey Concert Production Manager – Kendall Floyd Performance Technology Technicians – Sara Pagiaro, Goran Daskalov
CONCERT OPERATIONS STAFF: Senior Ticket Operations – Kelly Brennan Part-Time House Manager – Inesh Krishnamurthy
THEATER DIVISION LEADERSHIP: Krisha Marcano – Dean of Theater Isaac Leaverton – Interim Chair of Theater Bridgette Hayes – Assistant Chair of Theater Shawna Kelley – Project Manager
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