It’s rare that Los Angeles plays host to the theater world’s hottest ticket, but that’s what we got when the Hollywood Bowl put some of our best living performers together onstage for a limited three-night engagement.
“Jesus Christ Superstar” set the West Coast’s iconic bandshell ablaze this weekend with “Wicked” Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo taking on the O.G. messiah role – this one being a little less green than her Elphaba.
Erivo’s take on Jesus Christ proved to be as Herculean a theatrical accomplishment as anything we’ve seen from her to date. Graceful and heroic, sharp and emotive, the “Color Purple” Tony winner as the son of God was a rousing musical experience. Between the assured guidance of “What’s the Buzz,” the doting affection of “Everything’s Alright” and the wailing admonition of “The Temple,” Act I alone showcased Erivo’s prowess as a dramatic actress and world-class vocalist.
But her Act II rendition of the six-minute “Gethsename (I Only Want to Say),” in which Jesus pleads with God to let him live, was the runaway highlight of the evening. Opening night saw her final words of “Take me, now! Before I change my mind” met with an extended standing ovation from the thousands in attendance. For all the religious right-wing dust it kicked up when the L.A. Philharmonic announced a queer, Black woman would be playing Jesus, it turned out to be an inspired casting and a role that put to use Erivo’s singular abilities as a performer while even allowing her to flex new gradations and ridges we didn’t know she had.
Erivo alone made a fine argument for the price of admission – even as the nearly 18,000-capacity amphitheater’s resale tickets went day-of for three and four figures apiece. But Adam Lambert as Judas Iscariot was an added aural feast that made this “Superstar” all the richer. Fans were teased in the lead-up to Friday of what to anticipate from the “American Idol” alum (he and Webber released a studio recording of the show-opening “Heaven on Their Minds”). But Lambert is even better out of the studio and let loose on a live mic. Riffing and shrieking his way through Judas’ metal-tinged upper register with other classics like “Damned for All Time” and “Superstar,” Lambert had the panache and presence to meet Erivo mark-for-mark.
Fleshing out the rest of the cast was true Broadway royalty in “Hamilton” star Philippa Soo as Mary Magdalene and Raúl Esparza as Pontius Pilate. Elsewhere, Disney star Milo Manheim (seen on L.A. stages last fall leading Deaf West Theatre’s “American Idiot”) played Peter, and Josh Gad played the gaudy King Herod (after handing the opening night reins to John Stamos while isolating after a COVID diagnosis). And while lesser-known than some of their Hollywood-kissed co-stars, the dynamism of Brian Justin Crum (previously of “America’s Got Talent”) and Zachary James (Grammy-winning opera singer and vet of Broadway and the West End) as Annas and Caiaphas kept some of the production’s best-known ensemble numbers in assured hands as the powers of the Roman empire set in motion Judas’ betrayal and Jesus’ crucifixion.
As far as the actual production itself, the Hollywood Bowl’s staging was not the first time we’ve seen “Jesus Christ Superstar” given a deconstructed industrial concert treatment. Given its rock opera formula, it continued to work here without breaking the mold of what one expects from the show. Smoke, lights, LED screens and urban-punk costuming from Emilio Sosa paired with more minimalist set pieces that platformed the music and vocalists above all else.
The band, led by Grammy-winning musical director and conductor Stephen Oremus, performed live onstage while Tony-winning director and choreographer Sergio Trujillo made the most of the expansive Bowl space; performers entered some numbers walking down the aisles of the garden and often looped around the pit across the extended stage’s lip. It’s ultimately across that walkway, too, that Erivo’s Jesus made his final walk to crucifixion while Lambert sang his farewell number “Superstar.”
The show was produced in association with Neil Meron and Robert Greenblatt with scenic design by Jason Ardizzone-West, projections by Peter Negrini, lighting design by Tyler Lambert-Perkins and Tyler Glover, sound sign by Jonathan Burke and hair and makeup sign by Brandi Strona.
While Erivo, Lambert and co. took their final bow Sunday night – and any additional future for this specific production remains unclear – the benefit of performing at the Hollywood Bowl concert-style vs. a Broadway theater is there have been plenty of fan videos from the audience flooding social media and YouTube over the weekend, giving musical fans far and wide the opportunity to get a taste of this invigorating retelling of Jesus’ final days. And for those who were lucky enough to see it all in the flesh — God-willing — we’ll get to rewatch our favorite bits again and again.
