Review: Jesus Christ Superstar (London Palladium)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️⭐️

The big summer musical at the London Palladium is always a highlight of the year, with last year's acclaimed revival of Evita taking things to a new level entirely (Literally - the balcony outside). For this year's offering, another Andrew Lloyd Webber classic has been resurrected with the return of Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre's award-winning production of Jesus Christ Superstar. With a Eurovision legend donning the thorny crown, would this be another superstar production for the Palladium, or would the show end up being crucified?

Conceived by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, Jesus Christ Superstar began life as a concept album before making its stage debut on Broadway in 1971 and the West End in 1972. Revived multiple times over the years, most recently with last year’s fantastic actor-muso production at the Watermill Theatre and a staging at the Hollywood Bowl starring Cynthia Erivo and Adam Lambert. The Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production has had a whole other life of its own, however. Following its first run there in 2016, it returned in 2017 and 2020, with the latter a last-minute run when Covid rules were relaxed, allowing shows to take place in outdoor places (feels like a lifetime ago, doesn’t it!). This London Palladium version has the bones of the now distinct Regent’s Park production, only with some revisions to keep it fresh and unique for its next chapter inside two of the West End’s most iconic theatres.

Everyone knows the story, right? For the two of you who may not, Jesus Christ Superstar tells the story of the last days of Jesus Christ through the eyes of Judas Iscariot. As Jesus’ influence grows, Judas becomes increasingly alarmed by the devotion surrounding him. Throw in political unrest, Mary Magdalene and personal betrayal, and you have no shortage of intense themes to whizz through in a relatively speedy runtime. Completely sung-through, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic speaks for itself, as does this now decade-old version of it to an extent, so the focus is on how this specific version fares.

Rather than opt for a glossier, sleeker version of the production, director Tim Sheader has opted for a more stripped, back-to-basics affair that amplifies the parallels between Jesus and his rock star persona even more than the previous version has done. Sheader's direction impresses throughout, particularly with the use of space. Whenever the cast burst from the stage into the audience, the atmosphere is electric, and the new inclusion of audience members standing on stage is an inspired touch. Moments such as the always powerful Last Supper moment and the intense scenes that meet both Judas and Jesus’ ends (spoiler) remain astonishing to witness and a large part of why this particular iteration of Jesus Christ Superstar has been so widely acclaimed.

Drew McOnie’s choreography remains every bit as breathtaking and remarkable ten years after this version first appeared. Distinct in its approach, every moment when the cast breaks out into McOnie’s riveting and creative movements is when Jesus Christ Superstar is at its best, be it a single cast member or the full bustling cast matching that energy brilliantly. This is a production that certainly looks fantastic, with Tom Scutt’s set design moving beyond the confines of the stage and stretching into the first rows of the audience, giving the epic rock set this production craves. At times, it can risk feeling cold and cavernous on the Palladium stage, risking a sense of disconnect, but the production just about avoids this, with aspects such as the striking giant cross filling the stage ensuring this is always a thrilling watch.

The design is more of a mixed affair elsewhere, with one element being one of the best aspects of the production and the other, well, we’ll come to that. First, the good. Lee Curran’s lighting design is absolutely stunning in every usage. Meticulous and intricate, the cast is bathed in a beautiful glow with soaring and even blinding lights and moments of subtlety always doing a great job in telling the story. There are times when the lighting ties itself to the rock star vibe, with certain effects you would expect to see at a rock concert more than a musical at the Palladium, but every inspired choice works flawlessly and ensures this production looks better than ever before.

The same cannot be said for the sound, unfortunately. Whether this is an issue that was confined to the performance I went to or wasn’t an issue in other parts of the theatre remains to be seen, but I can only speak of my experience, and the sound really let the show down - more than I have ever experienced before. It was always too quiet and confined, with the sense that the sound was desperate to break free from the stage but was never allowed to. Moments that should have soared fell flat, most notably in ‘I Don’t Know How To Love Him ’, where beautiful vocals from the always wonderful Desmonda Cathabel had a challenge to rise above the subpar sound accompanying her. It is incredibly disappointing, as this orchestra are sensational, with a particularly exhilarating overture filling the production with promise. It is rather perplexing, then, that the sound fell so spectacularly flat, from my perspective, at least. This is a score that needs to be allowed to breathe and explode for all its glorious richness; instead, it was left feeling restrained and tinny, doing a disservice to all involved. I hope this is an issue that can be resolved quickly, but I’m sorry to say this had quite a large impact on my enjoyment of the show this time around.

Where Cathabel may have faced issues on one of the biggest numbers of the show, she thrilled elsewhere as Mary Magdalene, especially in the Act Two number, ‘Could We Start Again Please?’, a number that hasn’t ever been a personal favourite of mine but was very clearly a standout on this performance, perhaps due to the fact the sound was better during this number than some of the ones in Act One. This was a moment where direction, choreography and performance came together beautifully to create theatre magic. There were a few moments throughout that this similarly happened, such as ‘The Last Supper’ and ‘Judas’ Death’, but also some moments that struggled to meet this glory.

There is one person we have to talk about, and that is the man taking on the title role. What I can say is Sam Ryder. Jesus Christ! Now, I know that it can be interpreted in very many ways, and they could all be accurate to some degree. I have long been an admirer of Sam, and even posted on social media more than three years ago (feels like 30) about how much I'd love to see him in this role. My excitement was sky-high for his Jesus, so it's a shame I came out of there pretty underwhelmed by a performance that I felt was not quite there yet. Of course, his vocals were not an issue, with his impressive range on full display throughout. We were all there to witness his remarkable take on ‘Gethsemane ’, and it certainly didn’t disappoint, leading to the vocal performance of the production and earning Sam a well-deserved standing ovation. However, Jesus Christ Superstar is not a one-song show, and his other moments failed to match the genius on display during those six minutes of musical theatre heaven.

The issue is that Ryder is more of a singer than an actor, and those shortcomings are apparent in his performance. At times, Ryder struggled to convey the emotions necessary for the character, delivering a restrained performance lacking any sort of nuance or connection. There was a sense that the meaning behind the lines being uttered was not being completely understood, leading to a performance that disappointingly lacked conviction and came across as rather low-energy. Though his ‘Gethsemane’ is a work of art, there were opportunities for moments elsewhere to allow Ryder to play to his strengths, but these were never utilised. There were also issues with his diction, with Ryder repeatedly mumbling and even becoming inaudible at times, though this can also be attributed to the aforementioned sound issues. While it may be his name above the title, in this production, Jesus Christ finds himself eclipsed by the majority of his co-stars.

If a disappointing lead turn is a negative factor of Jesus Christ Superstar, the positive ripple effect is shining a light on an incredible ensemble cast. Bob Harms is a dominant presence as Caiaphas, with this year’s Britain’s Got Talent finalist Matty J getting some strong moments as Annas - together, their performance on ‘This Jesus Must Die’ is a highlight of the show. David Thaxton returns to another Andrew Lloyd Webber classic, this time offering a storming portrayal of Pilate, once again demonstrating his God-given and often unrivalled stage presence. Billy Nevers gets a memorable moment in Act One, after being given an opportunity to showcase his unbelievable vocals and running with it, with Phil King another highlight as Peter. The entire ensemble cast also needs commending for how they work as a cohesive unit, bringing McOnie’s choreography and Sheader's direction to life in miraculous fashion.

For both this run and the upcoming transfer at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, no actor is playing the small but mighty role of King Herod. Instead, a revolving door of stars is taking on the role, with Julian Clary, Boy George and Layton Williams some of the names you can expect to see, depending on when you visit. The first guest star is Jesse Tyler Ferguson - it may be a long way into the show for him to make his eventual cameo appearance, but it is more than worth the wait. Ferguson is a delight in the role, delivering an exaggerated performance with moments of camp and a sinister quality. His ‘King Herod’s Song’ is nothing short of epic in a performance that is big, brash and ballsy.

There is one cast member left to talk about, and for good reason. Though there are some strong performances in this production, none come close to the jaw-droppingly good turn of Tyrone Huntley as Judas. No stranger to the role, he has returned to the production multiple times in the last decade, and his intuition and ability to embody the character need to be seen to be believed. Tyrone perfectly captures the torment, anguish and conflict in the character - the way Huntley is able to express his emotions through his stance or an expression puts him at the top of his game, but it is what he can do with his vocals that takes this performance to a God-tier standard. Such is the force of nature of Huntley and his outrageously good vocals that he can even cry in tune. His performance isn’t so much scene-stealing as it is obliterating, raising the standard so high that nobody could come anywhere close to his level. It is his musical numbers that allow this production to come closest to reaching its full potential, even making the sound problems plaguing it less noticeable. From ‘Heaven On Their Minds’ to ‘Superstar’, every note Huntley hits is nothing short of heavenly. If you thought what Tyrone Huntley did as Judas in the past was impressive, you really ain’t seen nothing yet.

I have seen several different productions of Jesus Christ Superstar over the years, but the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production ranks as the most special of them all. The bold way they bring something new to the story and the creative choices never failed to blow me away, so I was understandably excited for this resurrection. It is admirable that they opted not to rest on their laurels and instead try to do something different with their production, and in some ways, it works remarkably well. However, I didn’t feel like I was seeing this show at its best due to a lead performance that wasn't the saviour I had been hoping for and sound issues that desperately need sorting. Though it isn’t anywhere near so bad that you could say the show has been crucified, it’s fair to say this version of Jesus Christ Superstar doesn’t quite manage to exceed expectations. Still a solid show full of superstars, this Jesus may not quite nail it, but it’s certainly no cross to bear.

Jesus Christ Superstar plays at the London Palladium until 5th September.

After a short break, it moves to Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 16th October to 9th January ahead of a UK tour next year.

Get tickets for both West End runs at https://allthatdazzles.londontheatredirect.com/search/jesus

Photos by Johan Persson