EVEN BY its own extremely high standards this year’s production of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ by New Ross Musical Society was an outstanding piece of work.
The level of professionalism that the society exudes in every performance is incredible but this year the audience was treated to a truly special show.
The overture at the star invoked an image of Black Sabbath which, all things considered, was very appropriate and the lighting at the start was extremely effective and created a very sombre atmosphere in the theatre.
A thought provoking scene at the start of the show where children are seen playing on the street but one little girl gets bullied. That scene is significant as the child reappears right at the end in what proved to be a very poignant end to the show.
Jesus (Padraig D’Arcy) talks to the children and calms the situation. However, while the acting on stage was brilliant the ability of the cast in terms of singing was astounding.
As the show progressed the voices of both D’Arcy and, in particular, Flanagan, were phenomenal.
The music throughout the show was brilliant and ranged from the aforementioned Sabbath styled doom laden sombre variety to more upbeat, funky, groove-infused patterns with a strong 60s vibe.
A visually striking scene was early in the show when Jesus was surrounded by his followers in a manner that modern day pop stars would be proud of.
Claire O’Connor (as Mary Magdalene) also proved herself to be a fantastic singer possessed with a very resonant voice.
It was hard not to be impressed by the fact that through the dialogue and actions on stage it was easy to see Mary Magdalene was the ‘good one’ and Judas was the hypocrite – albeit a complex character.
One of the striking things about the production was the visual impact of the stage set. While the physical set remained more-or-less unchanged throughout the use of lights and costumes was such that at various stages of the production different moods were attained.
At one point the audience was left with the distinct impression that Jesus was somewhat uncomfortable with the acclaim he was receiving from his followers.
One of the most poignant scenes was where Jesus was alone with Simon (Trevor Kent) and the audience heard the line ‘to conquer death you have to die’.
Bill Stafford was his usual brilliant self as Pontius Pilate and he gave the character a conscious that may or may not have been evident in real life.
The fact the ‘priests’ in the production gave off a distinctly evil vibe did not go unnoticed and was certainly a very significant aspect to the show.
The way the priests played on Judas’s emotions was brilliant.
The fact that Jesus Christ Superstar began life as an idea for a concept music album before taking on a life of its own as a stage production was evident in the soundtrack – which was performed by a live band.
The lighting at the point where Judas tells the Romans that Jesus will be in the Garden of Gethsemane was inspiring and perhaps reflected the traitor’s mixed emotions.
The way the small drapes on the set crossed over each other in the background created an image of a snake at that point too which was very apt; later on those same drapes created an image of the Virgin Mary and while it was accidental it was striking none-the-less.
At the last supper we saw Judas fight with his conscience as Jesus asks if no-one will stay awake with him on his last night alive.
There was a point near the end of the show when Bill Stafford (as Pontius Pilate) looked very similar to Rob Halford from metal band, Judas Priest. Whether that was an intentional thing or not it was very apt given the subject matter of the show.
Sean O’Brien, in the role of King Herod, was fantastic and his at times overly camp performance was brilliant to see.
The ‘slow motion’ effect as Jesus was being nailed to the cross near the end was inspiring and thought-provoking to say the least.
The manner with which Judas fights his conscience near the end was absolutely brilliant and full credit to Keith Flanagan for immersing himself in the role.
The actual scene where Jesus is hung on the cross was without doubt one of the most visually moving scenes ever staged in the theatre and was immensely powerful.
The final scene where the child who had been bullied came back on stage to stand before Jesus was spellbinding.
This show was without doubt one of the finest productions ever staged by the society and what was also wonderful to see was how the cast didn’t bow at the end and instead took their acclaim and standing ovation in a solemn and very dignified manner. Whether those in the audience were religious or not the fact remained that the story was one of the greatest ever told and was treated with utmost respect by everyone involved. This truly was an exceptional performance by a phenomenally talented group.
