Jesus Christ Superstar
The senior students of Scotch College Adelaide have taken on a substantial musical theatre challenge this year. Not content with simply studying Jesus Christ Superstar as part of their theatre education, they have selected the rock opera to perform as a school production. Lesley Reed reports.
Staging Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar would daunt many schools, but Head of Performing Arts at Adelaide’s Scotch College, Antony Hubmayer says, “I believe we have the scope of people involved in the College and the student body to pull it off successfully.”
He’s right about that; the college has an enviable history for fine musical productions, as demonstrated in reviews for shows performed by Scotch in recent years:
Les Miserables (2012) - “all of the little nuances and details you would expect from a professional show…wonderfully enjoyable.” - Stage Whispers.
West Side Story (2013) - “a polish and finesse comparable to the best adult amateur dramatics companies in Adelaide.”- Adelaide Theatre Guide.
Pirates of Penzance (2014) - “a thoroughly entertaining show making it difficult to believe it was a school-age musical.”- Global Media.
Scotch College’s production of Jesus Christ Superstar will take place in July under the guidance of Director Adam Goodburn, Choreographer Linda Williams and Musical Director Antony Hubmayer. This team comes together for its fourth consecutive year of coaxing wonderful efforts from the college’s talented and highly-credentialed students.
Clearly, casting and directing a college musical presents the dual challenges of showcasing the talent of all the students involved without impacting on the original content of the show. To achieve this, Adam Goodburn decided to double cast some roles and has cast females in key roles that are traditionally filled by male performers.
On casting Herod, Goodburn says, “I wanted to have a contemporary, readily identifiable character that had a lot of social influence and to do that, and achieve what we wanted in terms of choreography, we made the decision to cast a female.”
Goodburn explains that for a show which traditionally only has one featured female, creating additional female roles was an important consideration in a co-ed school. “It may seem like a brave step,” he says, “but in reality, schools have always been able to push the boundaries of casting in both gender and colour and it is a welcome trend being extended to community and professional theatre environs.”
In fact, Herod is double cast with highly talented female students and is to be played by Tayla Coad and Onor Nottle, who recently starred in the feature film Touch.
Like Onor, many of Scotch College’s young performers have already worked professionally and are making a name for themselves in film and theatrical circles in Adelaide and beyond.
Among such notable emerging stars in this year’s Scotch College musical is Ben Francis, a highly experienced young man who has won multiple eisteddfods and performed worldwide. Ben will play Jesus, while AFI award-nominated Tom Russell plays Judas Iscariot. Tom is particularly well known for his role as Chook in feature film The Last Ride, opposite Hugo Weaving. He has also added Cloudstreet and many other films to his impressive credits. Abundantly talented pair Hannah Hamilton and Paris Anderson are double cast as Mary Magdalene.
Rock operaJesus Christ Superstar was created for the stage by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Seen through the eyes of Judas Iscariot and loosely based on biblical writings, the story focuses on a troubled Jesus nearing the end of his short life, as he is faced with the human failings of those who surround him, the anguish of the woman who loves him and the circumstances that lead to his betrayal.
Scotch College is fortunate to have a production team that has solid experience with this musical already. Director Adam Goodburn played the role of Jesus in the first amateur production of the show to be performed in Adelaide at Her Majesty’s Theatre, in 1997. That production was directed by Choreographer for Scotch’s version Linda Williams. It featured many renowned Adelaide music and theatre personalities, including Michael Griffiths, now an established professional performer who has featured in this year’s Adelaide Cabaret Festival and who is a regular vocal coach at Scotch College.
For Scotch College’s production, Director Adam Goodburn has gained some inspiration from the many previous versions of Jesus Christ Superstar but has instilled many new ideas.
“Obviously we are standing on the shoulders of great productions from the past,” Goodburn says, “but we are also trying to make it a unique production for us.”
Mindful that modern reworking in recent years has attracted new audiences to a show that became a global phenomenon following its first Broadway production in 1971, Scotch College will incorporate contemporary staging and a 21st Century feel into its version.
Designed by Brian Budgen, the set is the largest ever used for a Scotch College musical and borrows from the open style of the 2012 Arena production, requiring minimal set changes during the show.
With critical acclaim for previous musicals to hang their hats on, the Scotch cast and production team are determined July’s show will be as memorable as those in former years, including fine treatment of Jesus Christ Superstar’s score. The experienced young cast will relish performing songs such as Everything's Alright, Gethsemane, Heaven on their Minds, I Don't Know How to Love Him and the unforgettable signature tune.
Such a plethora of talent, experience and exuberance will surely have Adelaide’s musical theatre lovers flocking along to enjoy Scotch College’s unique version of the iconic rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar.
Don’t miss it.
WHEN:July 29 – August 1, 7pm
WHERE:Scotch College, Carruth Road, Torrens Park
BOOKINGS: www.scotch.sa.edu.au/superstar
Enquiries contact Kate Crawshaw: 8274 4210