That's a Wrap on SUPERSTAR!

 

The picture above was taken by yours truly, between shows on Saturday, March 16. Back in my touring days (well years), one of my favorite things to do was sit in the house of an empty theater, just looking at the stage. I did a lot of my soul-searching doing just that. There is an energy there, some magic, that only seems to exist on that different plane. It had been a long time since I had done this in a theater until Jesus Christ Superstar was here this past weekend. And guess what? The magic is still there. It was good for my soul.

For me, seeing the 50^th Anniversary Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar was very exhilarating, and very nostalgic. I had forgotten how much I love that glorious score. This version exceeded my expectations and brought me back to my younger self who was full of dreams but hadn’t set out to accomplish them yet. The phenomenal singing, the contemporary and athletic choreography and the electrifying guitars, drums and keyboards came together in such a way that it transported me to the “land beyond the notes” which is a lovely place to be. It left me wanting more: More time with these characters, more time with this music, more time in this other world. In my opinion, leaving your audience wanting more, is absolutely the right way to say goodbye… for now.

The Jesus Christ Superstar Student Workshop, led by two professional actors from the tour, took place on Saturday, March 16, at 10am. We are very grateful to be able to offer these workshops to students for FREE because of the support of sponsors, individual donors, and grants. In addition to the acting/voice class provided, the workshops also include a FREE ticket to the matinee performance afterwards as well as a free pizza lunch.

We couldn’t have dreamed of having better actors from the tour to lead the Student Workshop than Mekhi Holloway, who played Annas, and Alec Diem, who played Herod & ensemble. Their positivity and charismatic demeanors immediately disarmed any insecurities the thirty-plus students that were in attendance might have had. This was crucial in enabling the students to really put themselves out there with their performances, readily accepting Mekhi’s and Alec’s constructive critiques, thus setting them all up for success when they took these critiques to heart. Every single student showed immediate improvement in their second performance of their audition songs, and it was a glorious thing to witness and see their confidence had all boosted.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, I would have loved to have had this opportunity back when I was at Grissom High School in the 1980’s. The opportunity to work with compassionate and talented actors of this caliber and to participate in a Q & A with them could be life-changing, in terms of the choices they might make in the future about some type of career or life in the theater. Thank you, Mekhi, and Alec, for sharing your talents and inspiration with our high school theater kids out here.

And thank you to the entire company of Jesus Christ Superstar for making this 50-something years old feel like 20-something years old again. I wanted to jump up on the stage and start dancing, swooping, and singing along:

 

“What’s the buzz, tell me what’s a-happening?

What’s the buzz, tell me what’s a-happening?

What’s the buzz, tell me what’s a-happening?

What’s the buzz, tell me what’s a-happening?”