CAST

Jesus of Nazareth - BRANDI MULHERIN

Judas Iscariot - VÉRONIQUE HÉBERT

Mary Magdalene - BETHANY ROBERTSON

Pontius Pilate - JILL QUIRING

Peter / Superstar Dancer - MATT KINNEY

Simon - MYLES BOTTEN

Caiaphas - DARREN BLOIS

Annas - ERICA MITTON

King Herod - DANIEL MURPHY

Security / Jesus’ Interrogator - JUSTIN BRIAN

Apostle / Leper / Angel - MIKA DRIEDGER

Crowd / Priest / Jesus’ Interrogator / Soul Girl - ANDREA JOHNSTON

Crowd / Priest / Jesus’ Interrogator / Peter’s Accuser - CYRIL JOHNSTON

Security / Priest / Leper / Jesus’ Interrogator - CHILLY MORRISON

Apostle / Herod’s Queens Dancer - DAN PARLEE

Apostle / Superstar Dancer - ASHLEY ROSS

Security / Leper / Jesus’ Interrogator / Peter’s Accuser - MIGUEL ROY

Apostle / Angel - SAMANTHA SHAW-MCDONALD

Apostle / Soul Girl - AMANDA SPEAR

Crowd / Leper / Jesus’ Interrogator / Peter’s Accuser / Herod’s Queens Dancer - KELLY TYNAN

Apostle / Soul Girl - JESSICA WHALEN

Simon’s Dancer / Herod’s Queens Dancer / Superstar Dancer - MAXYNE LEBLANC

Simon’s Dancer / Herod’s Queens Dancer / Superstar Dancer - EMILY HEBERT

Concert Crew / Herod’s Queens Dancer - BRITNEE MCCARRON

Concert Crew - NADYNE KUHN, MONIK RICHARD, BRYNA ROPER

Understudy for Judas: ERICA MITTON; Understudy for Mary: MIKA DRIEDGER; Understudy for Pilate: MATT KINNEY; Understudy for Caiaphas.: MIGUEL ROY; Understudy for Annas: CYRIL JOHNSTON; Understudy for Herod: DAN PARLEE; Swing: BRITNEE MCCARRON

TUTTA MUSICA ORCHESTRA

Under the direction of JENNIE DEL MOTTE, also on Keyboard

Keyboard 2 - JAMIE CORDES

Bass - CHRIS MEANEY

Guitar - ANDREW MOORE

Drums - JOHN MACKENZIE

Flute - CLAIRE LESLIE-TURNBUL

Clarinet/Saxophone - GREGORY PARRA

French Horn - JONATHAN ASTLEY

Trumpet - MATTHEW ROSS

Director’s Message

Jesus Christ Superstar is my favorite, and dare I say, the best musical. Now, I am not the most knowledgeable musical theatre person. My background is in Shakespeare, clown, and contemporary works. I would say that a good chunk of our cast knows far many more musicals than I do. But what I do know is when a piece contains within it the power to affect people. I first watched the 1973 movie with a gang of university pals over Easter weekend. We drank, we ate, and we enjoyed each other’s company. We celebrated life. But when the movie started, we all sat and celebrated art in rapt attention. This was one of my first forays into the world of musical theatre and it has stayed with me since that time. While this musical explores the final days of Jesus and Judas, it more importantly explores our relationships with each other, with our idea of the divine, with our troubles and fears and doubts and loves and joys. It is a truly human story of what it means to believe in what is right and to give of ourselves to others. It is all of our stories.

There may be things you see tonight that you disagree with and things that may shock you. You will see a person beaten and whipped and crucified, you will see drugs and sexuality and drinking and rock and roll. Remember that we are not seeking to recreate the stories of the Bible exactly with this show, and neither were Andrew Lloyd Webber nor Tim Rice. What we are seeking to do is reach you on a gut level and speak to you, as these two giants of musical theatre did, and as Jesus did, about the important parts of life - love, friendship, kindness, and sacrifice to our communities. 

I’d like to also take a moment to acknowledge that the land we perform on is the traditional unceded territory of the Mi’kmaw people. While the story of Jesus of Nazareth that we present in this show is a fictionalized version of events, what is not fictional is the impact that the followers of Christianity have had on the world. And while there are many, many good people who follow the faith born from the sacrifice of Jesus, there are many who have used the authority granted to them by this institution to wreak havoc on peoples across the globe, and especially in the land we call Canada. So as you watch the show this evening, I ask you to consider the sacrifices that Jesus makes and the words uttered and how these words and sacrifices were not honored by many followers of this faith when meeting the native peoples of this land and how we can all seek to improve the world by following the true message spoken. 

I sincerely hope that you enjoy this show, and more importantly, that you give the show the chance to affect you as it did me all those years ago. 

-JB Vanier

Synopsis

The story follows the last seven days of Jesus’ life, as seen through the eyes of apostle Judas Iscariot. Jesus has developed a devoted following in Nazareth with his teachings of love and salvation—but his followers are becoming increasingly fervent. Concerned that Jesus’ essage is being overshadowed by celebrity worship, Judas worries that the unruly mob will invite violent crackdown by the occupying Roman regime. As Jesus’ apostles and disciples demand more and more from him and urge increased action, Mary Magdalene remains calm amid the storm, caring for Jesus and encouraging him to look after himself as well as others. Roman high priests Caiaphas, Annas and more gather and agree that Jesus and his movement are a threat to their power and must be stopped—by any means necessary. Pontius Pilate, a Roman official, dreams of a strange Galilean whose path will cross his own and cause Pilate to be despised. Jesus arrives in Jerusalem amid increasingly passionate worshippers, urged on by apostle Simon’s plea to take a stand against Rome. Jesus finds the temple overrun with an opportunistic crowd ignoring the message of the movement and greedily demanding his help, causing Jesus to panic. Judas, fearing things are getting out of control, offers to help the priests rein Jesus in, receiving 30 pieces of silver as payment. Jesus has a last supper with his followers, revealing he knows of the coming betrayal. At the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus agonizes over his situation and what he knows he must do. Accompanied by Judas, the soldiers arrest Jesus and bring him before Pilate. Pilate refuses to pass judgment, instead sending Jesus to King Herod, who similarly refuses action. Judas, meanwhile, is tortured by his fateful decision. Back in Pilate’s court, the gathered mob demands punishment; Jesus refuses to defend himself, leading to his conviction and ultimate crucifixion.

Musical Numbers

Acknowledgments

Endless thanks to our partners, sponsors and supporters - we could not have produced this show without you.

Production Partners

Platinum Sponsors

Public Sponsor

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of The Really Useful Group (www.concordtheatricals.com)

THE VIDEOTAPING OR MAKING OF ELECTRONIC OR OTHER AUDIO AND/OR VISUAL RECORDINGS OF THIS PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTING RECORDINGS OR STREAMS IN ANY MEDIUM, INCLUDING THE INTERNET, IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED, A VIOLATION OF THE AUTHOR(S)’S RIGHTS AND ACTIONABLE UNDER UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT: https://concordtheatricals.com/resources/protecting-artists

Printable programme available here.