Oh good, they’re including “Could We Start Again Please”.
Sara Barelles did well with one of my absolute favorites, I Don’t Know How to Love Him, although I’ve never heard a better version than the original vocal by Yvonne Elliman.
I love Judas more than I love Jesus.
Judas is clearly a much sharper dresser.
They have such nice blinged-out clothing in Heaven.
I’m slowly thinking this is the point. Judas has WAY more to do in this production than Jesus and they needed someone very strong in the role.
Legend did well with the crucifixion scene
disagree, was hoping he could pull off one good act…never came.
I don’t think Legend did a bad job either.
That was an odd way to handle the 39 lashes… Also, the guy playing Pilate apparently doesn’t do anger any better than Legend… (I like the rest of his performance, though.)
(But on that note…Christ, when Jesus is before Pilate the first time, he finally gets a line where a deadpan is appropriate - and traditional - and that’s the line he finally decides to put some bite behind?)
And now it’s over…
Well, as with most versions, Jesus is the weak point, by far, but like most versions, that can’t actually ruin it. Not my favourite by any stretch (that’d be the original album, followed the 1999 Great Performances version), but I’ll certainly watch it again. (And I think Alice has displaced Rik Mayall as my favourite Herod.)
Rats. Missed it.
That was a lot of fun. I enjoyed that a lot and hope more live specials are shot in this format. Wish I didn’t miss a half hour of it tho
It hasn’t started here on the West Coast yet, but I have my DVR set to record it. I generally like John Legend, but it seems he’s a bit underwhelming in the role. Like others here, I’ve probably listened to the original album dozens of times. Great music. Great concept. It mights just be the greatest story ever told! 
Wow, I guess I’m the odd one out cuz I thought Alice Cooper’s Herod was a complete waste of time. Dixon and Bareilles were just phenomenal from start to finish though.
Yeah, the Jesus role is a thankless one as written. He’s kind of a strangely listless character with occasional unconvincing outbursts. John Legend’s acting wasn’t great, but he didn’t have much to work with.
Judas is really the star of this version of the story.
I really like this Pontius Pilate. Pilate’s Dream gave me a chill.
You aren’t the only one.
I noticed he kept looking off-stage. Kinda reminded of a guest star on a SNL sketch who needs cue cards to remember his lines.
But the King Herod scene has always been my least favorite. The campiness of it all is a bit jarring to me. Works better in the 1973 film, I think.
The staging of the crucifiction scene was beautiful.
I think in some quarters, this is heresy, but I’ve never enjoyed Herod’s scene in any production I’ve seen more than the one in the 1973 movie version!
Agreed, Eyebrows, the crucifixion knocked my socks off!
I don’t think it’s so much that he was bad. It’s just that this role calls for powerful acting as well as singing, and he seemed to be a little weak on the acting. That, and at points where he should have hit a moment with everything he had, he played it subdued. Case in point: most Jesuses give it their all on “WHYYYYYYYYY SHOULD I DIIIIIIEEEE?!” Legend barely whimpered it. Same thing a few seconds later on “All right, I’ll die! See how I die!” where most actors turn it into a cry of anguish. John Farnham in the 1992 Australian cast didn’t shout the line at first, but built up to the point he held “die” through the entire instrumental break.
I’ve been a bit spoiled by Paul Nicholas on the 20th Anniversary London recording. He doesn’t overdo the shrieking or falsetto, taking the low register at certain moments to convey weariness or frustration, but boy did he have passion when the role called for it. His hoarse whisper of “Father, into Your hands I commend My spirit” at the end of the Crucifixion, over silence, is gut-wrenching.
As for Judas being a stronger figure in this show than Jesus…that’s arguably the point. Lloyd Webber and Rice had originally planned to write a story from Judas’ point of view with Jesus as a relatively minor figure. It didn’t quite turn out that way, but arguably Judas is more of a protagonist than the title figure…he is the one who has an actual arc.
Other thoughts:
-The rest of the cast was quite powerful. I also like the way the rock-concert atmosphere tied in with the whole theme of celebrity, especially when Jesus and, later, Herod interacted with the audience. However, I wasn’t crazy about Jesus having no reaction whatsoever to “Hey JC, JC, won’t you die for me?” That moment usually elicits a reaction from Jesus and/or Judas–one who knows how it’s going to turn out, another who suspects it.
-I liked the staging of the Crucifixion at the end. The show, as written, doesn’t include the Resurrection, leaving it up to the audience to decide if it occurs or not (though some productions hint at it, or include it outright). But having the panels come back together to form a cross, then having the light in the center of the cross grow brighter, is a nice way to hint at the possibility without going too far astray from the script as written.
I agree as well. As someone who works in the Broadway world, and was turned on to theatre by this particular show (listening to my dad’s 8-track at 4 in the morning…'cause that’s how cool I was), I was both excited and terrified to watch this. But overall I thought it was really great, except Cooper’s part. But maybe that’s not fair; I’m really not familiar with his work.
And “Gethsemane”… well, I’ve done concerts with the guy who played Jesus in more productions that anyone, so those were big shoes to fill. Legend certainly had a different take, which was cool. Did I miss the high notes? Yeah, but he still did a good job, and it sounded like everything was in the original keys.
That closing shot, though… very nice.