I’m not a huge fan of Andrew Llyod Webber and I’m particularly disinterested in Jesus Christ Superstar. It’s one of those shows that gets a round a lot for various reasons . . . it’s probably not a very bad piece of musical theatre and Id probably generally have a better opinion of it if it didn’t get so over-produced . . . but that being said, In Tandem Theatre is staging a production of it that sounds very promising.
In Tandem originally staged the show in 2010. It was well received. A couple of years later, they’re doing it as a fundraiser and the cast they’ve got features some really good musical theatre talent. Alison Mary Forbes plays Mary. David Flores plays King Herod. Matt Daniels plays Caiaphas. If you’re not familiar with these names, just trust me . . . they’re good. They’re all really, really good. Those three people alone have consistently worked with some of the best musical theatre outfits in town. Even in really bad shows, Forbes ends up being hugely entertaining. Flores has been in and around the edges of productions at the Skylight with appearances on smaller stages that thankfully place him a bit closer to the center of the stage. Daniels has appeared all over the place. The general theatergoing public might not be as familiar with the work he’s done with First Stage, but it’s probably among his best workhe managed quite a series of transformations quite fluidly in their A Wrinkle In Time.
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The special fundraiser runs for two performances only. Friday, March 30th at 8pm and Sunday, April 1st at 2pm. The show is being staged in the sanctuary of Calvary Church on 935 West Wisconsin Avenue. Speaking as someone who isn’t Christian who can still occasionally enjoy a musical . . . this is the perfect venue for that sort of thing. The entire concept of organized religion seems remarkably silly to me, so I always feel like a tourist when I’m in a church. Going to see a production of Jesus Christ, Superstar in a church sounds like it’s a perfect chance to openly be a tourist at that type of place. With the right frame of mind, this is an opportunity to truly enjoy organized religion as the art and help out a consistently brilliant theatre company. Sounds like fun.
Tickets to the show are $25. For ticket reservations, call 414-271-1371 or visit In Tandem online.
