`Superstar’ spectacular but lacking in drama

With Christmas just a little more than a week away, it may seem that a show about Christ’s crucifixion is getting ahead of the tale a bit. Nevertheless, the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” played last night to a full and appreciative house at the Maine Center for the Arts. Arguably the best collaborative work between composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Tim Rice, “Jesus Christ Superstar” truly has some power any time of year.

Produced by Jerico Company out of New York City, this touring production starred Ted Neeley in the title role. Those familiar with Norman Jewison’s 1973 film of “Jesus Christ Superstar” might have recognized Neeley, who played the same role, though with somewhat fewer screeches, for that rendition of the musical. And it’s a good thing that Neeley’s name was well-advertised in the lobby. To get your hands on a program for this show, you had to drop $10.

Some believe that the film version was, indeed, the precursor to today’s music videos and high-tech rock concerts. Last night’s show certainly made those connections with light shows, hyperactive choreography, audacious costumes, and head-set mikes (as well as hand-held, cordless ones). It was all quite unmistakably spectacular, a rock opera injected with 1990s high-tech equipment.

What it largely lacked, however, was real drama. This is a story with some depth, and even though the general idea behind the original style was to take a new look at an old story, the creators never lost sight of the immense drama. It may not have been meant to be a religious experience, but it was enlightening.

Jerico’s production, though filled with fantastic elements, did not have that same type of unity so integral to the success of this show. Rather than a story with characters, it was too often a stringing together of soloists who might have been better suited to a Madonna tour. Part of the problem, too, was the distortion of voices because the volume was so loud. Luckily, the story is pretty well-known, but that doesn’t solve the horror of what it sounds like to listen to rock singers shouting into fully functional mikes.

Despite the annoying theatricalities, however, Neeley, and several other actors, including Scott White as a transvestite Herod and Scott Spaulding as the perturbed Pilate, gave the show some real impact.

“Jesus Christ Superstar” was a mega-hit when it arrived in show form in the early 1970s, and it’s likely that for many in last night’s audience, it was a thrill to hear the music again. Unfortunately, updating the look presumably to suit 1990s showgoers didn’t add much to the show.