What then to do about Jesus of Nazareth?
A dramaturgical analysis of Jesus Christ Superstar for 2024
by Lucía Salazar-Davidson
When Jesus Christ Superstar was first released in 1971 as a concept album, it was so controversial that it sparked mass protests every night of its original run on Broadway. The American Jewish Committee said that the show would spark anti-Semitism due to its depiction of the antagonistic high priests. Theologians hated it for its blasphemous depictions of romance between Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and its sensitive portrayal of Judas Iscariot, a man often considered to be the ultimate sinner. Many people just thought it was plain vulgar for depicting a biblical story through rock and roll.
However, Pope Paul VI said, “I believe [this show] will bring more people around the world to Christianity, than anything ever has before.”Whether or not his prediction is accurate is up to debate, but it’s undeniably true that Jesus Christ Superstar has made its mark on history. It has been revived on Broadway three times, sold hundreds of millions of copies as an album, and is well-cemented in the popular mind. As a religious adaptation of the Bible, it does not fully hit the mark with accuracy to Scripture or Christian meaning- but it was never meant to. This is a deeply political show, and when read from that lens, it is beyond a doubt successful.
Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber did not set out to write a religious show. In the aftermath of its release, just like Peter, they denied that they were trying to make any kind of statement about Christianity or Judaism. In a 1971 New York Times interview, Rice said, “People have read so much more into this than we ever intended. We were simply trying to express our feelings about Christ at the time, trying to tell His story and make suggestions for the gaps.” But any story of this magnitude, especially one that features Jesus Christ, who is a holy and central figure in our sometimes-Puritanical Christianized America, is bound to have cultural ramifications.
It’s interesting to note the time period in which this show was written. The 1970s were a tumultuous time politically. The Vietnam War was raging, the United States contributing soldier’s lives and weapons to an overseas conflict, and that government was facing various protests often led by college students who sought for peace and an end to the fighting. American culture was shifting, with the role of women becoming more prominent and less confined to the home. Coming out of the 1960s movement of folk protest songs, the culture was used to hearing biting, unabashed political analysis put to music. Bob Dylan’s 1964 song With God On Our Side and Leonard Cohen’s 1967 song Suzanne stand out as songs that mention Jesus to achingly clear and humanizing effect. Rock and roll music was the heartbeat and language of that generation, and Tim Rice’s lyrics masterfully painted a picture of a culture of people tired of occupation and military might.
Now, as in that time, the parallels between our current political climate and that of Jesus’ day are clear. In the wake of the Vietnam War, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber could have been inspired by the encampments and groups of students marching for peace overseas, the same as we see now. Jesus’s followers, like student activists in the 70s and today, were also students of peace. Now as then, and in Jesus’s time, people fight to be free of occupation, and able to live on their own lands in peace, even in the face of military powers that oppress them without mercy. In Jesus’s time as in our own, the people are faced with tyranny from rulers that, while seeming to stand for different things, end up leading to the same misguided result- who is better, a Herod type of leader, all theatrical, big talking, full of flash and cynicism? Or a Pilate type, who means well but bends inevitably to the mob mentality of the crowd? At the end of the day, aren’t they both oppressive? No wonder the followers of Jesus seek a different way. This story is timeless and enduring, and full of fascinating complexity, whether or not you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
That being said, this story does a remarkably good job of citing the scripture it is sourced from. The writers may deny it, but in my research, I found that the songs of Jesus Christ Superstar align astonishingly well with the story of the final days of Jesus, at times taking lyrics word for word from scripture. At the temple, Rice has Jesus belt, “My temple should be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 21, verse 13, Christ says, “My house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of robbers.” This is just one example of lines that overlap. Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber have done their research, and the character portraits they paint are rich and well-crafted. Their depiction of Jesus is a God that has fully become human, with all the doubt, fear, pain and torment that goes along with it. His Judas is a man afraid, a follower so devoted he is willing to betray the man he has sworn his love and life and fealty to, if it means his death. The pain and friction in the relationship between these men is a controversial thing. Judas struggles with his role as betrayer the same way Jesus struggles with his role as savior. They both eventually submit to their roles, Judas reluctant and recanting, Jesus strong and sure in the end. They do what they think they must, for the greater good and salvation of their people, but only one of them is condemned for it.
This show is a deeply human story. A central belief of the Christian faith holds that Jesus Christ was “fully God and fully Man,” and this show lets us glimpse both sides. It is important, timely, and meaningful in our current cultural climate to let these historical, political, and religious figures be humanized and affect how we view this story and its impact on the world we live in. In this country, the two topics that no one wants to bring up for fear of controversy are religion and politics. This show boldly combines the two, and offers plenty of food for thought alongside pure rock and roll. I hope you enjoy the ride, and let it move you to thought, emotion, and action. My greatest hope for what you will get out of this production is best summed up by the Bob Dylan lyrics that sparked Tim Rice to write this show in the first place:
Through many dark hour I been thinkin' about this
That Jesus Christ was betrayed by a kiss
But I can't think for you, you'll have to decide
Whether Judas Iscariot had God on his side.