- Aspects of Love
- Bombay Dreams
- By Jeeves
- Cats
- Evita
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Jesus Christ Superstar
- Andrew Lloyd Webber: 40 Musical Years
- Jesus Christ Superstar to tour Australia
- Jesus Christ Superstar UK Arena Tour 2013
- Jesus Christ Superstar LIVE Arena Tour DVD/Blu-Ray released!
- Andrew joins the cast on stage at the M.E.N. [Photos]
- Stars turn out for opening weekend of Jesus Christ Superstar
- Fourth London show added to Arena Tour!
- Watch the official trailer for ITV’s Superstar
- First O2 show sold out! Second date added
- Superstar – Live Show Announcement
- Jesus Christ Superstar UK Arena Tour
- Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar Tony nominations
- Andrew announces casting panel for ITV1 Superstar
- ITV1 and Andrew Lloyd Webber today announce ‘Superstar’
- Jesus Christ Superstar celebrates 40 years!
- Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway
- Jesus Christ Superstar to move to La Jolla Playhouse
- Andrew and Tim Rice appear on The Culture Show
- The 25th Anniversary production of Jesus Christ Superstar
- Jesus Christ Superstar Opens in London
- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
- Love Never Dies
- Song and Dance
- Starlight Express
- Stephen ward
- Sunset Boulevard
- Tell Me on a Sunday
- The Beautiful Game
- The Likes of Us
- The Phantom of the Opera
- The Sound of Music
- The Wizard of Oz
- The Woman in White
- Whistle Down the Wind
Jesus Christ Superstar
The 12th October 1971 should have been the happiest night of my life. I was 23 years old and a fairy tale was about to come true. An unknown British young man was to have his first musical premiered on Broadway. Jesus Christ Superstar was to open on the very same stage as My Fair Lady had played only a decade and a half before.
I shall never forget the saga of Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway. Never in my opinion was so wrong a production mounted of my work. Even though this brash and vulgar interpretation was quite leniently dealt with by the critics at the time, the public saw through it. The biggest selling double album of all time ran in its first theatre incarnation a mere 20 months.
Throughout its entire preview period I was never allowed to rehearse the orchestra. Looking back 25 years later, I suppose there were pluses. Because the production was so awful, no production of Superstar in the rest of the world was the same, so I had a baptism of fire by a kaleidoscopic gaggle of directors.
Most important, I resolved that night that when I got my first opportunity I would start my own production company. It’s an irony that I’m working with Hal Prince at the moment on the other side of the pond on Whistle Down the Wind whilst Gale Edwards has been creating her production of Superstar here at the Lyceum. For it was Gale who staged Whistle Down the Wind at my annual Sydmonton Festival and as a consequence the project was hijacked from the cinema to the theatre and Hal always wanted to direct Superstar.
Back in 1970, whilst Tim Rice and I were in New York, Hal Prince sent a telegram to my parents’ flat saying he wanted to direct and produce Superstar. I only got it after we had signed the rights away. It read “I am the producer of West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof and Cabaret. Please advise re; rights of Jesus Christ Superstar“. They were gone. I could have cried. I had two idols, Hal and Richard Rodgers. I still wonder how my career would have been perceived in those early days if he had directed it rather than my theatrical debut being allowed to be turned into a mountain of kitsch that looked like a monument to a demented pastry chef.
I am writing these brochure notes having seen Gale Edwards’ production in preview. She has listened to everything I told her. I introduced her to John Napier and we had a thrilling evening discussing which painting we felt might be closest to a new production of the piece. We unanimously came down on Holbein’s astonishing, timeless and horrifying The Dead Christ in the Tomb in the Kunstmuseum Basel, Switzerland.
We also felt that even if the idea of a “rock opera” sounds like a late 60’s timewarp, I should not change any of the music. In fact the only change is in the orchestration of the final scene because I felt, in preview, that it had to be stripped to its bare bones.
I am immensely proud of Gale Edwards and what she has achieved with her virtually unknown cast. She spent a year auditioning over 1,200 actors to arrive at the performers you see and hear tonight.
Warts and all, it’s wonderful for me to see the old baby directed and produced in the manner that I had hoped would have marked by Broadway debut.
Andrew Lloyd Webber From the 1996 London Production Programme
Visit the official Jesus Christ Superstar website.
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2013
March 14, 2013
Andrew Lloyd Webber: 40 Musical Years
An evening of show-stopping performances, one-off collaborations and insights from Andrew on his extraordinary career.
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2013
February 20, 2013
Jesus Christ Superstar announce 2013 Australian tour
The Really Useful Group and Frontier Touring proudly announce that the new arena production of Jesus Christ Superstar will tour Australia in 2013. The production will begin its tour of the continent in Perth on 31 May.
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2013
5th February 2013
Tickets for the second Jesus Christ Superstar LIVE UK Arena Tour go on sale.
The spectacular show returns to the UK in October 2013 by popular demand and will feature the same stellar cast as before: award-winning Tim Minchin (Judas Iscariot), Melanie C (Mary Magdalene), Chris Moyles (King Herod) and winner of ITV's Superstar, Ben Forster (Jesus).
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2012
19th November 2012
Jesus Christ Superstar LIVE Arena Tour DVD/Blu-Ray released!
Witnessing this stunning show was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many people, but now you can relive the whole experience with Tim Minchin, Melanie C, Chris Moyles and Ben Forster in beautiful HD and crisp 5.1 surround sound in the conform of your own living room.
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2012
October 1, 2012
Andrew joins the Jesus Christ Superstar Arena Tour cast on stage at the M.E.N.
View photos of Andrew on stage with the cast of Jesus Christ Superstar in Manchester
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2012
August 1, 2012
Fourth London show added to Arena Tour!
Extra dates added to Jesus Christ Superstar UK Tour due to overwhelming demand
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2012
June 22, 2012
tch the official trailer for ITV's Superstar
The official trailer for Superstar is released
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2012
May 21, 2012
First O2 show sold out! Second date added
Second Jesus Christ Superstar UK Arena Tour date added at The O2, London, due to phenomenal demand
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2012
May 18, 2012
Superstar – Live Show Announcement
Andrew Lloyd Webber welcomes his live show judging panel for Superstar
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2012
May 16, 2012
Jesus Christ Superstar UK Arena Tour
Stars align for first ever UK Arena Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar, tickets onsale Friday 18th May.
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2012
May 2, 2012
Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar Tony nominations
Broadway revivals of Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar nominated in Tony Awards.
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2012
March 12, 2012
Andrew announces casting panel for ITV1 Superstar
Andrew Lloyd Webber invites Melanie C and Jason Donovan to assist him on Superstar
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2012
January 18, 2012
ITV1 and Andrew Lloyd Webber today announce ‘Superstar’
ITV1 and Andrew Lloyd Webber today announce Superstar – a brand new show that will give the British public the chance to choose the country’s next major rock star.
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2011
October 12, 2011
Jesus Christ Superstar celebrates 40 years!
Jesus Christ Superstar marks a significant production milestone
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2011
October 5, 2011
Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway
The Stratford Shakespeare Festival’s Production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, directed by Des Mcanuff.
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2011
July 19, 2011
Jesus Christ Superstar to move to La Jolla Playhouse
Stratford Shakespeare Festival's production of Jesus Christ Superstar, directed by Des McAnuff, will move on to play the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California, later this year.
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2010
November 3, 2010
Andrew and Tim Rice appear on The Culture Show
On 4th November, BBC 2's The Culture Show features an exclusive interview with Andrew and Tim Rice to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Jesus Christ Superstar concept album.
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1996
November 19, 1996
The 25th Anniversary production of Jesus Christ Superstar
Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar originally opened in New York on 12th September 1971. For the 25th anniversary of the show...
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1972
August 9, 1972
Jesus Christ Superstar Opens in London
Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar opened in London at the Palace Theatre on 9th August 1972.
