Review: Godspell (Theatre at the Center)

  
  
Godspell 

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz 
Directed by Stacey Flaster  
at Theatre at the Center, Munster, IN (map)
thru Oct 20  |  tickets: $38-$42   |  more info
  
Check for half-price tickets 
  
  
   Read review
  

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Tiki lights, surfboards…and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ

Theatre at the Center presents

Godspell

Review by Catey Sullivan 

The score is lush, the energy level high and the sense of joy palpable. Those are the plusses of the Theatre at the Center‘s staging of of Godspell, running through Oct. 20 at the Munster, Indiana venue. Still, for all its considerable merits – and under the direction of Stacey Flaster, this production of Godspell has many – the show is instilled with a sentimental preciousness that sometimes veers toward cloying. There’s no question but that Stephen Schwartz‘ score sounds consistently gorgeous. Under the baton of musical director William Underwood, the cast and a deft four-piece band make an utterly joyful noise from the clarion call of “Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord” to the haunting sorrow of “On the Willows”.

But as conceived and originally directed by John-Michael Tebelak, Godspell is dominated by a perky, Up-With-People affectation that often reads as simplistic and a tad juvenile. The parables enacted by the 12-person ensemble often feel like campfire skits performed by an exceptionally well-voiced Scouting troupe. And although Tebelak mostly explores the sort of Bible stories anyone of any faith can get behind (be kind to each other, don’t throw stones, embrace a spirit of gratitude), Godspell is undeniably evangelical in its message that Jesus is Lord and Heaven the domain only of those who accept Him as their Savior. On the one hand: If you prefer to keep Church and Theater separate you might want to sit this one out. On the other hand: Godspell sounds so marvelous, missing it would be a sin.

Flaster has instilled a decidedly playful aesthetic into the production. Set designer Angela Weber Miller has put the disciples and Jesus (Liam Quealy) in the middle of what appears to be a beachside skate park, filling the stage with palm trees, Tiki lights, surfboards and inspirational messages rendered in colorful graffiti.

Decked out in board shorts and other breezy casual wear, the cast uses beach towels, toy buckets, Frisbees, hula hoops and bubble wands to tell the stories of the Prodigal Son, Mary Magdalene, the Good Samaritan, and the last supper, crucifixion and rising of Jesus Christ. In acting out the parables, the troupe uses blue picnic blankets to depict the River Styx, hotdogs to represent sacred offerings and bright plastic cups as percussion instruments. At one point, the group enacts the sheep vs. goats parable (the former are saved, the latter are not) by using toy shovels as ears.

The staging is creative but overly cutesy – or at least it is when Judas (Jim DeSelm) isn’t around. As the tormented, damned apostle, DeSelm is well matched to play against the fair, boy-next-door wholesomeness of Quealy’s Jesus. DeSelm brings a dark, frightened and embittered edge to Godspell, and that edge provides a welcome counterpoint to the saccharine warm-and-fuzzies the show is otherwise laden with.

DeSelm’s award-worthy performance aside, Godspell‘s s considerable strength lies not in its childlike (and sometimes childish) affectatios, but in the magnificent vocals the cast brings to Schwartz’s score.

The vocal highlights are numerous: Quealy is a genuine powerhouse as Jesus, delivering the ferociously uptempo “Save the People” with both urgency and resonance. With “Turn Back, O Man”, he creates an ethereal, haunting counterpoint to Kathleen Gibson‘s deliciously slinky, Mae West-inspired vamp. Rose Le Tran and Landree Fleming deliver harmonies as delicate as gossamer in their beautifully sorrowful rendition of “By My Side”. With “Day by Day” (arguably the score’s most recognizable tune) Hillary Marren leads the cast through a glorious, relentlessly building crescendo, starting out as a lone, silvery solo, gradually drawing the rest of the players in and ultimately bringing the song home in a soaring, ebullient and life-affirming celebration. With back-and-forth patter of “All for the Best”, Judas and Jesus get into the spirit of soft shoe, creating a winning neo-Vaudeville duet. Finally, George Keating unleashes his formidable pipes and brings the house down with “All Good Gifts”, a power-anthem of gratitude that soars with goose-bump raising grandeur.

Flaster ends Godspell not with Schwartz but with Handel. It matters not whether you believe (to quote Handel) the King of Kings and Lord of Lords will reign Forever and Ever. Flaster’s full-throated corps rocks the Alleluia passage from Handel’s “Messiah” with the sort of passionate zeal even Anton LaVey would be hard-pressed to resist.

Rating: ★★★

Godspell continues through October 20th at Theatre at the Center, 1040 Ridge Road (map), with performances Wednesdays and Thursdays at 2pm, Fridays 8pm, Saturdays 4pm and 8pm, Sundays 2pm.  Tickets are $38-$42, and are available by phone (219-836-3255) or through Tickets.com (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at TheatreAtTheCenter.com. 

Photos by Michael Brosilow 

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artists

cast

Liam Quealy (Jesus), Jim DeSelm (Judas, John), George Keating, Alexis J. Rogers, Rose Le Tran, David Hathway, Matt Deitchman, Landree Fleming, Kathleen Gibson, Hillary Marren, Lauren Paris, Merrick Robison 

behind the scenes

Stacey Flaster (director), William Underwood (musical director, orchestrations), Angie Weber-Miller (scenic design), Shelley Strasser Holland (lighiting design), Luis Garcia (sound design), Bridget Earnshaw (props design), Brenda Winstead and Julia Zayas-Melendez (costume design), Kevin Barthel (wig design), Matt McMullen (stage manager), Ann Davis (production manager, tech director), William Pullinsi (artistic director), Richard Friedman (general manager), Michael Brosilow (photos)

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