Jesus Christ Superstar, review: Sedlescombe Players, Sedlescombe Village Hall, March 3-8

I think the term ‘amateur dramatics’ is misleading.
Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Peter MouldJesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Peter Mould
Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Peter Mould

An article in The Guardian (June 5, 2019) reports that “only two percent of actors make a living”.

So, my question is: “What happens to the other 98 percent of very talented men and women who don’t have the luxury of a private income and can’t forever chase their dreams when reality has bitten?”

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I have the answer. Their love of performance doesn’t die with their dreams. They sign up to local ‘amateur’ dramatic societies and throw themselves heart and soul into two or three productions a year. They are professional, talented and passionate and the term ‘amateur’ does not do them justice.

Never has this been clearer than at Sedlescombe Players’ production of Jesus Christ Superstar, the 1970s rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, based on the Gospel’s accounts of the last week of Jesus’s life.

At the helm of this production was the multi-tasking director Tara Buchanan, who obtained the rights to perform it, cast it, edited, marketed, scheduled, cracked the whip, and shed blood, sweat, tears and laughter. She is a force to be reckoned with and has every member of the company’s back and has directed the most professional ‘amateur’ production this side of the West End.

The cast, band, choir and technical team rose to Tara’s exacting standards and delivered to the packed audience a treat for all present. The opening scene was a stark reminder that holy wars still continue with a backdrop of film footage rolling as the company assembled on stage, and what a company this was – full of energy with incredible voices.

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The 19-year-old Nathan McDonald played Jesus. He had a purity on stage and was wide eyed with his love for those around him. It was heartbreaking when he sang Gethsemane – you could hear every painful word – and he managed in a short space of time to have the audience in the palm of his hand.

He was supported through his tribulations by Mary Magdalene, heartbreakingly played by Alice Creasey. Dressed in a striking orange, she stood out in more ways than just looking amazing. Her voice was incredible – when she sang ‘I don’t know how to love him’ you felt the pain of her unrequited love.

Kitson Wellard, a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, ironically saves lives in the day working for the ambulance service while betraying Jesus at night as Judas. He was the glue of this young cast. You looked forward to him arriving on stage and his professionalism was palpable. His Presley-esque version of the title song brought the audience to their feet.

With Pilate dressed as a ringmaster, the arresting soldiers in masks, the stage filled with thugs, thieves and thinkers you felt that there couldn’t be much more to offer on a rainy night in Sedlescombe and then Leslie Brissett in all his glory took the stage as King Herod and rocked King Herod’s song. How an entire musical hasn’t been written for his depiction of Herod beggars belief. He was outstanding!

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By the time you read this the curtain will have come down on this far-from-amateur production of Jesus Christ Superstar. But it will not be the last time you see many of this cast go on to other productions, leading, supporting, singing and dancing. What a cast, what a show, what a night!

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