{"id":541,"date":"2015-01-29T15:29:49","date_gmt":"2015-01-29T23:29:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/?p=541"},"modified":"2015-01-29T15:52:46","modified_gmt":"2015-01-29T23:52:46","slug":"broadway-fantasy-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/?p=541","title":{"rendered":"Broadway Fantasy Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>So I was listening to this record the other night:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Heaven on Their Minds - Jesus Christ Superstar Track 2 Official Soundtrack 1970\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/3R8tRKIiAII?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;which got me to thinking about a few things. Specifically, how much I miss performing musical theatre (or theatre in general, really) and how much I&#8217;ve enjoyed various iterations of JCS:<\/p>\n<p>The Broadway version:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/rakstagemom.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/03\/jesus-christ-superstar-photo-joan-marcus.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The Movie Version:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JCSS.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-542\" src=\"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JCSS-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"JCSS\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JCSS-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JCSS-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JCSS.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>and the 2012 UK revival:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/nytix.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/JCS.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;you may think it odd, perhaps, for an out-of-the-closet atheist to be into something so heavily religious, but I have to say that one of the things that sticks with you when you are raised Roman Catholic is the <em>lore<\/em>. Things like the stations of the cross and the idea of angels are very deeply ingrained in the &#8216;western&#8217; psyche. And mine.<\/p>\n<p>Then you have the score: a rock opera inspired by various types of worship music, setting the stage for a fictionalized account of Jesus&#8217; final week of life, including some heavily non-canonical interplay between Jesus and Judas Iscariot.<\/p>\n<p>&#8230;seriously, if you&#8217;ve never listened to\/seen\u00a0<em>Jesus Christ Superstar<\/em>, do so. Now.<\/p>\n<p>If you have, then you might know where I&#8217;m coming from.<\/p>\n<p>Back to the point: my wistful daydreams of performing or directing have produced more than one fantasy concerning how *I* would stage a production of something like\u00a0<em>Jesus Christ Superstar.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8230;<\/em>not that I have the requisite experience with directing. Or a musical director. Or a rock band\u00a0<em>slash<\/em> orchestra at my command. Which is why I give you&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><b>Ultimate Broadway Fantasy Draft 2015!<\/b><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;I was going to make a\u00a0<em>Hockey: the Musical<\/em> joke, but apparently it&#8217;s already a thing:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.hockeythemusical.com\/sitebuilder\/images\/HockeyAlbumFrontCoversm-368x325.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So here&#8217;s my imaginary production of\u00a0<em>Jesus Christ Superstar:<\/em><\/p>\n<p>-We open on a dystopian science-fiction desert set which is somewhere between Woodstock, Mad Max and a Margaret Atwood novel (no sand though! One of my profs in university once told me that sand is a nightmare to clean up on a stage).<\/p>\n<p>-Jesus, Judas and Mary are all played by women. (I guess we can call her Judith?) Jesus looks like a young Joni Mitchell, Judas something akin to Katniss Everdeen. Mary Magdalene is, in essence, Tina Turner.<\/p>\n<p>-The Romans are an alien race enslaving humanity. They look like griffins:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/media.tumblr.com\/tumblr_m5ijvhhxjq1r2piwc.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;stay with me here, I&#8217;m going somewhere with this.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Hammered Drunk\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/3cehwiHIlho?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;no, really! The inestimable Neal Patrick Harris as King Herod (he was fantastic as\u00a0<em>Hedwig<\/em>, by the way):<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Neil Patrick Harris - Tear Me Down (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) [Official Audio]\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Eey6q81-bFw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>-Anna Kendrick as Mary,\u00a0Idina Menzel as Judas (Judith?), Freema Agyeman as Jesus (can she sing? I like to believe so).<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Freema.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-551 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Freema-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"Freema\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Freema-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Freema-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Freema.jpg 936w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Judas&#8217; lament of practical matters vs. spirituality, Jesus&#8217; views, these things become something else entirely in the face of a domineering alien presence.\u00a0<em>What is humanity&#8217;s place in the cosmos, and in the sight of god?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;but more importantly, David Bowie must reprise his role as Pontius Pilate:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/37.media.tumblr.com\/aecc2bbecbf3a56546635d7c6097f54d\/tumblr_n3zktrYYIb1qd4134o1_500.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;yes, I know that&#8217;s from a different Jesus movie. But it&#8217;s DAVID BOWIE! Plus he&#8217;d be in a griffin costume. What&#8217;s not to like?<\/p>\n<p>So there you have it: my bizarre, imaginary contribution to theatre. It&#8217;s a game the whole family can play! What piece of theatre would\u00a0<em>you<\/em> produce? Who would you cast, and what would it look like, if your budget was limitless? Leave me a comment!<\/p>\n<p>Coming next week: a new short story and an update on\u00a0<em>Crystal Secrets.\u00a0<\/em>Stay tuned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>So I was listening to this record the other night: &#8230;which got me to thinking about a few things. Specifically, how much I miss performing musical theatre (or theatre in general, really) and how much I&#8217;ve enjoyed various iterations of JCS: The Broadway version: The Movie Version: &nbsp; &nbsp; and the 2012 UK revival: &#8230;you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-music","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=541"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":558,"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541\/revisions\/558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamesfunfer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}