JCS Broadway: This One's Got Swag, And Three Filipinos In It

"Jesus Christ Superstar" on Broadway; photo by Joan Marcus

by Oliver Oliveros, BroadwayWorld.com

My first dose of musical theater was through my uncle’s old screechy phonograph recording of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s hippie, loud, angst-laden rock musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” (JCS). The classic stage hit, which was originally a concept album before evolving into a full-blown Broadway musical that follows the passion and death of Jesus Christ as seen through the eyes of Judas Iscariot (much the same as Martin Scorsese’s highly controversial film “The Last Temptation of Christ”), had completed its three-year run on Broadway (1971-1973), and its first commercial movie release (1973) by the time I got to experience JCS’s electrifying, personally-impactful songs in the ‘80s though. So when the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Toronto, Canada announced late last year that its critically-acclaimed, deemed revolutionary production of JCS, directed by Tony winner Des McAnuff, was coming to Broadway, I was delighted to hear the news; and more so when I learned that three Filipino-Canadian musical theater artists – brothers Julius and Jason Sermonia, and Laurin Padolina – are part of the show.

“99 percent of the Broadway cast performed in McAnuff’s production in Canada,” said the older Sermonia, Julius, who plays the role of Jesus’ disciple Peter whenever the original Peter, Mike Nadajewski, fills in the shoes of the flamboyant King Herod at some of the performances.

“And yes, I’m proud to be a Filipino,” Julius told me the first time I met him.

Brothers Julius and Jason Sermonia; photo by
Linda Lenzi

Julius, who is also a singer, a dancer, and the fight captain in this JCS remake, and also BroadwayWorld.com’s Gypsy for the Month of April, is not a greenhorn on the Great White Way; his Broadway debut was in another Webber musical, “Cats,” playing the white-faced, feline magician Mr. Mistoffelees, in 1999. Besides his Broadway credits, his professional theater experience is brimming with U.S. national tours (“Cats,” “Contact”), regional theater productions (“JCS,” “Miss Saigon"), and Stratford Shakespeare Festival productions (“Evita,” “West Side Story"), among others.

Julius’ brother, Jason, who is engaged to Canadian actress Melanie Mcinenly, plays the role of Jesus’ disciple John in the Tony-nominated revival production of JCS. His other theater credits include “Camelot” (his first stint at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival), Disney’s “The Lion King” in Las Vegas, “Dirty Dancing,” “We Will Rock You,” Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast,” “The King & I,” and “West Side Story,” among others. He was also cast as one of the dancers in Rob Marshall’s Academy Award-winning film adaptation of John Kander and Fred Ebb’s Broadway musical “Chicago,” released in 2002.

Laurin Padolina, whose roots were in Quezon province in the Philippines, was born and raised in Vancouver, plays Rachel in JCS, her Broadway debut. She is a professional dancer and a choreographer who had worked with the choreographers for Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake, among others.

Laurin Padolina

These three strong dancers – capable actors as well – together with Tony nominee Josh Young (Judas), Paul Nolan (Jesus), Chilina Kennedy (Mary Magdalene), Lee Siegel (Simon Zealotes) et al., have been strutting their stuff eight performances a week since McAnuff’s reimagined production of one of Webber and Rice’s earlier ground-breaking rock musicals opened at Neil Simon Theatre three months ago (another seminal work from Webber and Rice, “Evita,” which charts the rise and fall of the former first lady of Argentina Eva Peron, starring Argentinian actress Elena Roger and Latin superstar Ricky Martin, is playing at Marquis Theatre, a few blocks away from JCS’s theater).

JCS’s brand marketers have been positioning the show as revolutionary, which I beg to differ: Similar to Stephen Schwartz and John Michael Tebelak’s “Godspell,” JCS’ core creative concept, hippie lyrics were indeed subversive at the time the stage adaptation premiered in the early ‘70s; the JCS presentation I saw on Wednesday barely rewrote any of Rice’s original lyrics to make it sound even more provocative.

Curtain call; photo by Oliver Oliveros

McAnuff’s staging is yes, glitzy and partly up-to-date; for instance, the stage is adorned with Robert Brill’s metallic two-tiered set, platforms, staircases, ladders, and catwalks, and multi LED screens whose running display of readings from the Bible during Act Two’s finale is nothing less than brilliant; and a bass-singing Caiaphas (Marcus Nance) and his minions wear leather trench coats, and Roman soldiers don contemporary military uniforms – think of stormtroopers.

Evidently, McAnuff drops the heavily bohemian attributes of the original Broadway production and its film counterpart, and replaces these pretty tired decades-old elements with an urban swag, exuberant party vibe, which, for me – apart from the Filipinos in the cast and Young's breathtaking performance as Judas – makes this incarnation of the sung-through, landmark rock musical one of the must-sees this Tony Award season.

The Stratford Shakespeare Festival’s production of JCS continues to play at the Neaderlanders’ Neil Simon Theatre on 52nd Street. For tickets, visit www.superstaronbroadway.

STINKYKIDS, The Musical Plays Last Weekend at Theatre 80, 5/26

A.J. Patton, Lora Nicolas, Ryan Mikita, Laura Weiner, Bryce Payne, and Madison
Turner engage in a photo op with young theatergoers. Photo by Vital Theatre Company

by Oliver Oliveros, BroadwayWorld.com

New York, May 21, 2012 – 2nd Annual Off-Broadway Alliance Awards’ Best Family Show nominee “StinkyKids, The Musical,” featuring book and lyrics by Sammy Buck, music by Daniel S. Acquisto, based on the children’s books with the same title by Britt Menzies, and direction by Tim Drucker, will play its last extended performance at Theatre 80 Saint Marks Place in the East Village on Saturday, May 26, at 1 p.m.

“Endearing, funny, and entertaining to both the kids and the parents in the audience,” was how our very own Erin Leigh Peck of BroadwayWorld.com Jr. described the family oriented-musical, which premiered at Vital Theatre Company’s McGinn Cazale Theatre in March.

“StinkyKids, The Musical” tells the story of a mischievous young girl Britt who asks her parents (never seen on stage) to bring her friends Max, Hannah, Jen, Johnny, and Billy to the grand opening of the newest, hottest kiddie attraction in town, the MegaJumper 3000. But when Britt gets a massive wad of gum stuck in her long hair, she had no choice but to rely on her playmates to help her get out of the sticky situation before her parents find out, and cancel the trip to the amusement park.

For its final performance on Saturday, Kari Grunberg, replaces the show’s original Britt, Laura Weiner. 

New York-based actors A.J. Patton (Johnny), Madison Turner (Jen), Ryan Mikita (Max), Bryce Payne (Billy), and Filipino-American actress Lora Nicolas (Hannah) complete the cast.

To purchase tickets, starting at $29.50, visit vitaltheatre.org.

Photo Flash: FORBIDDEN BROADWAY In Manila

Caisa Borromeo, Lorenz Martinez, OJ Mariano,
and Liesl Batucan star in the Philippine premiere of
the smash Off-Broadway parody "Forbidden
Broadway." Photo by Jory Rivera

by Oliver Oliveros, BroadwayWorld.com

Co-written by Jude Cartalaba

Manila, Philippines, May 17, 2012 – Theater actor, writer, and director Gerard Alessandrini’s brainchild, the 30-year-old Off-Broadway hit parody series “Forbidden Broadway,” finally premiered at Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza in Makati City last weekend. Joel Trinidad, Upstart Productions’ president and the show’s director, had picked “Forbidden Broadway’s Greatest Hits,” which has two volumes to date, and features some of the more popular spoofs of Broadway musicals and theater legends culled from more than a dozen “Forbidden Broadway” editions.

Versatile thespians Liesl Batucan (“Next Fall,” “Seussical”), Caisa Borromeo (“Little Women,” “Footloose”), OJ Mariano (“Rent,” “Sweet Charity”), and Lorenz Martinez (“Spelling Bee,” “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”) top-bill “Forbidden Broadway's Greatest Hits." During the press preview last Thursday night, there was never a dull moment, even though there were some musical theater references not too familiar with young theatergoers, i.e. Mandy Patinkin’s over-the-top tenor, or Ethel Merman’s quavering vibrato.

Nevertheless, Batucan delighted the crowd as she poked fun at a grown-up orphan Annie from “Annie;” Broadway’s favorite leading lady Carol Channing, whose most popular stage role was that of matchmaker Dolly Levi in “Hello Dolly!;” and American actress and singer Liza Minnelli, whose claim to international fame was her role as Sally Bowles in the ‘70s film adaptation of the Broadway musical “Cabaret.”

Mariano was very effective playing Cameron Mackintosh who explained why the theater producer’s shows, such as “Les Miserables,” “Cats,” “The Phantom of the Opera,” and “Miss Saigon,” among others, were big hits.

Borromeo stole the show when she parodized Broadway diva Idina Menzel’s Tony Award-winning portrayal of the notorious Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, in “Wicked.”

Martinez, donning black tights, was outright hilarious in his spoof of “Cats.”

On Thursday’s preview, Trinidad’s father, Noel Trinidad, was featured performer, who sung a takeoff of “Bring Him Home” from “Les Miserables.” (Jett Pangan of “Jekyll and Hyde” and “Rock of Ages” did the same number on last Friday’s opening night.) Lea Salonga, Aiza Seguerra, Nyoy Volante, Iya Villania, Nikki Valdez, Markki Stroem, and Gabe Mercado are expected to guest star as well.

“Forbidden Broadway’s Greatest Hits” features Martin Esteva’s lighting design, Lawyn Cruz’s production design, Onyl Torres’ musical direction, and Dingdong Fiel's piano accompaniment. The show runs until Sunday, May 27.

For tickets, call Upstart Productions at +639175285678 or email upstarttickets@gmail.com or upstartproductionsinc@gmail.com. Tickets are also available through Ticketworld at (632) 8919999 or log on to www.ticketworld.com.ph.

For more photos, click HERE.