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Daily News
St. Matthew’s Gospel Grooves in “Godspell”
By Lee Silver
A youth of my acquaintance was filling me in recently on the turn to religion – or to religious themes – taken this season by many of the leading rock culturists.
“Well, it’s like the way things have been going,” he said. “We’ve been reading a lot more of the Bible and Jesus Christ, you know, and when you really get to know about Him, Jesus was really a groovy guy.”
My friend and all his friends should be informed that in the musical “Godspell”
that opened last night at the
However, it is a show that is more respectful than it is respectable.
The production, conceived and directed by John-Michael Tebelak, a man in his 20s making his debut Off-Broadway, is far from a literal interpretation of the biblical text. It is staged as sort of a clown show in a series of scenes, sketches, narrations, songs and dances.
The actors, five young men and five young women, wear clown makeup and costumes and act out the stories and parables involving the Good Samaritan, Mary Magdelene and others in a setting of a brick wall and wire fences that give the appearance of a back alley in some city some where. On top of tall wood plat forms in the rear of the stage, left and right, are four musicians, two handling bass and guitar, one on the piano and one on the drums.
The performers are a genuinely ingratiating bunch who are not too easily identifiable by their roles, so I’ll string out their names as listed alphabetically in the program: Lamar Alford, Peggy Gordon, David Haskell, Joanne Jonas, Robin Lamont, Sonia Manzano, Gilmer McCormick, Jeffrey Mylett, Stephen Nathan and Herb Simon. Their harmony and choral work with Stephen Schwartz’ music and lyrics is excellent al though individually their voices are not always strong enough.
Susan Tsu’s costumes and Lowell B. Achziger’s lighting con tribute effectively to the production which, while cadging some from “Hair” and “Story Theater,” is innovative in its warmly humorous handling of a serious subject. So check your traditions in the lobby and go in and enjoy yourself. This is a loving show.
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