Photos by John Vecchiolla.

                                By Ed Lieberman

A nostalgic look at religion and morality from the flower-power generation

In an era of irreverent, cynical and even snarky shows using religion and religious groups as their theme or backdrop (i.e. Book of Mormon, An Act of God, Hand to God), Westchester  BroadwayTheatre takes us on a nostalgic trip back to a more innocent and idealistic time: the 1970’s, when Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Godspell portrayed religion in a lighter, more innocent and positive way.

Godspell was created in 1970 by John Michael Tibelak as his Master’s Thesis at Carnegie Mellon University. Another Carnegie Mellon alumnus, composer Stephen Schwartz (Pippin,  Wicked), was called in to write a musical score for the piece, which opened Off-Broadway in May 1971 (five months before Jesus Christ Superstar opened on Broadway) and ran for 2124 performances until June 1976, when it moved to Broadway, where it played until  September 1977. (A successful movie version was made in 1973).

The show presents scriptural parables of the Gospel of St. Matthew and depicts the last period of Jesus‘ life, ending with his crucifixion (but not his resurrection). That said, this is not a serious or in-depth examination of scripture: there is little or no “book” to this musical; the show consists primarily of teachable moments spoken mostly in jest or set to music, performed by a cast of young performers clad in clownish attire, much like a traveling troupe of court jesters, in a rapid-fire series of skits. It presents a lighthearted, up-beat perspective on the biblical themes of love, forgiveness and, most importantly, treating others as you would have others treat you. The strength of the show is in Stephen Schwartz’s score, which ranges in style from pop to folk-rock, gospel and even vaudeville, and includes such memorable songs as “Prepare Ye,” “Save the People,” “Bless the Lord,” “Light of the World, “We Beseech Thee,” the soft-shoe  “All for the Best,” and the breakout song “Day By Day” (which reached #13 on the Billboard charts in the summer of 1972).

Director/Choreographer John Fanelli has updated the show with several references to current cultural phenomena, such as Obamacare, Donald Trump, the Kardashians, and references to Forrest Gump and the Lion King. These light-hearted asides were well-timed and presented, to make the show more identifiable to modern audiences. Watch for them.

The cast are well-matched and well-directed. With few exceptions, the numbers are ensemble pieces. The cast is led by Gilbert D. Sanchez, as Jesus, and the very impressive Xander Chauncey, as John the Baptist and Judas. Other cast members included Josh Kenney, Kareema Castro Khouri, Greta Kleckner, Nicholas Park, Devon Perry, Nathan Andrew Riley, Sarah Smithton and Karley Willocks.  In addition to singing and dancing, several members of the cast played instruments, as well, including, most notably, Devon Perry playing a mean piano in “By My Side.”

Steven Loftus makes the most of the sets, this time designing a makeshift subway train whose doors provide entrances and exits for some of the numbers. This reviewer also recognized tenements from past WBT productions of In the Heights and last month’s West Side Story. Lighting, by Andrew Gmoser, made the most of the sets, especially giving the illusion of motion for the ersatz subway.


Gilbert D. Sanchez (Jesus) and Xander Chauncey (Judas) perform “All For The Best”

Costumes were standard issue for the show; as in most productions, the most memorable was the Superman shirt worn throughout by Jesus (which for a moment made me think that I was at a production of Jesus Christ Superstar).

Two minor quibbles: it was difficult making out some of the words in many of the songs and dialogue. This was either a problem of sound or the rapidity with which many of the parables were presented. The other is more structural: this production began with a number alternately known as “Prologue,” or “Babel,” consisting of several cast members wearing sashes identifying them as various philosophers and historical figures (in this production, Socrates, Martin Luther, Nietzsche, Da Vinci, Thomas Aquinas and Buckminster Fuller, among others). The “philosophers” quote passages from their writings, at first individually, then at the same time, creating a cacophony (babel) broken, finally, by John, blowing a shofar, singing “Prepare Ye.” This number has been omitted from several productions and the film version of the show, because it has nothing to do with the life and teachings of Jesus and, to this reviewer, makes no historical sense: most of the figures represented lived, wrote and taught long after John and Jesus lived and died. In the opinion of this reviewer, the number starts the show off on a confusing note and should have been omitted from this production, as well.

Running Time: 2 ½ hours including one 30 minute intermission.

Suitable for all ages.

Godspell is playing at the Westchester Broadway Theatre through August 9, 2015.  The theatre is located at 1 Broadway Plaza, Elmsford NY.  For tickets call the box office at (914) 592-2222. (Please note: ticket prices include a full three-course lunch or dinner)