[Tinia2]

wow. thanks for making and taking the time to share.
i think i can agree across the board.

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

Hey R...

Go for it!

I thought it interesting that the first few YouTube comments didn't seem to realize that this show was on Broadway those many years ago...

I didn't go too far back in the comments, though.

Tinia...

Our son-in-law directed Godspell at a local theatre company a couple of years ago, and I thought you might be interested in some small parts of the review from the Denver Post threatre critic...

"Many a day-by- day ago, when I was a teen on the precipice of adulthood, I saw a joyous little musical that rocked me to my young, cynical core. Nothing in a theater - or in a church - has ever moved me in the same way as my first production of "Godspell...

...Surely someone, I thought, will understand that "Godspell" does not merely follow the gospel of St. Matthew...

...Someone will have a clue how to establish a satisfying initial context; how to find the right balance of reverence and playfulness, of joy and sobriety, of theology and secularism. And someone will know how to execute a finale that will leave its audience in search of a hammer with which to go out and build a beautiful city...

But then again, maybe "Godspell" is a real-life Brigadoon. Maybe it's only intended to reveal its true power every 100 years...

...It is clear from the top that (the director) has assembled a loving and lovable cast of talented youngsters to do his good works, ranging from the refreshingly forceful (actor) as the master, to the comic relief of (actor). The kind of chemistry they exude is only reached through outrageous luck or a brilliantly effective rehearsal process...

...Though the first act has its share of missed moments, the final 45 minutes are close to perfect. (our daughter's) "Turn Back O Man" perfectly marks the change in tone to older, more serious and more sexual. (Actor) understands that "By My Side" is a confusing amalgam of budding passion mixed with real fear. (Actor) and (actor) start the tears flowing early with "On the Willows" before two unexpected jolts: (Actor's) visceral crucifixion is the most bloody and effective I've ever seen, and (the directors) choice to follow the death scene with Stephen Schwartz's "Beautiful City" is, for lack of a more adequate word, beautiful...

When it was over, I was in shock that my search for the next great "Godspell" was over, but I mulled why I wasn't reaching for the hammer with which to build that beautiful city. Maybe that first "Godspell" was a miracle to me only because it found me at the right time, right place and most important, right age. Maybe I'm too old to feel quite that way again, but perhaps every production of "Godspell," great or flawed, is a small miracle for someone..."

Perhaps the reviewer is right. Maybe Godspell was in the right place at the right time for a very special generation.

Or maybe it takes a special director and cast.

I don't know.