“Godspell,” the 1970s musical, composed by Stephen Schwartz with book by John-Michael Tebelak, is based on the New Testament Gospels. The story of Jesus’ life and passion is told using parables to create a show about the formation of a community in modern times. It is a contemporary of “Jesus Christ Superstar” but through a different lens.
The creation of “Godspell” was driven by young artists — college students — who had come of age during the cultural revolution of the 1960s. Influenced by the civil rights movement, the second wave of feminism, the sexual revolution and the development of new countercultures aimed at questioning authority and fighting for freedom, “Godspell” was radical at that time.
The production revisits the idea of Jesus as a revolutionary figure, one who challenged authority and preached a new, radical message to the world: “Love your enemies and pray for your persecutors.” Tebelak in a 1975 interview with Dramatics magazine stated he “wanted to make (‘Godspell’) the simple, joyful message that I felt the first time I read (the Gospels) and recreate the sense of community.” “Godspell” was written in reaction to the world and to those in authority who saw the young author as a “hippie,” mistaking him as he was leaving a church and assumed he had sneaked in to loiter rather than to listen.
One of the most brilliant aspects of “Godspell” is its ability to be relevant to any time or place in which it is staged, even now some 50 years after its premiere.
Directors Shelby Hearn and Matthew Pedigo, making their directorial debut with this production, are delighted to bring this revival of an audience favorite to the stage at the Dalton Little Theatre. They have assembled a talented cast of local performers: Alan Lopez Loa, Adam Stark, Noah Nellinger, Lauren Pye, Emily Adkins, Emily Poll, Jessica Reavis, Kaylyn Orellana and Jaydon Garguillo.
Sept. 27 and 28 and Oct. 4 and 5 are evening performances at 7, with a Sunday matinee on Sept. 29 at 2 p.m. The doors of the historic Firehouse Theatre open 30 minutes prior to curtain, and tickets are on sale at www.daltonlittletheatre.com or may be purchased at the door if seating is available. It is suggested that reservations be made early online to ensure a seat.
Submitted by the Dalton Little Theatre.