Temple review: Godspell

The following review will appear in Tuesday’s Carolina section of The Herald.

Godspell ‘uplifting’
Music carries Biblical production showing at Temple

By BILLY LIGGETT
bliggett@sanfordherald.com

If you can get past a flannel-wearing, tribal-tattoo branding, Doc Marten-laced slacker as the savoir, Jesus Christ, you will have no problem enjoying “Godspell,” the Temple Theatre’s penultimate production of the 2007-08 season
Slacker that he appears, it is Jesus — portrayed by William Day of Wilmington — who carries the show, which sets a series of Christ’s parables to modern music (and even more modern pop culture references).
“Godspell” first appeared off-Broadway in 1971, and over the years, has taken many shapes and forms on the stage. Its popularity has remained strong, primarily because other than the Jesus and Judas/John the Baptist characters, “Godspell” allows directors a lot of freedom to make the production their own.
Some settings have included a troupe of clowns following Jesus in a playground, while other shows have been set in classrooms, museums and even abandoned theaters.
For the Temple show, Director Debra Gillingham chose a campout in the woods for the setting, and the musical begins with a strong number, “Tower of Babble,” which introduces each of the characters (or followers), and after they’re called to order by John the Baptist (played by Randleman native Timothe Bittle), Jesus is introduced as another camper, there to “Save the People,” his first musical number.
The music is this particular production’s strongpoint. Musical Director Jan Powell is working with a talented cast, and standout performances include Day, Bittle, Terren Wooten Clarke and the under-utilized Brittany Daniels. “Godspell” is known for its music (“Day by Day” was actually a Billboard hit in 1972), and the cast’s voices blend well inside the intimate Temple Theatre. Their performances overall make it an uplifting experience.
Where “Godspell” might lose a few show-goers is the filler in between the music. Between each song, Jesus and his followers (portrayed as children in this show) act out several of his teachings — most of them taken from the Gospel of Matthew — including “If a man sues you for your shirt, offer him your coat as well” and “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” The purpose of the parables, in addition to providing a lesson, is to develop the relationship between the campers and Jesus.
But at times, the transitions between song and parable are odd, for lack of a better word, and the actors at times come off more as annoying than childlike.
Also hit and miss are the pop culture and current event references (another regularity in “Godspell” productions). While I enjoyed Jesus impersonating George W. Bush and Winston-Salem native Dawn Kristie Hayes’ “rebate check” punchline, some jokes — most notably a drawn-out reference to Stewart’s Mom, an ongoing (and not funny) MadTV reference that I’m sure very few of the mostly older audience members would have picked up on — fall flat.
But the few negatives aside, “Godspell” is an enjoyable experience and yet another reason to take in a Temple show (this one was my first, as referenced in my column in Sunday’s Herald), and it makes me want to see what else is in store in the future.