In January, the John Carroll Catholic High School's drama department began the process of putting on the 2011 Broadway Revival version of Godspell. Personally, I didn't know anything about this show before I saw it today (March 19, 2017). John Carroll is my alma mater, and the theatre department has a special place in my heart, so I will always return to show my support.
The show focuses on the Gospel of Matthew and portrays Jesus sharing stories and lessons with a group of various characters. In John Carroll's production, senior David Payne plays Jesus and I think he did a spectacular job, considering this was his first time in the theatre. In an interview with AL.com, David shared that he played basketball and ran track throughout high school, but had to retire due to a back injury. During a talk back following the matinee performance, David also shared that he had wanted to do theatre for a long time, but was unable to commit because of sports.
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Director Joey Plaia, another John Carroll alumni, is not only in charge of directing the shows, but also the lighting and sound plots for the entire show. The sound effect cues and the lighting cues went perfectly with the show and what was happening in the moment. Notably, the band was on the stage behind the actors as opposed to down in front of the stage. During the talk back, Mr. Plaia made a comment that having the band on stage helped build a better sense of community between the musicians and the actors. I thought this was a very smart move.
I was very impressed with the casting for the show, especially the freshmen. It was nice to see new faces among both the cast and the crew. The new freshmen coming into the program give me hope in the future and excitement in what's to come. Godspell was able to present the different voices of the different actors and allowed for the presentation of their individual talents in many cases, not just ensemble voices all together. Even through technical difficulties, the actors remained professional and worked through them as if nothing was wrong.
As I said earlier, I didn't know anything about Godspell prior to seeing the show. I'm thankful that this production was the first experience I had with the show. I have a greater love for it now than I ever would have. More than half of the cast and crew were made up of people I've worked with in the theatre before or people I've seen grow up throughout high school up to my graduation. I felt a personal sense of pride in seeing the product of all of their hard work. I was brought to tears by the end of the show thinking about my memories in the theatre program, seeing the continuing growth of the theatre, and the story Godspell presents.
