The rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, written in 1970, was the first work in this genre. Today it is considered a classic. Although 45 years have passed since its inception, to this day disputes regarding its content have not subsided. And this is not surprising, since at all times the free interpretation of the texts of the sacred books of various religions caused an ambiguous reaction in society.
Relevance
“Jesus Christ is a superstar” is a rock opera, the summary of which is a free retelling of the Bible. It raises important philosophical issues that have been exciting humanity for more than 2000 years, so it will be relevant and interesting for spectators of different generations for a long time to come. In 2000, a new film adaptation of this work was made, which did not become as popular as the first film shot in 1973, but forced young people to turn to the work of rock idols of the 70s.
Authors
Before revealing the summary of the opera Jesus Christ, a few words should be said about its creators. The author of the music was the famous English composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, for whom she became the first successful work, and the libretto was written by his youth friend Tim Rice. The latter tried to follow the chronology of the well-known events that preceded the death of Christ, which are described in the Gospel, but his characters in their arias express ideas that are far from dogmas accepted in Christianity. It is this circumstance that becomes the reason that in our age of religious tolerance, the performances of the rock opera Jesus Christ the Superstar sometimes become the target of criticism from the church. And in some provincial cities, even quite civilized countries, attempts are being made to ban them as insulting the feelings of believers.
“Jesus Christ is a superstar”, rock opera: a summary of the first scene
The work begins with an overture entitled "The Birth of the Crowd." This is followed by the aria of Judah, who is indignant at the fact that Jesus, in his opinion, goes on about the crowd and is ready to recognize himself as a deity.
Mary Magdalene appears on the scene, who honors Christ. Judas reproaches the Savior for allowing a fallen woman into his entourage, since he sees danger in this. Then Jesus calls the sinless to throw a stone at Mary.
Anna and Caiaphas
The antagonists of Christ, as in the Bible, in the rock opera of Webber and Rice are the high priest of Judea and his son-in-law. They are plotting against the Savior, as they see in it a threat to their power. At the end of the duet, Anna and Caiaphas decide to report to the Sanhedrin, who was authorized to adjudicate, about a dangerous rebel who could undermine the foundations of the state.
In the next scene, “Jesus Christ - superstar” (the contents of the rock opera are described in detail in this article), Mary performs the washing of Christ's feet. After that, Judas rebukes her for using the precious myrrh in vain, instead of helping the poor. Jesus is ashamed of Judas and says that he will soon leave this world, and the poor can always be helped.
Conspiracy and Glee of the People
Jesus enters Jerusalem and is greeted by crowds shouting: “Hosanna! Hosanna! ”Folk rejoicing horrifies priests who decide to get rid of Christ in any way. They talk about him using vocabulary that is used to describe the life and career of show business stars.
Next, Simon Zelot, nicknamed Peter, enters the scene, who calls on the Savior to oppose Rome. In response, Jesus says that death can only be trampled upon by death, and that Jerusalem will never be able to understand the meaning of this phrase. Pilate’s singing soliloquy echoes his aria, in which he talks about a sad Jew who dreamed about him, on whom the crowd first poured out their anger, and then ascended, accusing the Roman procurator of his death.
The expulsion of merchants from the temple, the despair of the Savior and the aria of Mary in love
Further, the plot of the rock opera “Jesus Christ is a superstar” is transferred to the temple, where the inhabitants of Jerusalem have fun and sell all sorts of things. Suddenly Christ appears and rebukes the Jews for turning the House of the Lord into a robber den. Having expelled the merchants from the temple, Jesus performs an aria in which he talks about his despair and fatigue, since the last three years of his life seem to him longer than the previous 30. In the next scene, viewers learn from Mary Magdalene that she is in love with Christ, and hopes that he, too, is not indifferent to her.
Betrayal
Seeing that the people are prone to rebellion, but wanting to avoid bloodshed, Judas goes to Anna and Caiaphas and reports that Christ will be alone in the Garden of Gethsemane on Friday. He refuses bribes for his denunciation, since he claims that he does not betray Christ because of self-interest, but in order to avoid more serious troubles.
“Jesus Christ is a Superstar”: Summary of Part Two
The opera is advancing to its climax. The second part begins with the scene of the Last Supper. The apostles drink wine and sing about what they will have something to write about in their memoirs. Christ is horrified, realizing that his disciples will not be touched by his death, that they do not understand the essence of what is happening. Then the Savior predicts to the apostles that among them there are those who will betray him or deny if they are in danger. Pupils are indignant, each of them says that he is not capable of such.
Quarrel of Judah and Jesus
Christ points to Peter and Iscariot and tells the apostles that the first of them will become an apostate, and the second a traitor. Judas throws out his anger at Christ, reproaching him that he rebelled the people, being an ordinary impostor. The Savior chases him away with the words that he may be late and not fulfill his mission.
Prayer in Gethsemane
Do not forget that “Jesus Christ is a superstar” is a rock opera. The summary in this case cannot convey the full impression of this work, since the main thing in it is still music. In particular, one of the climaxes of this work is the Savior’s prayer aria, which is one of the best works of Andrew Lloyd Webber. In it, Christ laments his fate and asks the Father if his death will change anything. And begs to take away this cup. At the end of the scene, Jesus says that he has resigned himself to his fate and asks the Lord to quickly complete what he intended for him. The scene ends with the kiss of Judah.
The arrest and abdication of Peter
Soldiers arrest Christ. The apostles are trying to protect him. However, Jesus forbids them to resist. At the same time, the crowd that had previously extolled the Savior now rejoices that he was defeated and will be executed. When Christ is taken away, people ask Peter if he is a comrade of the arrested rebel, and he says that he is not even familiar with him.
Pilate, Jesus and Herod
The rock opera “Jesus Christ is a superstar”, the summary of which is more or less familiar to everyone, is interesting for its fragments of the libretto, where the text more closely resembles conversations of people from the sphere of show business. For example, after being interrogated by Pilate, Christ is brought to Herod, who calls him “the highlight of the season” and offers to show a couple of tricks.
The repentance of the traitor Judah and the sentence of Pilate
Seeing the torture of Christ, his former comrade begins to suffer remorse. He comes to the high priests who convince him that he did everything right. Meanwhile, Jesus was again brought to Pilate and asked to order him to be crucified. Pilate objects, but finally agrees. The opera ends with the cry of Christ, who asks the Father to forgive his executioners. He also hands over his soul to God.
“Jesus Christ is a superstar” is a rock opera (you already know the summary), which has continued to sound from many scenes of the world for more than 40 years. Beautiful music and lyrics full of humanistic ideas are the main components of its success and popularity.