Broadway and Wicked star Cynthia Erivo gave her take on the Christian outrage over her casting in the titular role in the Hollywood Bowl’s Jesus Christ Superstar. In February, it was announced Erivo would play Jesus in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, which will take the stage at the iconic amphitheater from August 1-3.
This is not the first time Erivo has been cast in a role for Jesus Christ Superstar, as she played Mary Magdalene in an all-female recording of the musical titled She Is Risen released in 2020.
In an interview with Billboard magazine, Erivo addressed the controversial casting of an openly queer Black woman as the resurrected Messiah:
“Why not? You can’t please everyone.”
Lyricist Tim Rice defended the casting, telling the BBC:
“I think a piece that is established, there’s no reason it can’t be done in lots of forms… I think Cynthia, who is one of the best singers on the planet, will do a great version.”
The production will also include Adam Lambert playing the traitorous Judas Iscariot and will be directed and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo.
Premiering in 1971, the iconic rock opera is a campy retelling of Jesus’ final days through the perspective of Judas. In past musical reiterations, Christians and conservatives have found the portrayal of Jesus blasphemous as a character with human emotions that undermines the biblically taught divine nature of his life and resurrection.
John Legend performed as Jesus in the NBC special Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert in 2018, which caused similar controversy.
Nonetheless, Erivo hopes that everyone who attends will understand the message of the musical:
“It is legitimately a three-day performance at the Hollywood Bowl where I get to sing my face off."
"So hopefully they will come and realize, ‘Oh, it’s a musical, the gayest place on Earth.’"
Erivo also spoke about not allowing negativity to overshadow the joy in Pride Month, as she is scheduled to headline WorldPride in Washington, D.C., with Doechii on June 5th.
Erivo reflected on the month’s importance:
“I want to encourage people to not decide to just tuck away and start hiding and not being themselves anymore, because that is exactly what they want."
"The more yourself you are, the more you are in front of people who don’t necessarily understand, the better understanding starts to happen.”
Fans of Erivo praised her positive reaction to the casting controversy:
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The trailer for Wicked: For Good, the second installment starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, will be premiering later today.
You can watch the magical promo below:
- YouTube@UniversalPictures/YouTube
