This production marks Seaside's 30th year and it's first season at the new News-Journal Center in Daytona Beach, located right on the Halifax River.
My kids and I took my parents to see this production as an Anniversary/Father's Day gift. It was worth it!
Ignoring any religious concerns, I sat and took in the production openly. I had only seen pieces of the video production many years ago, so I was basically seeing this for the first time.
The visuals were good, though I found the excess framework onstage that allowed lighting personnel (in robes) to get above everyone very obtrusive. I'm quite positive it shouldn't have been necessary to have so much excess non-production-appropriate hardware all over the stage. This stood out like a sore thumb throughout the production.
Once I got past that and concentrated on the performances, though, I definitely enjoyed the show. The actual play itself had some odd pieces that were not clear (I believe that it assumed everyone know some basic facts about Jesus' life from the bible, instead of explaining things to those who would have no clue) but when taken in the context of "this would have been Jesus' life if he'd existed in the seventies", it rang true in many ways. I'm sure this production over the years has earned the scorn of most religious leaders. In truth, it seemed to me that this should have been titled "Judas Iscariot Betrays The Savior" given the fact that Judas appeared (to me) to be the true star of the show.
From a religious perspective, I thought the portrayal of Mary Magdalene was actually VERY good, especially once her song was performed. Being a "woman of the night", trying to show Jesus affection, and singing how she didn't know how to do it properly accentuated other facets of the show, such as the comradery of the Apostles with Jesus and each other, and the three "beings" who continually tempted/seduced Judas, as well as the other relationships you see during this nearly two hour play.
The sick and infirmed demanding Jesus' attention and other such side-pieces were very interesting interpretations of Biblical facts. Overall, the play was an enjoyable production. I'm sure that those who refuse to suspend ingrained religious beliefs would find the production, perhaps, intolerable. I took it as the work it was meant to be, and then evaluated it afterward based on my own upbringing and found it "good". I'm glad to have shared it with my kids.
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