Cynthia Erivo’s voice is incredible. I had only seen Erivo in her non-musical roles before I finally saw Wicked, and I really was in awe of her instrument. Well, this summer, Cynthia is going to take on a very difficult musical role: Jesus Christ. The Hollywood Bowl will feature Jesus Christ Superstar this summer, and Cynthia has been cast as JC. Speaking as someone who ranks Jesus Christ Superstar as one of her favorite musicals of all time, I actually think Cynthia is going to nail this. But I’m sure many people will find it controversial to cast a Black gay woman as Jesus.
Cynthia Erivo is set to play Jesus Christ this summer in a production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s “Jesus Christ Superstar” at the Hollywood Bowl. Erivo shared the news via Instagram and wrote: “Just a little busy this summer, can’t wait.” She’s no stranger to the show, having starred as Mary Magdalene in an all-female version of the hit musical in 2020 and sung the popular number “I Don’t Know How to Love Him.”
Performances for “Jesus Christ Superstar” at the Hollywood Bowl will begin on Aug. 1 and run through Aug. 3. More casting will be announced at a later date. Tony Award winner Sergio Trujillo is serving as director and choreographer for the show, while Tony winner Stephen Oremus is set to serve as musical director and conductor.
“Jesus Christ Superstar” was initially released as a concept album before it made its Broadway debut in 1971. The musical revolves around the last week of Jesus’ life. A film adaptation directed by Norman Jewison opened in 1973. NBC aired “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert” on Easter Sunday in 2018 with John Legend as Jesus Christ and Sara Bareilles as Mary Magdalene.
It’s sad that Cynthia has only ever played the Mary Magdalene role before, because “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” is basically Mary’s only stand-alone song and it’s one of the worst songs in the musical. Judas is a much, much better role and a more challenging role for a vocalist, but yeah… “Gethsemane” is THE song.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
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- Celebrities attend the 2025 EE BAFTA Film Awards at The Royal Festival Hall in London, England Featuring: Cynthia Erivo Where: London, United Kingdom When: 16 Feb 2025 Credit: Cover Images
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- Celebrities attend the 2025 EE BAFTA Film Awards at The Royal Festival Hall in London, England Featuring: Cynthia Erivo Where: London, United Kingdom When: 16 Feb 2025 Credit: Cover Images
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- Celebrities arrive at the Vogue GQ Fashion & Film Party at The Royal Festival Hall in London, England Featuring: Cynthia Erivo Where: London, United Kingdom When: 16 Feb 2025 Credit: Cover Images
This is absolutely brilliant casting. I may have to get on a plane and head to LA for a performance.
(Superstar holds a huge place in my heart as well—PunkyDaddy took me to a performance when we were dating, early on. )
Super excited for Cynthia’s superstar!
Oh noes! The maghats will boycott the Hollywood bowl! s/
Misogynoir Supreme Ben Shapiro was trying to get his minions riled up about this yesterday. They’re blaming Muslims for some reason but MAGA isn’t about making sense.
This truly sounds fantastic.
She’s going to kill those songs! I hope this show gets a recorded broadcast
I hope they film it for streaming. There are some very tricky musical shifts that I would love to hear Queen Cynthia conquer! “The temple should be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves. Get out! Get out! My time is almost through. Little left to do. After all I’ve tried for three years, seems like 30…”
Oh, I LOVE this. I LOVED Wicked and I LOVED her in Wicked. And I love anything that makes MAGA seethe.
don’t discount “Everything’s All Right” as a Mary Magdalene song even though it can be considered as a duet with Judas.
MAGA will definitely go nuts since any portrayal of Jesus as anything but a straight white American dude generally sets them off (not surprised that Ben Shapiro jumped on this since MAGA Jews are bizarre when it comes to supporting the Christian Nationalist line, even to the point they will defend overt antisemitism coming from the right unless it comes from a POC – since Erivo is a Black woman, I’m sure they throw all their racist support to join in the asshattery of her casting)