Theater Review: “Jesus Christ Superstar” – Kansas City

 

  • JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
  • The Kauffman Center – Kansas City, Missouri
  • March 29, 2022

 

I have a very special place in my heart for the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar.”  I’ve had it since I was 13 years old when, while visiting my grandfather – who I called Bapa, which is now how my grandchildren refer to me – in Florida, I asked to go see the movie, which was playing at a nearby theatre.  A quick phone call to my parents to make sure it was ok with them, and off I went.  For those of you who may not have seen the film, I won’t let on how it ends.  Let’s just say the ending haunted me on the way home and evolved into a long conversation with my Bapa.  Years later I had the opportunity to see the show a couple of times with both Ted Neeley and Carl Anderson, who played Jesus and Judas, respectively, in the film.  I was a guest backstage when I met both of them.  I told Ted Neeley about my conversation with Bapa and his thoughts and kindness will remain with me for the rest of my life.

 

Rolling into Kansas City this week is the 50th Anniversary Tour of “Jesus Christ Superstar,” and it is a fine addition to the show’s great history.  A totally sung dramatization of the last week of Christ’s life, this production is very barebones, with an almost empty stage.  Also, while normally presented in two acts, there is no intermission here.  It’s a quick 80 minutes or so, but if you like to stretch your legs you’re out of luck.

 

The cast was excellent, both vocally and physically.  There is a lot of dance and movement here and nobody missed a beat.  Vocal standouts include Omar Lopez-Cepero (Judas), Jenna Rubaii (Mary) and Alvin Crawford (Caiaphas), whose amazing baritone shook the house.  The score is one of the best ever written and the orchestra, perched high above the stage, was outstanding.  Even the guys in the sound/light area could be seen grooving to the music.

 

The show continues in Kansas City at the beautiful Kauffman Center through Sunday, April 3rd.  If you’ve never seen the show, I urge you to take a chance.  If you have, see it again.  You won’t be disappointed.

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Filed Under: Theatre Reviews Tagged With: christ, city, jesus, kansas, review, superstar, ...

Win Action Superstar Tony Jaa Blu-ray’s, “The Protector 2” and “The Ong Bak Trilogy” [ENDED]

To celebrate the Blu-ray releases with Action Superstar Tony Jaa, “The Protector 2” and “The Ong Bak Trilogy”, Media Mikes is excited to giveaway one (1) copy for each of the Blu-ray’s to our readers. If you would like to enter for your chance to win one of this prize, please leave us a comment below or send us an email with your favorite martial arts film. This giveaway will remain open until August 15th at Noon, Eastern Time. This is open to our readers in US and Canada only. One entry per person, per household. All other entries will be considered invalid. Media Mikes will randomly select winners. Winners will be alerted via email.

THE ONG BAK TRILOGY: Tony Jaa electrifies in this three-part epic tale of revenge. A franchise TIME calls “exhilarating,” with relentless, fever-pitched action – often free of stunt doubles and special effects. Jaa performs some of the most amazing physical feats ever seen on film.

THE PROTECTOR 2: When Boss Suchart is murdered, all evidence points to Kham (Tony Jaa). Forced to run as he fights to clear his name, he is hunted not only by the police, but also Boss Suchart’s revengeful twin nieces and crime lord LC (RZA). A sequel of the global smash-hit The Protector, this extreme fight movie is an endlessly intense, nerve-racking film full of daredevil stunt scenes and amazingly choreographed fighting moves that will pump hot blood through the body of all action fans!

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Filed Under: Giveaways Tagged With: 2, action, bak, blurays, jaa, protector, ...

WWE Superstar Brodus Clay talks about first film role in “No One Lives”

WWE Superstar Brodus Clay makes his first onscreen performance in the Ryuhei Kitamura directed film titled “No One Lives”. Brodus plays the role of Ethan alongside Luke Evans in what he describes as a “bad group meets worse guy” film. Media Mikes had the chance to talk with Brodus recently about the film and what it was he liked most about the process.

Adam Lawton: What can we be expected from the film “No One Lives”?
Brodus Clay: The film is a cool sort of retro flick. It was shot on film which I think is also really cool. The special effects on the film were also done very old school. The story is a bad group meets worse guy and things take off from there. There are some interesting kill scenes that go along with a pretty good story line.

AL: What was it that interested you in doing the film?
BC: The opportunity knocked and I think when that happens you should take whatever is being offered and make it yours. I wasn’t too concerned with what the role was as it was a new opportunity for me. With my persona on TV now the character I play in the film is a complete contrast. I think it’s a good thing to be able to show your different sides.

AL: Did you have a favorite part of the process?
BC: I really enjoyed the fight scene and the rehearsals I did with Luke Evans. We didn’t know each other really well in the beginning and he was worried I was going to hit him so I played with him quite a bit. By the end of it I was real pleased with how things turned out. It’s funny because when we were shooting I kept swinging and hitting this light that was above us. The director would then yell cut and I had someone whispering in my ear to keep doing it. (Laughs) it was just this weirdly lit fight with this other light swinging back and forth. I got to see the scene at one of the premiers and it looked really good.

AL: What were some of the differences you noticed between performing in the ring as opposed to in front of a camera on a film set?
BC: The differences were huge. There are so many camera angles being shot and a lot of repetition goes on. In the WWE were typically doing things in one take because when your shooting live you can’t stop and ask for another take. (Laughs) There is also a lot of behind the scenes stuff going with movies that no one ever sees while the WWE works with a generally smaller crew that is working as fast as they can to get things ready for that night. There’s a lot more preparation in movies.

AL: Is acting something you see yourself wanting to do more of?
BC: 100 percent! I got the bug and it was a lot of fun. I think I can certainly balance the two and I am looking to do more. I had a lot of fun and am looking to try a different avenue next time.

AL: Do you have any other projects you can tell us about?
BC: The WWE is an ongoing project that is nonstop. We literally are working 365 days a year. I am always busy working the grind.

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Filed Under: Film Interviews, Interviews Tagged With: brodus, clay, film, lives, role, superstar, ...

DVD Review “Bugs Bunny Superstar”

Directed by: Larry Jackson
Narrated by: Orson Welles
Starring: Bob Clampett, Tex Avery, Friz Freleng
Distributed by: Warner Archive
Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 91 minutes

Our Score: 4 out of 5 stars

When it comes to Bugs Bunny and Looney Tunes, I have been a life-long fan. This film is not your typical Looney Tunes special.  It is a documentary, hosted by animator Bob Clampett with interviews with Friz Freleng and Tex Avery.  This is also narrated by legendary director Orson Welles.  It includes nine Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies cartoons which were previously released during the 1940s.  This is a must for any Looney Tunes fans.

The shorts included are “What’s Cookin’ Doc? (1944)”, “The Wild Hare (1940)”, “A Corny Concerto (1943)”, “I Taw a Putty Tat (1948)”, “Rhapsody Rabbit (1946)”, “Walky Talky Hawky (1946)”,  “My Favorite Duck (1942)”, Hair-Raising Hare (1946)” and “The Old Grey Hare (1944)”

This is the first time that this has ever been released on DVD, thanks to Warner Archive. This release is presented in 4X3 full frame with the its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1. The audio track is the original mono audio, which works perfectly. Surprisingly  there is actually some decent special features including a commentary track from director Larry Jackson and an image gallery with behind-the-scenes photos.

Official Premise: What was it like to work in Termite Terrace, birthplace of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and a veritable horde of cartoon icons? Get a taste of that crazy and creative fun factory in this loving and droll documentary, hosted by ace animator Bob Clampett. Featuring interviews with fellow Termite Terrace residents Friz Freleng and Tex Avery and narrated by Orson Welles, Bugs Bunny Superstar includes nine complete cartoons that are prime examples of the collaborative efforts of Warner cartoonists, ink-and-painters, effects artists and others. “No idea was too outrageous,” Clampett says. Seeing rare home movies of the animators as they act out ideas adds to that sense of unrestrained creativity.

 

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Filed Under: DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews Tagged With: bugs, bunny, dvd, review, superstar

WWE Superstar Chris Jericho talks about working with band Fozzy

Fozzy is the hard rock/heavy metal band fronted by WWE superstar Chris Jericho recently released its 5th studio album via Century Media records titled “Sin and Bones”. Media Mikes had a chance to talk with Chris recently about the album and his appearance on the popular ABC television show “Dancing with the Stars”.

Adam Lawton: Can you give us some background info on the new album?
Chris Jericho: After the “Chasing the Grail” album we decided that our approach is a little bit different from the norm. We use really heavy riffs combined with melodic hook filled choruses. Maybe if Journey and Metallica had a bastard child it would sound like Fozzy. We really honed in on that with the last record and when it came time to do “Sin and Bones” we knew that was the direction we wanted to go in. We wanted to make this record like our “Black” album. That Metallica album has a certain tone and feel. Even though the songs on that album are all very diverse they still fit together. We put a lot of time in to the sequencing of the record.

AL: What type of creative process does the band take?
CJ: We do things a little bit backwards. I will generally write the lyrics first. From there I will give them to Rich Ward and he will right the music and the melodies based on the lyrics I give him. A lot of times it’s the other way around. Doing things this way on the last three records has worked out really well. A lot of my lyrics are based on song titles. If I see or phrase or something I find interesting I will put a note of that into my phone. When it comes time to write I will look through those notes and sort of work backwards from the title. Maybe we will experiment with the traditional way of song writing on the next record.

AL: Did the band do a lot of pre-production for the record?
CJ: We took our time. We started working on this album back in November. We did a tour of Europe and brought a recording rig along with us. We just started recording ideas and riffs while we were on the road. When it came time to go into the studio we knew we didn’t want to have to rush. The label actually gave us a deadline of May 2012 but we had already been working on the album since November so we had a good start on things.

AL: What do you think has posed a bigger challenge wrestling, playing music or “Dancing with the Stars”?
CJ: They have all posed challenges. When I was a kid I wanted to be in a rock band. I have been playing music since I was 12 and then I started wrestling at 19. I was always being told that I wouldn’t be able to do those things for various reasons. I learned very early on that you have to eliminate negative people from your world and that if you really want to do something you have to make it happen. As a result of that I have never been afraid to try anything. Especially something that is creative. When “Dancing with the Stars” came up the 3rd time I decided to try it. The first couple times they asked me to be on the show I was busy with “WrestleMania” and the other time I was doing a Fozzy tour. That show was probably the biggest challenge. Music and wrestling I had been doing for a majority of my life. I had never danced before. The first time I danced was in front of 25 million people. There ended up being a lot of similarities between the three. You have to feel the music and be on top of the beat and like in wrestling you have to remember the choreography while being light on your feet. Once I got that first performance under my belt I got addicted to it. When I got eliminated from the show I had withdraws almost. I didn’t know what to do with myself. I was glad that I could prove to myself that I was able to do that.

AL: Do you ever find critiques are quick to write the band off due to your wrestling background?
CJ: They have in the past but we just keep coming back. People have been hearing about the band for years but until they really listen to the music do they understand what they have been missing. I think we have had to work a little harder to get past that but in 2010 I started to really notice a shift. People still knew me from wrestling but they started to pay more attention to the band and not what I have been associated with in the past. When I go see Iron Maiden I don’t say “there’s the airline pilot’s band”. Those are two separate things. You just have to prove to people that you are real and passionate. This is part of who I am and it is never going to go away.

AL: What made Fozzy abandon the idea of having alter-ego’s and go in a different direction?
CJ: We were originally signed as a cover band by Megaforce Records. They were really into what we were doing so we decided to come up with alter-ego’s to make what we were doing a little different as just playing covers was a bit boring. After playing together for awhile we realized we liked what we were doing and we had some good chemistry. We decided to take it to the next step and start playing our own tunes. I compare our band a lot to Pantera. There were two version of that band. When they first came out they were a glam-metal band with big hair and makeup. It makes no since that they changed everything about themselves and turned in to the band we all love. Fozzy was pretty similar. There were two versions of the band under one name. Our original name as a cover band was Fozzy Osbourne so we shortened it and now we are on version 2 of the band.

AL: What are the bands plans for the rest of the year?
CJ: After the “Uproar Tour” ends we have a short tour of the states in October and then we head over to Europe. From there we will be heading to Australia as part of the Sound Wave Festival with Metallica. Those dates were all booked prior to the album release so we will be plugging some holes here and there with other dates as well.

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Filed Under: Interviews, Music Interviews Tagged With: band, chris, fozzy, jericho, superstar, talks, ...

WWE Superstar Adam “Edge” Copeland talks about his role on Syfy’s “Haven”

WWE Superstar Adam “Edge” Copeland recently retired from wrestling and is the youngest person to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Adam was a guest star on Syfy’s “Haven” during its second season and became a regular throughout season three. Media Mikes had a chance to chat with Adam about working on “Haven” and his transition from wrestling.

Mike Gencarelli: Tell us about becoming a regular in season three of “Haven”?
Adam Copeland: I always use the term “happy accident”. I was told I had to retire from WWE about a year and half ago now. I guess Syfy had decided to use one of the WWE wrestlers from “Smackdown” for their show “Haven”. I think there was some trepidation since there is still that misconception that wrestlers just yell and scream in their underwear. Thankfully one of the writers showed a clip of my retirement speech and t hat in essence was my audition video. I got the call if I would be interested and I said “Of course”. I flew up for what would be just one episode initially. But after seeing my speech, they took two different characters and merged them into one. After the first episode, they decided to write him in more and that become four episodes in the first season and now seven episodes into this season.

MG: What do you enjoy most about working on the show?
AC: Everyone was just so friendly shooting in Nova Scotia. Especially coming off of the road and doing 250 shows a year. I thought this would be nice pace for me. That is one of the things I enjoyed the most was sleeping in the same bed every night…but still working. That is something that is very foreign to me. It was nice to have a script and be able to study the lines. I just liked really being able to prepare for the role. It has really been the best of both worlds for me personally.

MG: Just from the first two episodes of season three, the show seems amped from last season, can you reflect?
AC: I don’t know if angrier is the right term, but things are put up with more of urgency this season. Things really come to a head and a lot of questions get answered. I feel that it is a little darker and aggressive and I like that. One of the things I like and even going back to last year, I am fan of this show and I really proud to be a part of it. It is not just a pay-day job for me. This is really cool for me. I also like that it is still shot on film and it still looks so good.

MG: Tell us about your dynamic with your fellow characters on the show?
AC: My character has a completely different relationship with each character. With Duke, they really don’t like each other but they are a lot alike. With Nathan, that is Dwight’s partner and he looks after him. With Audrey, he looks at her like a little sister. Then Vince and Dave, they are like these grandfatherly/uncle types. They are all awesome to work with. Vince and Dave are just awesome, their facial terms are just so subtle but effective. One of the things that people don’t realize is that in the U.S. is that Dave (played by John Dunsworth), he is like a national icon in Canada. He is in this show called “Trailer Park Boys”, which is so awesome. He and I went out one day and there is not a person walking down the street that didn’t stop him. I am sort of used to that with my prior career. I get stopped occasionally but no joke; he gets stopped by everyone in Canada. I’m like “Hey I used to do that little wrestling thing, anyone remember that?” [laughs].

MG: Your character Dwight has a lot of mystery behind him; can we expect any reveals of his background?
AC: It delves a little more into all of our pasts. It tells us a little bit of how everything is intertwined. It was touched on before but we get a few more layers into it. You find that there is definitely some cool things going on. I had a lot of cool scenes with Vince and Dave this season, which is great. Last season, I spent it primarily with Lucas (Bryant) and Eric (Balfour). But yeah, it gets deeper into who Dwight is and his involvement. Also from a fan perspective, when I found out where it was going this season I was really excited.

MG: What has been your biggest challenge transitioning from wrestling to dramatic series?
AC: Since I was told I had to retire from wrestling, I think it was easier for me to transition. I couldn’t do it anymore and this other thing came up and I figured I could give it a shot. That has made it fun for me and not given me any pressure. This has felt not like it is not a job and thankfully neither did WWE. So it is kind of cool that for my entire adult life that I haven’t worked. I have just been involved on these really cool projects. The biggest transition was pulling back my mannerism and face movements. In wrestling, you have to translate things to 80,000 people away…all the way to the back row. You do that with bigger face expression and more physical theatrics. With “Haven”, I had to realize that this camera can pick up my nose hairs. I had to pull back my facial expressions otherwise I told myself they are going to look completely insane [laughs]. But that was still fun working on that. I also got to work with like three or four different directors, including Jason Priestly. So it was great to get the different feedback and see how each person works.

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Filed Under: Interviews, TV Interviews Tagged With: adam, copeland, edge, haven, role, superstar, ...
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