By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Saturday 18 July, and runs through 5 September 2026. Transfers to Theatre Royal Drury Lane 16 October through 9 January 2027. Tickets Also UK tour 11 February 2027 through 23 October 2027 RUNTIME: 125 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

The summer success of last year’s Olivier Award-winning EVITA! perhaps made this resurrection of a recent Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production of an Andrew Lloyd Webber classic an obvious choice as follow up.

• Read on for reasons including how Ryder gives so much vocally it may be unsustainable 8 shows a week

Less obvious is the casting of Eurovision runner-up Sam Ryder as the titular Christ and his Gethsemene is the stand-out moment from this mostly sung-through version of this 1970 hit musical.

Ryder’s trademark look is bearded and with long blond hair so he certainly looks the part and his Gethsemene includes high notes so impressive that some of the audience rise to their feet to give a midshow ovation although you wonder how he can sustain giving so much vocally 8 shows a week.

Jesus is also his acting debut and while he’s clearly suited to conveying messages while singing his Christ is less expressive while reacting to the drama around him which perhaps fits with the description of haunted that the text describes.

Director Tim Sheader is now in charge at the Donmar Warehouse and this space couldn’t be more different to that although we did love the cross that rises from the stage and although we wouldn’t want to be onstage standing the effect of having witnesses behind scaffolding did add to the drama of the piece.

We’ve seen Richard Armitage (pictured right below) both as a brooding John Proctor in The Crucible at the Old Vic and dancing topless in the rain in Uncle Vanya (Harold Pinter Theatre) and yet nothing quite prepared us for his camp turn in 1 number as King Herod here.

He’s this production’s 2nd Herod with Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Here We Are, National Theatre) preceding him and Boy George (Eurovision 2026), Layton Williams and Julian Clary (Sleeping Beauty, London Palladium) to follow.

Has Sheader perhaps overplayed the camp?

Re-reading our Regent’s Park 2020 review we can see mention of Judas Tyrone Huntley’s (Hello Dolly!, Palladium) visible paint betrayal and Jesus’ torture by glitter bomb although the latter seems much ramped up here and we don’t underestimate the post-show tidy-up work faced by the venue’s cleaners.

Elsewhere in the cast we enjoyed Desmonda Cathabel who is in fine voice as Mary although the character assassination she faces over her body count felt like it could’ve been toned down.

This production of Jesus Christ Superstar doesn’t quite have the songs of EVITA! but is visually memorable and has a star turn from Sam Ryder which is hugely vocally impressive.

• Main pictures via Facebook courtesy London Palladium Tickets
• Have you seen a Sam Ryder show before and what did you think of it? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
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