Jesus Christ Superstar

FIFTY YEARS ago a controversial new musical opened on Broadway. A radical fusion of rock, pop, soul and the New Testament Jesus Christ Superstar would shake up forever the fusty world of musical theatre and prove to be life-changing for its two young creators, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Inspired by a line in Bob Dylan’s song With God On Our Side, the musical told the story of Christ’s Passion from the point of view of Judas Iscariot, viewing the Gospel stories through the prism of the late Sixties counterculture.

Composer Andrew was still at school when he started working with lyricist Tim, who had already started making his first steps into the pop world. Their first project was an abortive musical based on