Tickets are on sale for shows May 17-22 at the Pioneer Center
Jesus Christ Superstar is celebrating 50 years on Broadway, with a North American tour of the iconic rock musical that will land at Reno’s Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts May 17-22 for eight raucous performances. It will be the first time since January 2007 that JCS has graced the Pioneer stage.
The rock opera is told from the perspective of Judas, chronicling the final days of Jesus’ life and set to an upbeat, rock-centric score, with big hits including “I Don’t Know How to Love Him,” “Gethsemane,” and “Superstar.” The album is perhaps as memorable as the show itself, defining a generation with its rock hits that bring a cheery flavor to an otherwise dispiriting storyline.
The award-winning production has a long list of accolades, including an Olivier award, and comes from the powerhouse duo of Andrew Lloyd Weber (responsible for scoring larger-than-life productions Cats, Evita, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and The Phantom of the Opera) and Tim Rice (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Evita).
“Jesus Christ Superstar is such a beloved show for so many people,” says Dennyse Sewell, executive director at Pioneer Center. “This specific production is stunning, and we can’t wait to share it with more than 10,000 of our fellow community members. Our team works hard to connect our audiences with exceptional experiences, and we know this gorgeous, emotional show will truly amaze everyone who attends.”
Also responsible for bringing the North American leg of the 50th anniversary tour (which launched in Austin, Texas, in the fall of 2019) is director Timothy Sheader, who served as artistic director for such shows as A Tale of Two Cities, Peter Pan, and To Kill a Mockingbird, collecting a slew of impressive awards along the way. Choreographer Drew McOnie has worked on Broadway productions including Jekyll & Hyde, In the Heights, King Kong, and Oklahoma! Rounding out the creative team is Tom Scutt, responsible for set and costume design (2016 Tony Award nominee), Lee Curran for lighting design, and Tom Deering, in charge of music supervision.
The performance is part of the 2021-2022 Broadway Comes to Reno season at the Pioneer Center, marking a return to (at least semi-) normalcy after 18 months of pandemic shutdowns that turned the lights off at the local theater.
“To come back after an extended closure with our biggest Broadway season ever feels like a dream come true for our team,” Sewell says. “It was so important for us to put together a season lineup that included a mix of classics and new works, and we were thrilled to have the chance to include the 50th anniversary tour of Jesus Christ Superstar, one of the most iconic Broadway shows of all time.”
The original production was brought to life by London’s Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, where Sheader has been joint chief executive since 2007, while Stephen Gabriel and Work Light Productions head up the North American leg of the tour.
As a special treat, the Reno production — one of 70 cities nationwide producing the colorful musical in celebration of its 50th anniversary — will feature local talent.
“We are so excited to host this tour for many reasons, not least of which is the fact that it includes one of Reno’s own,” Sewell says. “David Allen, born and raised here in Reno, is traveling with the tour in the role of head audio engineer, or A1. David is a member of our local stagehand union here in town, IATSE 363, and is a former employee of the Pioneer Center, who now lives on the road with the Jesus Christ Superstar tour.”
While Allen’s local connection is exciting, he isn’t the first in his family to make a life in theater. His father, Willis Allen, was the executive director of the Pioneer Center for 19 years.
“It will be a great celebration to welcome him back to his hometown theater on this tour,” Sewell says.
Tickets went on sale to the general public on April 1 and still are available for purchase at Pioneercenter.com, by phone at 775-434-1050, and in person at the box office located at 100 S. Virginia St. in Reno. Single-seat tickets are available for as little as $40 per seat.
Learn more by following along on social: Facebook & Instagram: @JesusChristSuperstar and Twitter: @JCSTheMusical. For details, visit Ustour.jesuschristsuperstar.com.
