Is a female playing the role of Jesus blasphemous?

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JayneWonders said:
oh, i was with you until the last point. Most definitely. Fabulous voice, great acting. will do swimmingly
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She might be amazing and absolutely full of talent. I just can't honestly say for sure because I haven't seen her in anything else yet. The only other thing I know she was in was "Wicked," and, well, I avoided seeing that. But who knows? Maybe she'll blow us all away!
 
Jaebius said:
Let's look at the big picture. The beauty of art lies in its ability to transcend traditional boundaries.

Jesus' message was fundamentally about love. He challenged societal norms. In that spirit, having a woman portray Jesus offers a fresh view, connecting us to his teachings in a great way.

Let's embrace such an idea as a woman portraying Jesus as a chance to deepen our appreciation of the Good News. After all, Jesus’ love knows no bounds.

That having been said, the question remains as to whether Cynthia Erivo is the right actor for the role
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Jae?
 
JayneWonders said:
I'm putting this one into religion; however, it could go into Pop and Chips

Cynthia Erivo will be playing Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar

This gentleman phones in and feels it is blasphemous

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No, I think it’s a great idea. What Jae said. And I see nothing wrong with casting Cynthia Enrivo for the role, either. I haven’t seen her act but if she was chosen for the role, then she’s good enough for the role. Christ could look or sound like anybody.
 
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Jesus Christ Superstar is already a creative, non-traditional take on the story, so casting a woman as jesus fits that spirit. The core of the story, whether in the bible or the musical, is about love, sacrifice, and challenging oppressive systems. If the message transcends time, culture, and gender, then why not the portrayal?

People have been reinterpreting jesus for centuries. There are depictions of jesus as black, indigenous, and even gender fluid in different artistic traditions. This casting choice just continues that legacy. If the performance captures the essence of the story, why would it matter who plays the role?

Anyway you won't notice the difference when she's in a full beard and wig. Lol. (Just had to add a little humour to the thread) She would have to remove the bull ring though. That would give it away. Lol.
 
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This all fits with the extreme sense of chaos that many pious folk have about genre in a story ... mire spirit or a dust daemon in the wind?

And then after the burning of Atlanta ... it was gone ... because of a great blast ... Phemy? Maybe fey ... that's also a word of genre ... this may spook the very stone in the cemetery ...
 
I have not really seen Erivo act but her voice is wow! Gethsemane sung by her will be amazing. I did see this somewhere already and didn't even think twice. Lloyd-Webber demands great singers and she is a great singer, regardless of gender, race, orientation, and so on. That's all that matters here.
 
And if you can't tell from that response, I don't see any problem here. JC Superstar is about art, not theology or Christology, and she's an artist who definitely has the chops to sing Lloyd-Webber.
 
To be fair.... some Christian voices see the whole musical as blasphemous and have doe so since it first appeared (they generally don't like the way Jesus is portrayed 00 and then there is the tossing of the temple scene with hints of sex and drugs as well as guns)
 
Cynthia Erivo will be an excellent for that role. Jesus Christ Superstar is a creative version of the story. It's not meant to be a theology piece as others have stated.

I loved her in Wicked. She took the role of Elfaba and made it her own.
 
GordW said:
To be fair.... some Christian voices see the whole musical as blasphemous and have doe so since it first appeared (they generally don't like the way Jesus is portrayed 00 and then there is the tossing of the temple scene with hints of sex and drugs as well as guns)
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I remember some having...difficulty with Life of Brian :3
 
I posted a couple Cynthia Erivo performances that I listened to recently in So What Are You Listening To? since I thought I had done so but had not.

Mendalla

Post in thread 'So, what are you listening to these days?'

Okay, I thought I had posted this before, but since we are discussing Cynthia Erivo in another thread, here she is from a recent (last year) performance at the Kennedy Centre in Washington. While I knew Cynthia by name, this was basically my intro to her and my mind was suitably blown.


And from the National Memorial Day concert last year.

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Looks like Cynthia Chinasaokwu Onyedinmanasu Amarachukwu Owezuke Echimino Erivo can do music improv as well

Here she is on Jimmy's show
During a segment where she has to sing a random song and genre


(love their sartoria)
 
Delightful Life said:
And bless her for being a Queer Bisexual Roman Catholic :love:
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With Trump now chairing the board of Kennedy Center, one wonders if she'll be invited back anytime soon. He might decide that inviting her is too "woke" or something. :cautious::rolleyes:

Personally, I am looking forward to Mary Magdalene singing "I don't know how to love him/her" to another woman. Might make a few heads explode in a most entertaining way. Unless they're going all the way with reverse casting and casting a man as Mary?? Which would probably make a few heads explode, too. :giggle:
 
The thing that struck me most about Erivo in Wicked was her physical shifts. Of course her singing is amazing. Her character is experiencing discrimination and judgement because of the colour of her skin and her oddness in general. She and Galinda go to find the answers from The Man. As the story progresses, Elfaba becomes more self-confident and comfortable in her skin. Erivo's physical posture and facial expressions etc all shifts throughout in an almost magical way. She is quite brilliant.
 
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