{"id":613184,"date":"2026-09-27T08:02:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T08:02:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/613184\/"},"modified":"2026-09-27T08:02:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T08:02:10","slug":"jesus-christ-superstar-star-javon-king-makes-the-case-for-judas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/613184\/","title":{"rendered":"Jesus Christ Superstar star Javon King makes the case for Judas"},"content":{"rendered":"

He\u2019s happy to admit that it\u2019s a generous perspective, and one not bound to orthodox theology. Instead, it humanises Judas, presenting him in a way that avoids simplistic hero or villain labels. <\/p>\n

\" Javon King in Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo \/ Jeff Busby<\/p>\n

King brings this idiosyncratic view to his portrayal of Judas in the rock \u2019n\u2019 roll spectacular Jesus Christ Superstar, which begins its seven-week tour of Aotearoa in October. This thrillingly high-octane interpretation of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice\u2019s prog-rock-inspired musical won the 2017 Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival and features iconic musical tunes like the yearning I Don\u2019t Know How to Love Him, the anguished Gethsemane, and, of course, the bombastic accusation of Superstar. <\/p>\n

The show, which has been rocking audiences since the early 70s, completely flips the script on the Bible\u2019s version of Jesus\u2019 final days, presenting events from Judas\u2019 perspective. King was besotted with the character ever since he first saw the musical.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love playing characters that are controversial and complicated. I love getting into the nitty-gritty of someone like that,\u201d he says. \u201cThe whole thing with Judas is that there\u2019s a 90% chance that people coming into the theatre have a preconceived notion of who they think this person was. I try to change their minds. I get a thrill every single night being able to change people\u2019s perception.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, he grins and says: \u201cFor me, it\u2019s always been Judas.\u201d <\/p>\n

Before Luke Street slipped into Jesus\u2019 famous sandals, it was also Judas. He joined the production as the Judas understudy for a year. When offered the lead role for the international tour, it wasn\u2019t an instant yes. <\/p>\n

\" Luke Street performing the role of Jesus Christ. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a weird one, because I was not expecting to be Jesus. My wife and I had our second baby due, so when I got that call, we started laughing because we couldn\u2019t believe it,\u201d he says. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to miss the birth, but we knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play such an iconic role and do it full time. We had to make that decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stayed for the birth, and then four days later flew to the Philippines to join the production. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife is a trooper,\u201d he acknowledges. \u201cAnd it all worked out. We couldn\u2019t turn it down.\u201d <\/p>\n

Jesus Christ Superstar holds a special place in Street\u2019s heart. He\u2019s been a fan ever since he was a kid. His musical-loving mum would crank it at every opportunity, especially on road trips. <\/p>\n

\u201cI loved it,\u201d he smiles. \u201cIt was different to any other musicals she played. It was just a different sound. I loved rock music; I was listening to Iron Maiden and Guns N\u2019 Roses, so having that rock sound in a musical setting was like, \u2018Whoa! This is cool\u2019.\u201d <\/p>\n

Like King, Street also wanted to focus on Jesus\u2019 humanity rather than an iconic, divine being. <\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone knows Jesus and has their own picture of him in their head,\u201d he says. \u201cMy version of Jesus, which this production leads to, is that he\u2019s just a human being, but also a celebrity of his time.\u201d <\/p>\n

\" Jesus Christ Superstar is currently on an international tour. Photo \/ Vitt Salvador<\/p>\n

In that light, the show can be seen as a commentary on our celebrity culture, where people are idolised before being torn apart. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe see that a lot in the UK. Amy Winehouse is an example that springs to mind,\u201d he sighs. \u201cI think that\u2019s why the show\u2019s so relevant today and doesn\u2019t ever feel outdated.\u201d <\/p>\n

While the show offers a theatrical version of Jesus Christ\u2019s life, it\u2019s less a religious retelling and more an exploration of the human condition; how we look up to certain people, how we treat each other, and how we treat ourselves. It\u2019s about human connections and a painfully human relationship. <\/p>\n

No spoilers for a story that\u2019s 2000 years old, but things do get quite gnarly towards the end. <\/p>\n

\u201cJudas and Jesus are such a duo. They\u2019re best friends, and you see them go through it,\u201d he says of the show\u2019s characters. Through song, dance and staging, we watch Judas experience the all-too-universal emotions of jealousy and grief as Jesus ascends in popularity, becoming almost unrecognisable. In the show, he sees the real danger of this, not just to his best friend, but also to himself and the ever-growing number of followers. <\/p>\n

King was very aware of Judas\u2019 predicament and strove to strike a delicate balance in his portrayal. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen playing Judas, it\u2019s a fine line of being assertive and getting his point across, but not being aggressive,\u201d he says. \u201cI didn\u2019t want him to come across as a person just angry at his friend.\u201d <\/p>\n

This was especially important to ensure audiences truly felt the overwhelming loss and grief behind Judas\u2019 actions in the show\u2019s powerful final moments. <\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end, it\u2019s just pin-drop silence,\u201d Street says, \u201cIt\u2019s my favourite bit of the whole show. You have goosebumps.\u201d <\/p>\n

\" Jesus Christ Superstar is currently on an international tour. Photo \/ Vitt Salvador<\/p>\n

King and Street say taking an audience on this journey is physically and mentally demanding. The performance is high energy, high impact and highly choreographed, with both characters living through shatteringly emotional events. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s constantly flowing, and it\u2019s non-stop,\u201d King says. \u201cIt\u2019s like a rock concert. At the end of the show we\u2019re sweating buckets. And what happens to Jesus is tough. I really have to leave it on stage. I\u2019m getting brutally beaten up and then getting crucified \u2026 It\u2019s a lot.\u201d <\/p>\n

He pauses for a second, and then says: \u201cI really have to detach from what\u2019s happening, otherwise it could really put me in a negative state.\u201d <\/p>\n

King has developed a similar relationship with his character. <\/p>\n

\u201cI leave him at work and let him be there and go on about my life,\u201d he says. \u201cThat way I can be myself.\u201d <\/p>\n

Playing Judas has had a huge impact on the way he lives his life. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have a new love and appreciation for life that comes from performing what Judas has to do on stage in front of thousands of people several times a week. It\u2019s emotionally taxing and does mess with your head,\u201d he says. \u201cYes, I\u2019m an actor, and I understand I\u2019m playing pretend, but those things still sit with you as a human being.\u201d <\/p>\n

Playing Judas \u201cunlocked a lot of joy\u201d, King laughs, adding that joy is not a word typically associated with the great betrayer. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s given me a lot of grace and joy in my own personal life,\u201d he says. \u201cI hope that people receive my Judas with love and aren\u2019t stuck to their preconceived notion of who they think Judas was.\u201d <\/p>\n

Then he smiles and says, \u201cBecause I wouldn\u2019t be as grateful for the little things in life, or as appreciative of the simple things, if it wasn\u2019t for Judas.\u201d <\/p>\n

Jesus Christ Superstar comes to The Civic in Auckland as part of its international tour from October 21 to November 15. jcs-nz.gmg-productions.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"He\u2019s happy to admit that it\u2019s a generous perspective, and one not bound to orthodox theology. Instead, it…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":613185,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[1121,17352,156,2082,302018,67209,302019,9860,5338,111,139,69,2737,49519,223],"class_list":["post-613184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-case","tag-christ","tag-entertainment","tag-for","tag-javon","tag-jesus","tag-judas","tag-king","tag-makes","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-star","tag-superstar","tag-the"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=613184"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613184\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/613185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=613184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=613184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=613184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}