Line #9 YMMV/Godspell


1	!!In general
2	* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: The fact that the same actor (traditionally) plays John the Baptist and Judas opens up whole volumes of speculation, even if the production plays it as one actor playing two distinct characters (John's holy mission was to prepare the path for the beginning of Christ's ministry, then was it Judas' holy mission to close Christ's ministry on Earth?) If they're the same character, than you can have a Judas who began the movement but is frightened of what it has become, or a heartbroken John, his most loyal disciple, following Jesus' orders no matter what the cost.
3	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: There are arguments to be made for, depending on the production/performers, "Alas for You", "Save the People", and "Day By Day", but the one song ''everyone'' agrees is amazing is the "Crucifixion/Long Live God" finale.
4	** What, no love for "Bless The Lord" or "We Beseech Thee"?
5	* DuelingWorks: With ''Music/JesusChristSuperstar''.
6	* GeniusBonus: For those not in the know, the song "Day by Day" is based on a prayer spoken by [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_of_Chichester St. Richard of Chichester]]:
7	-->Thanks be to Thee, my Lord Jesus Christ\
8	For all the benefits Thou hast given me,\
9	For all the pains and insults Thou hast borne for me.\
10	O most merciful Redeemer, friend and brother,\
11	May I know Thee more clearly,\
12	Love Thee more dearly,\
13	Follow Thee more nearly.
14	* MisaimedFandom: The complaints by detractors of the show's plot regarding the lack of an obvious depiction of Jesus's resurrection completely spits in the face of the fact the show's focus is Jesus's teachings of love, not his life, death, and resurrection.
15	* OlderThanTheyThink: Many of the lyrics that aren't from Literature/TheBible are from old hymns and prayerbooks.
16	* RetroactiveRecognition:
17	** The role of "Sonia" (the "Turn Back, O Man" soloist) was created by Sonia Manzano, a.k.a. Maria from ''Series/SesameStreet''.
18	** The 1972 Toronto production has become legendary for the number of high-profile performers that came out of it including: Creator/VictorGarber, Creator/EugeneLevy, [[Series/{{SCTV}} Andrea Martin, Gilda Radner, Dave Thomas, and Martin Short]]. The musical director was none other than [[LateNightWithDavidLetterman Paul]] [[LateShowWithDavidLetterman Shaffer]].
19	** The 2011 Broadway revival did an event called "Godspell Cast of 2032" which featured child actors in place of the regular cast. Jesus was played by a ''very'' young Gaten Matarazzo, who went on to star in Creator/{{Netflix}}'s ''Series/StrangerThings''.
20	** The 2011 revival cast itself had a number of members who went on to star in bigger roles on Broadway and television, including Creator/UzoAduba, Creator/GeorgeSalazar, Lindsey Mendez, and Joaquina Kalukango.
21
22	!!Specifically for the film
23	* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: The "Alas for You" scene comes out of left field, with the Pharisees depicted as some strange metallic monstrosity made of various junk that speaks in a VoiceOfTheLegion. It comes apart and gets taken down as the song finishes, and the incident is not referenced again as the segment goes immediately into "By My Side."
24	* DuelingWorks: With ''Film/JesusChristSuperstar'' again, both plays had movie adaptations in 1973.
25	* EnsembleDarkhorse: Jeffrey Mylett (plays the recorder, wears the derby hat) has a surprisingly sizable fanbase. Unfortunately, he died of AIDS in 1986.
26	* HarsherInHindsight: The movie features a lot of dancing in front of and on top of the World Trade Center, but the hardest hit to the gut is in the last section of "All For The Best". The cast singing and dancing on top of the almost-completed North Tower with a spectacular view of NYC behind them? Pure joy. But then the camera pulls back so that we see both Towers, centered and focused, as the cast repeats the chorus: "All for the best!" What starts as a fun vaudeville song about life's joys and sorrows being "all for the best" turns into a haunting gut-punch 30 years later, on 9/11...
27	-->'''Lyrics:''' "When you feel sad
28	-->Or under a curse
29	-->Your life is bad
30	-->Your prospects are worse...
31	-->...Ah, don't forget that when you go to heaven you'll be blessed
32	-->Yes, it's all for the best!"
33	* RetroactiveRecognition:
34	** Creator/VictorGarber is immensely recognizable nowadays from ''Series/{{Alias}}'', ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'', ''Film/Cinderella1997'', ''Film/{{Argo}}'' and ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow''.
35	** David Haskell had a long career as a character actor, best known in 174 episodes of ''[[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086793/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_13 Santa Barbara]]'' as Nick Hartley. One of his last roles was in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' as Billy in "[[Recap/BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesE27MadAsAHatter Mad As a Hatter]]".
36	** Of all the cast, Creator/LynneThigpen - in her film debut - has had the most success, earning several awards.

Context YMMV / Godspell