Jason
Raize as Pontius Pilate
(Credit:
© Richard Feldman)
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Jason's
first national tour was Jesus
Christ Superstar, in which he
played Pontius Pilate opposite Ted
Neeley as Jesus and Carl Anderson as
Judas. Only 19 when he succeeded Styx's
Dennis DeYoung in
the role in 1995, Jason toured with the
show for one year. The souvenir
program for the 1995-1996 A.D. Tour
featured a full-page
photo
of
Jason
as Pilate as well as many
other photos.
Jason
said in his ZoogDisney
chat that Jesus
Christ
Superstar is his
favorite Broadway musical. Featuring music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
and lyrics
by Tim Rice, Superstar is a rock
opera about the final week in the
life of Jesus Christ. Superstar
was
one
of
the
first
rock
operas,
first
released
as
an
album
in
1970
and
staged
on
Broadway
the
following
year.
Neeley
and
Anderson
starred
in
the
1973
film
version
and
reprised
their
roles
in
the
1992
national
tour
(directed
by
Tony
Christopher)
which went on to play until 1997.
Critics were instantly smitten with
Jason. The Albany Times
Union
noted, "It was,
however, the purple-clad Jason
Raize who nearly stole the show with a
dramatic, soulful reading of
Pontius Pilate." Newsday
said, "Jason
Raize,
on
the
other
hand,
manages
to
create
a
complex
Pontius
Pilate,"
while
the Dayton
Daily News
said that "Jason
Raize, like Anderson, gave an
all-around singing-acting performance as
Pilate."
"A lot of actors speak about
long runs
'making them' as an actor,"
Jason said in his Hollywood
Spotlight chat.
"I
did a year's tour of Jesus
Christ Superstar, playing
Pontius Pilate. We did a tour with Ted
Neeley
and Carl Anderson. We toured everywhere
with that show. The good and
the bad. It's just like life, like a
job, but more exciting for people
who like the performance world cause
it's live. Your heart pounds when
you miss a step, or someone goes up on a
line, people ask if each show
is different. And, it is. We give a
different performance every time.
Cause every audience has a different
energy and the actors might be in
a different mood before they start."
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