'Zoom' commemorates the 50th anniversary of 'Jesus Christ Superstar'

This Monday, 1st December at 22:45, Zoom presents the second episode of the documentary '50 Years of Jesus Christ Superstar'. In the upcoming À Punt investigative programme, we will witness the musical's premiere from every angle of the theatre.

The show, hosted by Jose Sáez, will transport us back to June 1975, when auditions for Jesus Christ Superstar were announced on the radio. Over 1,200 people auditioned, including a young Antonio Banderas, who was turned down.

Finding the lead actors was no easy task, and managing censorship was even more challenging. It was 1975, and Franco's regime was nearing its end, yet repression persisted. We will learn how censorship operated in the dictatorship's final year and how they overcame it to premiere Jesus Christ Superstar. Additionally, we will discover that a special performance was held solely for the censors. What aspects did they find scandalous? What changes were necessary to stage the musical?

As if battling censorship wasn't enough, Camilo Sesto's project also faced threats from the Guerrilleros de Cristo Rey, a far-right group that instilled fear during the end of Francoism and much of the Transition.

The first performance took place on 6th November 1975, but it had been postponed several times by Francoist authorities. The reason: the imminent death of the dictator, who passed away just 14 days after the premiere.

Jesus Christ Superstar is an adaptation of the Gospels, focusing on the last seven days of Jesus of Nazareth's life. The musical became a landmark and a genuine public success, paving the way for musicals in Spain.