The bad news is that a sudden illness forced Kevin Klassen to leave the production two days before it opened. The good news is that Ross McMillan stepped in to replace him and did an admirable job of playing the part script-in-hand.
If you saw the Oscar winning 1951 movie, you know the story about Roman persecution of Christians. This is a different telling with music and songs added. The vocal work and choreography is outstanding, and indeed the chorus is one of the show’s highlights.
The lead performances are all great, the setting in the open-air ruins of St. Boniface Cathedral is spectacular, and it’s difficult to imagine a better way to celebrate a fine summer evening. I wouldn’t say that any of the tunes had me humming when I left the theatre, but they worked dramatically in context.
With a cast of about 25 to 30, this is an amazing accomplishment. I am sure that the producers have visions of a bigger budget production, and I hope that their dreams are fulfilled. Congrats to director Ron Jenkins and the rest of the crew for pulling this off.
