Javon King-Jesus Christ Superstar: Our Ensemble Is Dancing Their Faces Off.

After Lisa went and saw Jesus Christ Superstar, she just had to get Judas played by Javon king into the studio for a chat about the show.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're going to have to get in quick at this stage.
Tickets available through ticket Master for Jesus Christ Superstar, which
is still on at Crown Theater until March eight, so
just over a week and Javon King, who plays Judas,
has come in this morning. Hello, so absolutely lovely to
meet you.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
It's a pleasure.

Speaker 1 (00:19):
It's been no secret that I just loved the you
know what out of this?

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Have you met your marketing champion Lisa Listen? I hire you?

Speaker 1 (00:28):
Okay, No, I've always been a fan of Jesus Christ
Superstar and this is this has.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
This is a ripper. Oh thank you? Yeah, thank you?

Speaker 1 (00:35):
So you you sing the very opening notes I do.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah, I start the show and show things in between
of course, yeah too. I love it. Yeah, it's so
much fun.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
So how have you enjoyed being in Perth?

Speaker 2 (00:50):
I love it. Yeah. I've never been to Perth.

Speaker 3 (00:53):
I've never tore it to Perth, so coming over to
this side of the world was really cool. Just coming
to Australia in general has been amazing for me. It's
been almost three years since I came over, so I've
been wanting to tick off Perth on my list.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
So I'm happy I got.

Speaker 3 (01:06):
The chance to come here with this show because I
just know how much the show means to Australia and
to be able to come here and do it, it's
been amazing. And now I get to meet you lovely
people and all these people, like, it's amazing.

Speaker 1 (01:16):
Are you impressed with the caliber of our you know,
our show scene here?

Speaker 2 (01:21):
I mean because you come.

Speaker 3 (01:21):
From yeah, I mean, I'm from New York. I'm used
to a much bigger dynamic in terms of there's so
many different theaters. But listen, the Perth audiences have been
amazing and they can give New Yorkers for a run
for their money off how much they love the theater here. Truly,
they really can. I'm not just saying that, like they
they're very passionate. When we when we finish the show

(01:43):
and we see them stand up and there are loving it,
I'm like, okay, great. Because the crown is so wide,
like we can't really hear a lot of the reactions
of what's happening on stage, so like when we finish
the show, that's how we know if people loved it
or not. And people seem to really be loving it,
Like there's a lot of people out there, so it's
been yeah, yeah, can you.

Speaker 2 (02:01):
Take this behind the curtain? You're telling you at least
mentioned that first note first the number, what's it like?
Is your experienced performer? But what's it like when you
go out there? Because there's got to be nerves as.

Speaker 3 (02:11):
Well as I still get nervous because this show is
so iconic and it's been around for fifty plus years.
And I get excited from the overture because the overture
is so wacky and weird, and just like you're like,
are we in a musical or is this a rock concert?

Speaker 2 (02:27):
Like what's happening?

Speaker 3 (02:29):
And then and then Heaven on their Minds starts and
the guitar hits, and then it's like.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
And then I'm walking up and I'm like, oh, I'm ready,
Like this great. So I kind of like I'm nervous
for a little bit.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
And then you're with everyone on stage because our overture,
you're you're going to see it in a tomorrow. The
overture is cool because we all just kind of rush
the stage and it's like a mass of just chaos.
It comes from it and that's that's it suits And
then it's just so it just kind of stops right,
and then Heaven on their Minds starts and then like
we start into this this song and people start to dance,

(03:03):
and then I started to sing in the zone and
I'm there and it's cooled.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
Yeah, it's so much fun.

Speaker 1 (03:08):
And there is more dancing in this show than I've
ever seen and they're fantastic.

Speaker 2 (03:12):
Yea, our ensemble is dancing the ensemble.

Speaker 1 (03:16):
Can you say to them, calculize? Can you tell them
that they are not missed that? And we were talking
about the tone that they set because of you know,
the story that it is where basically, you know, Jesus
gets canceled is what happens, and now you betray Jesus
with a kiss, but you know you are Judas, You're

(03:37):
betraying Jesus. But what do you find What is it
about Judas's you know, character in this that you find
relatable or.

Speaker 3 (03:46):
I think a lot Judas has gotten a bad rap
over history, you know, yes, And for me, you know,
I get the question a lot of like Carles, if
you have played a bad guy in the show, and
I'm like.

Speaker 2 (03:58):
What, he's a bad guy, but he his intentions were
always good. And I always say people at least for me.

Speaker 3 (04:05):
And when I played Judas, I try to lead with
a lot of love and he's just trying to get
through to his friend. And he loves his friend so
much that he's like, listen, I don't know what you're
going through or what who's telling you that you're X,
Y and Z, But that's not who you've been for
the years that I've known you, and we've known each
other for all these years, Like just listen to me.

(04:26):
That's literallyne I say in Michelle, and Jesus is just
so in his own world about what is going on,
and you know, we know.

Speaker 1 (04:33):
The slariis exactly that.

Speaker 3 (04:36):
Judas is like, Okay, you're not the person that I
thought you were, Like I need to go talk to
someone else and maybe someone else will listen to me.
And ultimately that decision probably was not the best because
then they go and they turn on him, and then
they crucify him, and YadA, YadA and.

Speaker 2 (04:51):
The rest.

Speaker 3 (04:53):
And then yeah, and then Judas obviously is so filled
with so much remorse from that.

Speaker 1 (04:58):
That I never thought of Judas was the bad guy.

Speaker 2 (05:01):
Thank you.

Speaker 1 (05:01):
Yeah, I think, you know, like Judas and Pilot as well,
not the bad guys.

Speaker 2 (05:06):
Yeah, just they're just doing what they think is right.

Speaker 3 (05:09):
And I think Judash just loves his friend so much
that like he just wants to like try to get
to him and have a conversation with him.

Speaker 2 (05:15):
About what it is. Yeah. But all but that being said,
it is fun being the villain.

Speaker 3 (05:21):
Have you said, have you sat down and watched the
original movie what was that nineteen seventy three or whatever?

Speaker 2 (05:25):
I've seen it once.

Speaker 3 (05:27):
Yeah, and that was right before we started rehearsal. So
this was back in like middle of August, probably early September.

Speaker 2 (05:35):
I was like, what's happening that? Judas was pretty amazing elements?

Speaker 3 (05:41):
Yeah, incredible, Yeah, incredible cars shooting something like that back
in the seventies. I was like, whoa, yeah, because I
remember this is Woodstock grooving.

Speaker 1 (05:50):
Yeah, it is Woodstock groov But so is this the
herod in that was?

Speaker 2 (05:55):
He's like, real show? Is he the son of someone?
The hair in that? We talk about? The herod in this?
Our friends must.

Speaker 1 (06:05):
He's always happy to our friend. Ruben k totally brings
the herod. It's worth the whole show just for the
high kicks. And you and he have a bit of
a nightly battle about who's got the best.

Speaker 3 (06:19):
The best songs and his one yeah one listen. I
love Ruben k with my whole heart and he knows
how I love. I love him so much. He is
as as chaotic as he is on stage. He is
the nicest human off stage. I adore him with my
whole heart and he absolutely steals the shell and in
acting he just brings the comedy that we are kind

(06:40):
of need before things turn left.

Speaker 1 (06:42):
Yeah, well exactly on that opening night, I saw you
two leave the stage together with your arms around each other,
and I thought, I just know the conversation they're having, Like,
there you go.

Speaker 2 (06:56):
He always has a one liner. Yeah, yeah, I'm like
you are quick, Yeah, I love yeah, great energy to
the room.

Speaker 1 (07:08):
Well look, we'll have to let you go. I'm so
glad that Clazy is getting along to see it tomorrow night.
The rest of us have and we loved it, and
thank you so much because it is just I just
but I couldn't sleep that night and I have to
get up at four o'clock in the.

Speaker 2 (07:23):
Morning, three thirty in the morning to get it. Was
worth it. It was worth so worth it. It was
worth and I really loved it. Thank you so much much.
I really appreciate it and I'm so excited for you
to look seeing it. Yeah, are you here? Thank you
for coming in. Thank you