John Stamos jumps into Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl in last-minute casting change
The Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical is set to be performed at the iconic Los Angeles venue this weekend, with a cast led by Wicked's Cynthia Erivo as Jesus and singer Adam Lambert as Judas. The show opened Friday and runs until Sunday.
Stamos shared the news Friday on his Instagram, just one day after Gad announced he had contracted Covid-19 and would need to step away from his role as King Herod.
'This is an honor. A dream. And also a little insane because… I just stepped off a plane from @thebeachboys tour in Spain and have less than 24 hours to pull this off,' the Full House star wrote in part.
'Wish me luck. And let's rock the Bowl.'
Gad had been slated to play King Herod, but shared his Covid-19 diagnosis Thursday along with the news that he would no longer be able to perform.
'Rarely have I had the opportunity to witness up close such profound brilliance and artistry," he wrote on Instagram.
'I am truly bummed that I will not be able to perform this evening with this cast. But I am so excited for all of you to witness firsthand what I have been fortunate and honored enough to experience over the past three weeks."
However, by Friday the Frozen star had tested negative. Gad, who credited Paxlovid with helping his symptoms subside, then confirmed Saturday that he would return to the production Sunday. Stamos will perform Saturday night.
Jesus Christ Superstar was first released as a concept album in 1970 and premiered on Broadway in 1971. It has been revived several times since.
Joining Stamos, Gad, Erivo, and Lambert in the cast are Hamilton star Phillipa Soo as Mary Magdalene, Milo Manheim as Peter, and Raúl Esparza as Pontius Pilate, along with a supporting cast and ensemble filled with fellow Broadway performers.
Fans have raved about the concert on social media, with many calling Erivo's performance as Jesus a 'top theater moment.'
'If you're watching Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl this weekend, brace yourself for a truly unforgettable performance,' entertainment reporter Ashley Lee wrote on X.
'Most beautiful production i have EVER been to. jesus christ superstar at the hollywood bowl you will live forever in my heart !!!!' someone else wrote.
'Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl was nothing short of spectacular. Adam Lambert was PERFECT. Cynthia Erivo's Gethsemane was one of the best live performances I've ever seen. If there's a single ticket left - Go!' another shared.
The Hollywood Bowl is known to produce star-studded concert versions of hit Broadway shows. In recent years, the venue has produced Kinky Boots, Les Misérables, Rent, Guys and Dolls, Into the Woods, and Hairspray, among others.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Fox News
27 minutes ago
- Fox News
Steve Doocy visits welcoming American hometowns
Fox News host Steve Doocy chats with Granbury, Texas, residents about their favorite parts of the community on 'Fox & Friends.'


CBS News
27 minutes ago
- CBS News
Filmmakers, San Francisco Japantown museum reflect on 80-years since first atomic bomb
Inside a tiny museum in San Francisco's Japantown, there is a powerful message about the atrocities of the atomic bomb. "Americans see the bomb as a beautiful mushroom cloud, and the Japanese who were on the ground see it as ground zero, the devastation, the 70,000 people who lost their lives in an instant," said Rosalyn Tonai, Director of the National Japanese American Historical Society. This summer, the NJAHS resurrected an exhibit from 30 years ago to remember the victims of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs that the United States dropped on Japan on Aug. 6 and 9, 1945. The two bombings ended World War II, with the Japanese surrendering less than a week later, on Aug. 15. The exhibit also includes a single relic that serves as a haunting reminder, a doll that was recovered from the rubble in Nagasaki. "An American family brought it in and let us know that they had kept it all these years. It was given to them by a family that survived the atomic blast," said Tonai. The survivor stories are what Tonai wants people to experience and understand. The display also features firsthand accounts from those who survived the atomic blasts, including Jack Dairiki, who still lives in San Francisco. Dairiki was a Japanese American kid visiting family in Hiroshima who became stuck in Japan because of the war. On Aug. 6, 1945, he was outside a factory on the outskirts of the city when the first bomb dropped. "We saw three aircraft coming above us," said Dairiki, during a 2015 interview with KPIX. "At that time, the bomb exploded, all the factory windows went out, it flew over my head. I weighed 100 pounds and was floating in the air." And now a new documentary titled "Atomic Echoes" by filmmakers Victoria Kelly and Karin Tanabe is shedding even more light on the devastation. "Few Americans understand what happened under the mushroom cloud, "said Tanabe. "We all see the exact same image, which really covers up the atrocities, and then we stop there in the history books." Tanabe's great-great uncle was part of the rebuilding effort in Hiroshima. Kelly's grandfather was an American medic sent to Nagasaki, who witnessed the effects of peak radiation sickness. He suffered from PTSD and died at the age of 42. The filmmakers interviewed several other American medics who were sent to Japan 45 days after the bombings. "They were really torn, they were really proud of their service, and all of them said, you know, we were there, and we can't ever have these bombs happen again because they were the worst thing we've ever seen," said Kelly. For Tonai, she believes the topic is still relevant today and still important to talk about. "We are the cusps of a nuclear buildup, and this is really a call for world peace," she said. "So, we really need to take a pause and take a look at the human cost and consequences of a possible nuclear fallout. Her hope is that the history that happened even eight decades ago will never repeat itself.


CBS News
27 minutes ago
- CBS News
Sean "Diddy" Combs wants to go back to Madison Square Garden, his attorney says
As Sean "Diddy" Combs awaits his sentencing, his lead attorney Marc Agnifilo sat down with CBS News' Jericka Duncan in his first network interview since the highly publicized trial in which a New York jury found Combs guilty of transportation to engage in prostitution but acquitted him of more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering. When discussing the hip-hop mogul's future goals, Agnifilo said Combs told him "he's going to be back at Madison Square Garden." Asked about what Combs wants the public to know, Agnifilo explained that Combs has been reflecting on "the blessings that he's been given, on the imperfections that I think he sees in himself." "I think he wants to get out of jail, reestablish a loving, present relationship with all of his seven children. He wants to take care of his mother," the defense attorney added. "I think he's someone who's always going to strive to do something, you know, exceptional and probably demanding and challenging," Agnifilo said about Combs' potential plans for the future. "But I think the most demanding and challenging thing in front of him right now is to get back with his kids and get back with his mother, and the people who love him and miss him." See more of CBS News' Jericka Duncan's interview with Agnifilo Thursday on "CBS Mornings."