‘Jesus Christ Superstar' cancels American tour

NEW YORK -- An arena version of "Jesus Christ Superstar" starring punk legend John "Johnny Rotten" Lydon and Michelle Williams of Destiny's Child abruptly canceled its 54-city tour just days before its launch in New Orleans.

Producers pulled the plug on the project Friday without explanation. Fran Curtis, a publicist for the show from press representative Rogers & Cowan, did not return messages seeking a reason for the cancellation.

The tour was to start June 9 at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans and include stops in Detroit, Los Angeles, Chicago, St. Louis, Phoenix, Seattle, Las Vegas, New York City, Boston and Philadelphia.

Producer Michael Cohl, who also was a lead producer on the ill-fated, aerial-effects-laden "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark," declined to talk too much about the tour's financing when it was unveiled in April, but he said the new show's total costs were in the "eight figures" and needed to pull in "several hundred thousand dollars" each night to keep it on the road.

It was to star Lydon as King Herod, Williams as Mary Magdalene, Brandon Boyd of Incubus as Judas and JC Chasez of ‘N Sync as Pontius Pilate. Ben Forster, the winner of the U.K.'s prime-time contest show "Superstar," was to play the son of God.

The guitar- and keyboard-driven rock musical, which debuted on Broadway in 1971, includes such songs as "What's the Buzz?" "Superstar," "Everything's Alright" and "I Don't Know How to Love Him."

The musical dramatizes Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, the unrest caused by his preaching and popularity, his betrayal by Judas, the trial before Pilate and his ultimate crucifixion. It marked an early collaboration between Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, who also created "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" and "Evita."

------

Online: http://www.jesuschristsuperstar.com

------

Follow Mark Kennedy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/KennedyTwits