'The Passion' News, Rumors and Update: Trendy Jesus, Selfie Talk and Many More Firsts
Fox network's musical production "The Passion", which was filmed in New Orleans and coincided with the holy Palm Sunday, was a mega success. The awe-inspiring live show was a two-hour special with some scenes shot before to accommodate the unique and huge scale of production.
According to Los Angeles Times, this "present-day retelling of the end of Jesus' life" is based on Dutch television special of the same name and was shot at nine locations and with over 25,000 audiences. It featured actors Jencarlos Canela (Jesus Christ), Prince Royce (Peter), Trisha Yearwood (Mary), Chris Daughtry (Judas Iscariot) and Seal (Pontius Pilate).
The show was hosted by Tyler Perry, who narrated the proceedings with a fine dash of humor and wit. His query as to whether people would listen to Jesus or pester him for a selfie, if the Lord were to arrive today, did give everyone serious food for thought.
Based on Jesus' crucifixion, the musical told the story with some quirky twists and portrayed Jesus as a modern-day saint who picks loaves of bread for the Last Supper from a food truck and then moves on to perform Creed's "With Arms Wide Open."
It also made a few changes to the drama to suit the sensibilities of the family audience, who would view it on the broadcast network. The crucifixion part was done away with to avoid blood and gore. Tyler took reins in his hands and narrated past the gory details.
This one-of-a-kind musical had many popular songs to narrate the story. They included Whitney Houston's "My Love Is Your Love," Katy Perry's "Unconditionally," Jason Mraz's "I Won't Give Up," and Hoobastank's "The Reason".
While Katy's number did seem a little out of sync, according to reports, but it really did not appear that the viewers were complaining. The crying audience members were enough testimony that the musical cut ice with them without any ifs and buts.
In fact, Canela singing "Unconditionally" atop a building, next to Woldenberg Park, made for an impressive and magnificent viewing.
