First, there was Spamalot. Now, there is Not The Messiah, playing for a limited time as part of Toronto's Luminato Festival.
Eric Idle has the golden touch - his last 3 musical projects have worked out for him. First, there was the revisions to Seussical, making it one of the most sought after musical in the theatre for young people category, next up was a musical called Spamalot, which is based on Monty Python's film, The Quest For The Holy Grail. Most recently, however, Idle and his song writing partner John DuPrez, unvailed their latest creation - an orratorio based on another Monty Python film, Life Of Brian. The show is entitled Not The Messiah (He's a very naughty boy), and it opened on Friday night as part of the Luminato Festival.
Not The Messiah tells the story of Brian, who is born to a single mother and a Roman soldier, around the time that Jesus was born. A mistake is made, and Brian is believed to be the Messiah. He joins the People's Front Of Judea, a small group bent on saving their city from the tyranny of the Romans. Word spreads about Brian, and soon he has a large and loyal following, and he is ultimately crucified.
All in all, it's a rather sad story - but because it comes from the minds of Monty Python, it's hilarious. The movie is on my top 10 movie list, and no doubt it will move up a few notches after seeing it done as an orratorio with full orchestra, four talented singers, one hilarious narrator, and a choir as back up.
With songs like "Woe, Woe, Woe", "Hail To The Shoe", and the classic "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life", the hour long performance soars, with laughter filling Roy Thomson Hall from start to finish.
The performers here are top notch opera and musical theatre talent - Shannon Mercer (soprano), JEan Stilwell (mezzo-soprano), Christopher Sieber (Tenor), Theodore Baerg (bass-baritone) and the amazing Eric Idle as the narrator, who sings, according to the program "baritone-ish".
Each performer has an opportunity to sing their hearts out, and there are so many great songs in the show that it's hard to single any of them out. Having said that, "Brian's Dream", sung by Sieber, is one highlight. Idle gets to steal the show in "Individuals", and the group number "You're The One" sounded oddly like "Find Your Grail" from Spamalot, but it was so much fun that all is forgiven. The song included bagpipes and the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir waving candles as they swayed to the music. It was truly a sight to see.
Everything about this show is perfect, including the work of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, led by Peter Oundjian, who is in fact the first cousin of Mr. Eric Idle. Seems like talent runs in the family.
With such a great show, it's such a shame that it only has one more performance, and chances are, we will never see Not The Messiah again. Stranger things have happened though - does anyone remember the musical based on Carrie? Let's keep our fingers crossed.
Not The Messiah
Part of the Luminato Festival, Toronto
***** (out of five)
The final performance is on Monday, June 4th, and as of press time, the show is sold out. For information on other Luminato events, click here.
