Drew Sarich as Jesus (Really)

Okay, so I was wrong. Yesterday's production of Jesus Christ Superstar featured St. Louis boy-who-done-good Drew Sarich as Judas. Today's was the one where he played Jesus. Greg wanted me to hear both versions so I could decide which I liked better.
And I have to say, Jesus wins hands down. If only for "Gethsemane"--the best version I've heard yet. Sarich is able to pull off the trick of going through the emotional wringer of Jesus' agony in the garden while still nailing all the high notes. More often I've heard the actor playing Jesus being technically proficient or emotional--or simply screaming. This was heart-wrenching but it was also some seriously great singing.
This production featured a female Herod--first time I've heard that. She would have impressed me more if she hadn't kept stumbling over her lines. I do think making Herod a trouser role for a chick is an interesting idea; I hope some other production I hear this Lent tries the same thing.
Pilate, in the trial scene, right after the 39 lashes, suddenly started speaking lines in German (this production was done in Germany). I wonder what he was saying--it didn't seem to fit the rhythm of what his next lines would have been ("Where are you from, Jesus? What do you want, Jesus? Tell me"), though those lines were omitted. It's interesting to me how jarring it is to hear someone talk after two hours or so of straight singing. It's also interesting to me that I don't find it at all strange that all the lines of dialogue are sung in JCS.
I was making invites for a JCS-watching party as I was listening to this. (It'll be Saturday, March 27th at 7 pm. Email me for further info.) For the front of the invite, I drew the angels from the cover of the brown album. I remember how as a kid I puzzled over that image, not actually getting what it was supposed to represent. I also remember when I first realized that the music from the first half of the show was more often than not "recycled" in the second half, and what a wealth of ironic commentary on the action was available because of this.