Godspe|| - Stephen Schwartz Answers erformer's uest|ons

1hls ul lncludes
SLC1lCn 1 - !esus
SLC1lCn 2 - !ohn Lhe 8apLlsL/!udas
SLC1lCn 3 - Muslc and Lyrlcs
SLC1lCn 4 - AudlLlonlng and erformlng

1he followlng quesLlons and answers are from Lhe archlve of Lhe SLephenSchwarLz.com lorum.
CopyrlghL by SLephen SchwarLz 2010 all rlghLs reserved. no parL of Lhls conLenL may be reproduced
wlLhouL prlor wrlLLen consenL, lncludlng copylng maLerlal for oLher webslLes. leel free Lo llnk Lo Lhls
archlve. Send quesLlons Lo offlce[sLephenschwarLz.com

SLC1ICN 1 - Iesus

Godspe||: 1he ko|e of Iesus
CuesLlon mlsslng.

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
1he maln Lhlng Lo remember ls LhaL Lhe sLory of Lhe show ls LhaL !esus comes lnLo a group of dlsparaLe
and desperaLe lndlvlduals and leads Lhem lnLo becomlng a communlLy. 1he word "leads" ls lmporLanL --
he ls Lhe drlvlng force ln Lhe show, Lherefore he needs Lo have Lhe mosL energy, Lhe mosL humor, and
Lhe mosL wlll- power of all Lhe characLers. Pe sLarLs Lhe games, he Leaches Lhe lessons, he moLlvaLes Lhe
acLlon. When Lhe show goes wrong lL ls usually because !esus ls played Loo reverenLly, sLandlng off Lo
Lhe sldellnes and waLchlng beaLlflcally as Lhe resL of Lhe casL clowns around. 1he exacL opposlLe ls whaL
ls needed. SLephen SchwarLz

Godspe||: Cast|ng Iesus as a Iema|e
CuesLlon:
hl everyone, l have a qulck sub[ecL l felL l have Lo brlng up for dlscusslon. Cur local communlLy LheaLer ls
dolng Codspell Lhls year...and durlng audlLlons our besL performers were females...well Lhe casL llsL has
been posLed and low and behold.....!LSuS lS A 8LACk lLMALL!! 1he dlrecLor changed Lhe role Lo
SLephanle. She was Lhe besL cholce and can do Lhe role [usLlce, l was [usL wonderlng whaL oLher's
LhoughL. l am a black male, so please don'L read Lhls Lo be raclsL because lL ls noL...lL ls [usL LhaL l am
amazed Lo see a black female playlng !esus! WhaL do yaw Lhlnk?

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
l, for one, have no problem wlLh lL. 1he only place lL mlghL be a llLLle sLrange ls ln "1urn 8ack, C Man",
when Lhe Sonla characLer mock-vamps !esus. 8uL as long as Lhls momenL ls re-LhoughL, l Lhlnk Lhe resL of
Lhe show could be very effecLlve. l don'L Lhlnk l would have made Lhls cholce for Lhe flrsL producLlon of
Lhe show, buL here and now, why noL? LeL me know how lL goes. Slncerely, SLephen

Godspe|| Iesus, Iohn the 8apt|st, Iudas
CuesLlon:
1hls quesLlon ls dlrecLly for Mr. SchwarLz. l am currenLly rehearslng for Lhe role of !esus ln "Codspell" aL
!onaLhan uayLon Plgh School ln Sprlngfleld, n!. l've never fully undersLood Lhe blbllcal sLory of !esus,
and LhaL has added Lo Lhe dlfflculLy of porLraylng hlm on sLage. l know LhaL much of Lhe show ls based
on Lhe Cospel Accordlng Lo SalnL MaLLhew, buL l feel LhaL you and !ohn-Mlchael 1ebelak added your
own spln ln Lhe show. lease correcL me lf l'm compleLely off-base ln Lhe followlng, buL Lhls ls how l
vlew !esus' characLer and how l'm porLraylng hlm on sLage:

l Lhlnk !esus, ln Lhe show aL leasL, ls decelvlng everyone else. Pe ls vasLly lnLelllgenL, charlsmaLlc, and
rellglous, buL he's also manlpulaLlve. Pe knows Lhe blbllcal soLrles of noah and LoL, and sees LhaL Llmes
are agaln how Lhey once were - and Cod ls dolng noLhlng abouL lL. So he Lakes maLLers lnLo hls own
hands Lhe only way he knows how: by appeallng Lo everyone's sense of rellglon. !esus ls a man - morLal
[usL llke everyone else - and he consclously decelves everyone for Lhe muLuLal beneflL of manklnd now
and ln Lhe fuLure, and noL for any galn of power. l belleve LhaL much of whaL !esus says has a connoLlve
power LhaL ls sLronger Lhan Lhe llLeral meanlng and ls meanL Lo place hlm above all Lhe oLhers and
secure hls auLhorlLy over Lhe communlLy. l Lhlnk !ohn and Lhe 8apLlsL and !udas are Lhe same characLer
because !ohn ls Lhe leader of Lhe communlLy before !esus comes. !udas and !esus are very close frlends,
buL as !esus beglns Lo commandeer !ohn's followers, !udas becomes [ealous and resenLful, and ln Lhe flL
of hls rage, beLrays !esus - and laLer sLrongly regreLs lL. When !udas flrsL separaLes hlmself from Lhe resL
of Lhe followers, All lor Lhe 8esL ls sung. l lnLerpreL !esus' lyrlcs as dlrecLed Loward !udas. Pe's
essenLlally saylng, "When you feel [ealous, and resenLful, and all Lhese Lhlngs you feel agalnsL me, [usL
remember LhaL you wlll be blessed when you geL Lo heaven. ln Lhe end, for all of humanlLy, lL's all for
Lhe besL." 1hen !udas says, "Some people, such as !esus, have lL all and lL comes easy. 8uL some people,
llke myself, consLanLly geL Lhe shafL. 8uL hey, ln Lhe end, l guess lL ls all for Lhe besL." l lnLerpreL llnes
and lyrlcs ln Lhls way LhroughouL mosL of Lhe show. And l belleve Lhere ls no resurrecLlon scene Lo
relLeraLe LhaL !esus ls a morLal man, buL lL ls hls Leachlngs LhaL wlll llve on ln everyone.l know LhaL
Codspell ls noL abouL !esus, and ls noL a show meanL Lo preach ChrlsLlanlLy. lL's abouL communLly, and
famlly, and frlendshlp, and ulLlmaLely, abouL beLrayal. Codspell speaks a beauLlful message, buL lL's
lmporLanL for me Lo undersLand Lhe characLer ln order Lo geL LhaL message across Lo Lhe audlence.
lease seL me sLralghL lf l'm compleLely on Lhe wrong course, buL l've spoken wlLh my very LalenLed
dlrecLor abouL all Lhls ln much more deLall, and she llkes where l'm Laklng lL.

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
As l've ofLen sald, lL ls lmmaLerlal Lo Lhe conLenL of CCuSLLL wheLher or noL !esus was morLal. Lach
audlence member can draw hls or her own concluslons, and slmllarly, each acLor porLraylng !esus ln a
producLlon of Lhe show can make hls (or l suppose her) own declslon abouL lL. 1he conLenL of Lhe show,
ln conLrasL Lo many of Lhe oLher re-Lelllngs of Lhe !esus sLory, focuses (as you correcLly menLlon) on
!esus' Leachlngs, whaL he acLually sald, and Lhe power of Lhose Leachlngs Lo lead Lo a sense of
communlLy ln a fracLured and fracLlous world. As l have also ofLen sald, we would all be a loL beLLer off
lf many of Loday's so-called "ChrlsLlans" acLually pald some aLLenLlon Lo whaL !esus sald and worrled less
abouL wheLher or noL bellef ln hlm would proLecL Lhem from deaLh. 1hey mlghL pay parLlcular aLLenLlon
Lo whaL he characLerlzed as Lhe greaLesL commandmenL: "Always LreaL oLhers as you would have Lhem
LreaL you." l hope you, your dlrecLor, and your fellow casL members have a wonderful experlence dolng
Lhe show. And don'L forgeL Lo brlng your sense of humor Lo rehearsals and performances! Slncerely,
SLephen SchwarLz

SLC1ICN 2 - Iohn the 8apt|st]Iudas

Godspe||: Iohn the 8apt|st]Iudas
CuesLlon:
Why are Lhe roles of !ohn Lhe 8apLlsL and !udas played by Lhe same acLor?

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
1he reason !ohn Lhe 8apLlsL and !udas were played by Lhe same person ln Lhe orlglnal was LhaL we were
noL Lrylng Lo sLlck exacLly Lo Lhe 8lble sLory and Lhe dlrecLor and concelver of Lhe show, !ohn-Mlchael
1ebelak, felL lL was lmporLanL LhaL Lhere be a speclal relaLlonshlp beLween Lhe "!esus" characLer and Lhe
dlsclple who was ulLlmaLely golng Lo beLray hlm. 1he facL LhaL Lhere was an early one-on-one scene
beLween Lhem (Lhe bapLlsm when !esus flrsL arrlves) helps Lo esLabllsh LhaL relaLlonshlp. lL's Lhe same
reason Lhe number "All for Lhe 8esL" was wrlLLen. Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

Godspe||: Iohn the 8apt|st]Iudas
CuesLlon:
Could you shed any llghL on Lhe LranslLlon of characLer beLween !ohn and !udas, and posslbly any
speclflc moLlvaLlon for !udas Lo beLray !esus?

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
!ohn and !udas are noL Lwo separaLe characLers. 1hey are someLlmes referred Lo LhaL way because Lhe
characLer comblnes Lhe acLlons of Lwo 8lbllcal flgures -- LhaL ls, he ls boLh Lhe bapLlser and Lhe beLrayer.
8uL ln CCuSLLL he ls one person, and Lherefore no LranslLlon ls needed. Pe ls !esus' "rlghL-hand man",
Lhe one who has more lnformaLlon abouL !esus' Lrue purpose Lhere Lhan Lhe oLhers (as revealed durlng
Lhe "blessed are ye" secLlon). 8uL, as ls shown ln hls verse of "All for Lhe 8esL" and ln hls response Lo Lhe
haslsees among oLher places, he ls expecLlng someLhlng dlfferenL from !esus Lhan !esus acLually offers.
!udas wanLs !esus Lo be more of a revoluLlonary -- Lo sweep ouL Lhe old order and Lhe faL caLs, by vlolenL
means lf necessary. When he beglns Lo see LhaL !esus' phllosophy ls "Lurn Lhe oLher cheek", he grows
dlslllusloned, and lL ls Lhls LhaL leads Lo Lhe beLrayal. Pe belleves LhaL lf !esus ls puL Lo deaLh, LhaL wlll
cause Lhe revoluLlon he wanLs (and looked aL ln Lhe long run, LhaL's exacLly whaL happened hlsLorlcally.)
1he challenge of Lhe role ls Lo have all LhaL golng on lnslde you, buL sLlll Lo parLlclpaLe ln Lhe parables
and numbers and be parL of Lhe communlLy -- noL Lo sLand Loo much aparL so LhaL you pull focus or
brlng down Lhe [oy and humor of Lhe show. 8uL l have ofLen seen lL done successfully, and l hope Lhls
advlce wlll help you Lo be successful wlLh Lhe role as well. Pave a greaL Llme dolng Lhe show! Slncerely,
SLephen SchwarLz

ke: More on Iohn and Iudas....mus|ca||y speak|ng
CuesLlon:
l was wonderlng abouL how !udas' verse should be sung...lf he's Lrylng Lo convlnce !esus of someLhlng,
should Lhere be more of a convlnclng sound Lo hls parL? uo you Lhlnk LhaL Loo much has been made of
Lhe vaudevllle Lhlng over Lhe years? and ls Lhe polnL of Lhe song belng losL? l guess whaL l'm really
wonderlng ls....WhaL do you Lhlnk ls Lhe besL way, muslcally, Lo geL Lhe polnL of Lhe song across? 1hanks
for your Llme.

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
no, he's noL Lrylng Lo convlnce !esus of anyLhlng. Pe ls funcLlonlng ln hls role as !esus' rlghL-hand man,
Lrylng Lo help hlm cheer up Lhe oLhers afLer Lhe gaffe ln whlch he glves away Lhe dlre evenLs Lo come
("8lessed are ye..."). Powever, he can'L keep hls own sardonlc phllosophy from enLerlng lnLo whaL he
slngs. l have seen lL performed where !udas ls apparenLly unaware LhaL Lhe words he ls slnglng are Lhe
opposlLe of !esus' message, and also where lL's clear LhaL he ls aware buL slmply Lhlnks he ls "clarlfylng".
And yes, Lhere are subLle elemenLs of compeLlLlon wlLh !esus. 8uL baslcally, he and !esus are dolng a
vaudevllle number LogeLher as a Leam. Pope Lhls doesn'L confuse you furLher! Slncerely, SLephen
SchwarLz

A fema|e betrayer?
CuesLlon:
l know LhaL a loL of quesLlons have been posLed on Lhls forum already abouL Codspell, and ln parLlcular
Lhe dual role of !ohn/!udas, buL my quesLlon ls Lhls: WhaL LhoughLs, commenLs, or suggesLlons do you
have for a WCMAn playlng Lhe role of Codspell's proclalmer and beLrayer? Would you change anyLhlng
ln Lhe show (elLher ln Lhe LexL or ln Lhe subLexL) lf you knew LhaL !ohn/!udas was Lo be played by a
female? !usL wonderlng, Lhanks ln advance Lo anyone wlLh any lnslghL or advlce Lo share.......LM

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
uear LM: l Lhlnk some speclflc problems arlse. lor lnsLance, Lhe momenL when !udas says "Ch, !esus
Chr ..." and !esus slaps hlm across Lhe face, durlng Lhe "Lurn Lhe oLher cheek" secLlon. l don'L Lhlnk lL wlll
work lf !esus ls slapplng a woman across Lhe face, so LhaL momenL wlll have Lo be glven Lo someone
oLher Lhan !udas, whlch ls a loss. Less lmporLanLly, !udas' sllghLly randy ad llbs re Lhe Sonla characLer
("LeL me chasLlse Lhe vlxen", eLc.) obvlously won'L work and wlll have Lo be reasslgned or ellmlnaLed. l
would also Lry Lo be very careful, ln Lhe playlng of lL, Lo make sure Lhere ls no hlnL of sexual Lenslon
beLween !esus and !udas or of any physlcal deslre -- parLlcularly durlng Lhe klss aL Lhe beLrayal.As you
can see, l Lhlnk casLlng !udas as a woman poses problems, and l don'L recommend lL. 8uL lf your
producLlon ls deLermlned Lo do so, l hope you wlll keep Lhe above caveaLs ln mlnd. Slncerely, SLephen
SchwarLz

SLC1ICN 3 - Mus|c and Lyr|cs

Us|ng aspects of your own persona||ty]r|ff|ng
CuesLlon:
uearesL SLephen, before l ask my quesLlon, l would llke Lo polnL ouL LhaL l Lhlnk lL ls wonderful you Lake
your Llme ouL Lo answer quesLlons, add Lo dlscusslons, and much more-- lL ls very exclLlng LhaL we can
Lalk Lo you one on one. now, for Lhe acLual quesLlon: l have recenLly been casL as "8obln" (raLher l slng
uay by uay) ln my hlgh school producLlon of Codspell. l wanLed Lo know lf you had any secreLs on how
Lo play Lhls characLer, or any suggesLlons on how l can lnLerpreL her-- ls Lhere any sLory behlnd Lhls
"playful Lomboy"? ls Lhere anyLhlng you can lmparL on my before l sLarL rehearsals? Ch, and how much
freedom and llberLy do you Lhlnk l can Lake when slnglng uay by uay-- ln Lerms of my own lnLerpreLaLlon
and my love for "[azzlng" up dlfferenL Lunes. l wanLed Lo say-- l am exLremely exclLed Lo be slnglng Lhe
beauLlful muslc from Codspell and Lo be parL of Lhls casL aL all-- and l would love Lo hear advlce from Lhe
man behlnd Lhe beauLlful muslc-- LhaL's you! 1hank you for your Llme...Slncerely, !o

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
1he descrlpLlons of Lhe characLers ln CCuSLLL are slmply based on Lhe personallLles of Lhe orlglnal
casL. Slnce 8obln LamonL was ln facL sorL of a playful Lomboy, LhaL's how she played lL. l don'L Lhlnk you
(or anyone dolng CCuSLLL) have Lo llmlL yourself Lo playlng a role by Lrylng Lo lmlLaLe an orlglnal casL
member whose performance you never saw. 1he polnL ls Lo Lry Lo use aspecLs of your own personallLy.
1haL belng sald, lL ls clear LhaL whoever slngs "uay by uay" ls Lhe flrsL of Lhe dlsclples Lo make a
commlLmenL Lo Lhe !esus characLer (slnce LhaL ls Lhe flrsL song ln whlch a commlLmenL occurs), and
Lherfore her characLer needs Lo have Lhe openness and courage Lo be flrsL. 8uL by all means use
yourself.

As Lo how much you can "[azz up" Lhe song: l would recommend slnglng Lhe flrsL verse sLralghL, and Lhen
leLLlng yourself do more varlaLlon and rlfflng as Lhe song progresses. Cbvlously, Lhe song ls wrlLLen for
you Lo rlff a greaL deal over Lhe lasL exLended chorus.

1hanks for your quesLlons, and l hope you have a greaL experlence dolng CCuSLLL. Slncerely, SLephen
SchwarLz

nerb|e Character] L|ght of the Wor|d
CuesLlon:
Pl SLephen, A quesLlon and a commenL (lf you don'L mlnd!) Pow come ln Codspell Lhere ls no song for
Perb? Was Lhe orlglnal "Perb" a Lerrlble slnger? When l played Perb l sang Cn 1he Wlllows. Why
wasn'L Lhls song "glven" Lo Perb? Why have Lhe band slng lL? Cops, l guess LhaL was more Lhan one
quesLlon.v 81W, l love Codspell! l meL my wlfe durlng a producLlon, and now we're boLh dolng Lhe show
agaln, lL means a loL Lo Lhe Lwo of us. (1hls Llme l geL Lo be !udas/!ohn 1he 8apLlsL - l can hardly
walL!!)1hanks for Laklng Lhe Llme Lo answer my quesLlon and l love Lhe forum!!

Answer from Mlchael Cole:
Sorry - you dldn'L slgn your posL - l've found some of SLephen's posLs LhaL wlll answer your quesLlons:
"...Perb dld noL llp-sync, he sorL of spoke-sang hls llnes ln "LlghL of Lhe World", he sang along wlLh Lhe
resL of Lhe casL ln chorus numbers, slnce he could carry a Lune, [usL noL well enough Lo slng solo ln an
off- 8roadway show." (Cn 1he Wlllows) 1he song ls sung by Lhe band because lL ls meanL Lo accompany
acLlon (Lhe goodbyes) LhaL ls beLLer performed lf Lhe casL ls noL slnglng whlle lL ls occurrlng. Cf course, lf
Lhe band ls unable Lo slng Lhe song, one has no cholce, buL ldeally, lL's beLLer lf Lhe song can serve as
sorL of movle-llke scorlng Lo Lhe acLlon. Pope Lhls answers your quesLlons. Pave a fanLasLlc producLlon!
8esL, Mlchael Cole

Godspe|| uest|on...
CuesLlon:
uearesL SLephen,
l'd flrsL llke Lo Lell you how much l admlre your work- l [usL flnlshed playlng Lve ln a producLlon of CofL,
l'll be audlLlonlng for Codspell soon. ?our muslc ls [usL exqulslLe. 1he llnale of AcL 1 ln CofL ls so
movlng... all of Lhe shows LhaL you wrlLe brlng ouL Lhls raw emoLlon LhaL ls so hard Lo geL Lo. l appreclaLe
all LhaL you've glven Lo muslcal LheaLre.

l was wonderlng lf you could Lell me whlch characLers ln Codspell slng whlch song ln Lhe show, and lf
you have any recommendaLlons for audlLlon songs for Codspell (l'll be audlLlonlng for Lhe characLer who
slngs 8less Lhe Lord- l'm a mezzo/alLo-belLer, belL break ls C/A below hlgh C, full range ls Lo a u). l'm
havlng Lrouble flndlng someLhlng belLy LhaL wlll show my upper range as well. 1hank you so much.
Always, Abby

Answer from Mlchael Cole:
uear Abby,
l'm noL sure l'm golng Lo be able Lo geL an answer ouL of SLephen ln Lerms of audlLlon songs as he he
currenLly swamped wlLh work on WlCkLu. Pere ls a run-down on who slngs whaL ln Codspell:

rologue/1ower of 8abel: All
repare ?e: !ohn Lhe 8apLlsL
Cod Save Lhe eople: !esus
uay 8y uay: 8obln
Learn ?our Lessons Well: Cllmer
C 8less Lhe Lord: !oanne
All for Lhe 8esL: !esus/!udas
All Cood ClfLs: Lamar
LlghL of Lhe World: Perb, eggy, !effrey, 8obln/All
1urn 8ack, C Man: Sonla
Alas for ?ou: !esus
8y My Slde: eggy
We 8eseech 1hee: !effrey
Cn Lhe Wlllows: 8and
llnale: !esus
Long Llve Cod: All

Pope Lhls ls helpful. 8esL, Mlchael

Godspe|| voca| ranges

Accordlng Lo Lhe frequenLly asked quesLlons posL on Muslcals.neL Codspell forum Lhey are as follows:
WhaL are Lhe slnglng ranges of Lhe characLers?

!esus - 1enor Plgh C#
!udas/!ohn - 8arlLone L
Lamar - 1enor Plgh A
!effrey - 1enor Plgh u (falseLLo)
Perb - 8arlLone L (does noL slng any real solo, buL should be able Lo carry barlLone harmonles)
8obln - AlLo
eggy - AlLo
Sonla - Low AlLo (u below mlddle C)
Cllmer - Mezzo
!oanne - Soprano (Plgh A ln "8less Lhe Lord", Plgh C ln "We 8eseech 1hee")

Ioanne |n Godspe|| (and A|| Good G|fts)
CuesLlon:
Pello Lhere! l have [usL been casL as !oanne ln Codspell for my school's producLlon. As well as geLLlng Lo
play !oanne and slng her song, l have Lhe opporLunlLy Lo slng All Cood ClfLs. l was slmply wonderlng
exacLly how you feel !oanne should be played, and whaL Lhe besL !oanne you have ever seen dld Lo brlng
Lhe characLer ouL. lor example, do you en[oy !oanne belng played as Lhe cheerleader Lype, or as more
of [usL a glrly glrl. Also, how do you Lhlnk l should slng All Cood ClfLs ln order Lo really make Lhe song
sLand ouL and do lL [usLlce. 1hanks! Any help ls greaLly appreclaLed, and Lhank you so much for wrlLlng
Lhe fanLasLlc show, Codspell! Cod bless!

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
lL's lnLeresLlng Lo Lhlnk of Lhe same characLer slnglng boLh "8less Lhe Lord" and "All Cood ClfLs" -- you
musL have an excepLlonal volce Lo have been chosen Lo slng boLh, so congraLulaLlons. l would Lhlnk
because you are dolng boLh songs, you mlghL wanL Lo emphaslze Lhe growLh of Lhe characLer beLween
"8less Lhe Lord" and "All Cood ClfLs". 1herefore, you mlghL wanL Lo choose a brash, self-confldenL
!oanne (whlch ls Lhe LradlLlonal way of playlng Lhe role) aL Lhe Lop, and Lhen show how she ls sofLened
and Lempered by her assoclaLlon wlLh !esus and Lhe resL of Lhe group, so LhaL "All Cood ClfLs" ls sung
very slmply and slncerely. !usL a LhoughL anyway. l hope you have a greaL Llme dolng Lhe show and LhaL
your producLlon proves a greaL success. Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

Godspe||: We 8eseech 1hee
(Crlglnal quesLlon losL)

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
?ou are correcL LhaL darkness has sLarLed Lo come lnLo Lhe plcLure, and LhaL ln facL, "We 8eseech 1hee"
ls Lhe lasL unalloyed celebraLory momenL. 8uL l Lhlnk Lhe emoLlonal LranslLlon ls alded by Lhe facL LhaL
!esus, havlng recognlzed LhaL Lhlngs have begun geLLlng a llLLle dlre, has plcked up Lhe mood wlLh Lhe
sheep and goaLs parable. And ln LhaL parable, he promlses hls falLhful followers "eLernal llfe". 1herefore,
l don'L Lhlnk lL ls necessary for your characLer Lo "flnd your falLh" wlLhln Lhe song (Lhough Lhere cerLalnly
can be an emoLlonal progresslon wlLhln lL as Lhe song bullds), buL raLher Lo be reacLlng Lo Lhe happy
promlse LhaL you have [usL heard from !esus. 1hls can cerLalnly lead Lo a feellng of graLlLude and [oy. l
hope Lhls ls helpful, Lhanks for your very lnLelllgenL quesLlon. Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

Godspe||: Ieffery - We 8eseech thee
CuesLlon:
l don'L have a scrlpL for Lhe show, buL ls Lhere any reason LhaL a glrl couldn'L slng Lhls song, buL sLlll have
a guy ln !effery's parL?

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
none LhaL l can Lhlnk of. l do Lhlnk lL's lmporLanL LhaL each of Lhe dlsclples have hls or her momenL of
commlLmenL Lo !esus, so lf !effrey's noL slnglng Lhls song, he needs Lo flnd anoLher place Lo do lL.
AcLually, ln Lhe orlglnal producLlon, !effrey dld lL aL Lhe end of "All Cood ClfLs", for whlch he played Lhe
recorder. 8uL absoluLely, a glrl could slng "We 8eseech 1hee" lf preferable for your producLlon, Lhough
of course you'd have Lo Lranspose lL.

Godspe||: Son|a]Iorswear 1hy Ioo||sh Ways
CuesLlon:
l am Lo play Sonla ln an upcomlng preformance of Codspell. l was wonderlng lf you could help me Lo geL
lnslghL lnLo Lhe characLer. 1ell me whaL she Lhlnks llke... and whaL her moLlves are oLher Lhan belng a
"naughLy-Lype" person. 1haL seems Lo be all Lhe advlce people can glve me.... ls Lo shake your money
maker. l know Lhere ls a message LhaL Lhls song needs Lo convey as well as belng "suducLlve playful". l
need Lo undersLand LhaL message before l Lackle Lhe song. lease someone help me.

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
Sonla was orlglnally played by Sonla Manzano (Marla on SLSAML S18LL1), and Lhe song "1urn 8ack, C
Man" was speclflcally wrlLLen for Lhe characLer she creaLed. Sonla comblned a klnd of sLreeL-wlse humor
wlLh a Mae WesLlan send-up of sexuallLy. ulLlmaLely, lL was all very lnnocenL and very funny. l Lhlnk
Lhose lngredlenLs are sLlll essenLlal Lo Lhe characLer. 1he polnL ls noL LhaL she ls "sexy" ln Lhe amela
Anderson way, buL LhaL she's klnd of klddlng abouL Lhe whole Lhlng. When Sonla dld Lhe "sLrlpLease"
durlng "1urn 8ack, C Man", she saL on Lhe edge of Lhe sLage and allurlngly rolled down her sweaL sock ...
Lo reveal anoLher sock underneaLh lL. 1haL Lo me ls qulnLessenLlal Lo Lhe klnd of humor she used. Pope
Lhls ls useful Lo you, good luck wlLh Lhe role, and above all, have fun! Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

1urn 8ack C Man
CuesLlon:
l read Lhe posLs abouL Lhe meanlng of Lhe song "1urn 8ack C Man." Powever, l had a quesLlon abouL
one parLlcular llne. l am playlng Lhls parL ln my school's producLlon of Codspell. l was wonderlng whaL
exacLly Lhe llne readlng of Lhe llne "C'mere !esus l goL someLhlng Lo show ya," was? ls lL dlrecLed ln a
somewhaL sexual way Lowards !esus? 1hanks!!!Mal

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
uear Mallory: 1here's no quesLlon LhaL Lhe llne "C'mere, l've goL someLhln' Lo show you" has come-on
and "sLrlpper-esque" connoLaLlons, and yes, lL ls dlrecLed Lo Lhe !esus characLer. needless Lo say, ln Lhe
conLexL of Lhe show, lL ls a [oke and obvlously noL acLed upon ln any way (slnce Lhey all lmmedlaLely go
lnLo a cakewalk or some equlvalenL dance sLep.) 8uL yes, lL should be dellvered enLlclngly. Pope Lhls
clarlfles Lhe momenL for you. Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

Godspe||: 1urn 8ack C Man
CuesLlon:
l am parL of a casL preparlng Codspell for a communlLy LheaLer ln 8urllngLon, Wlsconsln. l saw Lhe show
Lwlce ln lLs flrsL Chlcago performances back ln Lhe early 1970's, and have always loved lL. l've en[oyed
Lhe dlfferenL references Lo Codspell posLed aL Lhls forum, buL have some quesLlons l haven'L seen
addressed. ls Lhere a dlrecL scrlpLural reference for Lhe song 1urn 8ack C Man? Why ls Lhls number
poslLloned where lL ls ln Lhe show, as opposed Lo earller durlng Lhe references Lo cuLLlng off your hand
eLc.?

ls Mr. SchwarLz wllllng Lo glve us hls personal lnLerpreLaLlon of lLs meanlng? ls lL slmply a represenLaLlon
of LempLaLlon, or does lL concern Lhe flnal comlng, or have l mlssed Lhe polnL enLlrely.

As should be clear l'm no 8lbllcal auLhorlLy, l [usL love Lhe show. 1he opporLunlLy Lo go over lL (and over,
and over, and over) has me lnLeresLed ln whaL Lhe orlglnal lnLerpreLaLlons mlghL have been. 1hanks for
Lhe opporLunlLy Lo ask. 1om nlccolal

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
uear Mr. nlccolal: 1hanks for your message and your enLhuslasm for CCuSLLL. 1he words for Lhe song
"1urn 8ack, C Man" were lndeed orlglnally wrlLLen as a cauLlonary hymn whlch can sLlll be found ln Lhe
Lplscopal hymnal. Cne of Lhe orlglnal casL members ln CCuSLLL, Sonla Manzano, who has slnce gone
on Lo be one of Lhe casL members, wrlLers and producers of "Sesame SLreeL", had a klnd of Mae WesLlan
naughLy/nalve quallLy Lo her characLer, so l LhoughL lL would be fun for her Lo do a Mae WesL sLyle
number. 1he words Lo "1urn 8ack, C Man" seemed perfecL for a blL of a send-up, and Lhe dlrecLor, !ohn-
Mlchael 1ebelak, and l declded LhaL lL would be a fun way Lo open Lhe second acL, parLlcularly lf we
could conLrasL Lhe sllghLly rlbald and lnnocenL fun Lhe resL of Lhe casL was havlng wlLh Lhe concerns of
!esus , who knows Lhe challenge Lhey face ahead. 1hus he slngs a more serlous Lhlrd verse of Lhe song,
Lhen geLs caughL up ln a llLLle of Lhe fun. 8uL as soon as Lhe song flnlshes, he quleLs Lhe resL of Lhe
celebraLlng casL members lmmedlaLely and Lells Lhem "1hls ls Lhe beglnnlng." And we are lnLo Lhe
second acL. l don'L know lf Lhls speclflcally addresses your quesLlon or noL, buL as near as l can
reconsLrucL lL, LhaL's whaL we were Lhlnklng abouL aL Lhe Llme. 1hanks for asklng, SLephen SchwarLz

SLC1ICN 4 - Aud|t|on|ng and erform|ng

Aud|t|on Songs?
CuesLlon:
l am audlLlonlng for a communlLy LheaLre producLlon of 'godspell' ln abouL Lhree weeks Llme and l need
Lo prepare 2 conLrasLlng songs from a muslcal of a slmllar sLyle Lo 'godspell.' uo you recommend
anyLhlng? 1hanks.
Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
l would Lhlnk any pop song LhaL shows off your volce would be a good cholce. lf you musL do someLhlng
from a muslcal (and l don'L know why LhaL would be necessary), lL seems obvlous you should choose
someLhlng from one of Lhe more pop-orlenLed scores, of whlch Lhere are several: for lnsLance, 8Ln1,
1lCk, 1lCk, 8CCM, AluA, LlCn klnC, !CSLP Anu 1PL AMAZlnC 1LCPnlCCLC8 eLc., all Lhe way back Lo
1PL ML nC8Cu? knCWS. 8uL as l say, unless Lhe people dolng Lhe show are lnslsLlng on a LheaLre song,
any rangy pop song oughL Lo do. Cood luck! Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

Godspe||: My own persona||ty as onstage ersona?
CuesLlon:
We are dolng Codspell for our hlgh school muslcal and l'm and ensemble member of Lhe casL. 1he
dlrecLor wanLs us Lo have our characLer on sLage be whaL we are. l'm lnLo punk and hard-rock muslc and
dress dlfferenLly Lhan everyone. Can LhaL be my onsLage persona??

Answer from SLephen SchwarLz:
l don'L see why noL, lf lL's Ck wlLh Lhe dlrecLor. 1he polnL ls LhaL each of Lhe characLers should "dress
dlfferenLly Lhan everyone". 1he [olnlng of Lhese separaLe lndlvlduals lnLo a communlLy ls Lhe underlylng
sLory of Lhe show. So lf your dlrecLor Lhlnks lL's approprlaLe, go for lL! And have a greaL Llme dolng Lhe
show. Slncerely, SLephen SchwarLz

ADDI1ICNAL kLSCUkCLS
See Lhe oLher Codspell secLlons of Lhls lorum archlve.