Emboldened by the solid ratings delivered for NBC-TV by live broadcasts of “The Sound of Music” and “The Wiz,” the Fox network recently announced that it is following a January 31 production of “Grease” with “The Passion,” a musical about the last days of Jesus Christ. Tyler Perry will host and narrate the show, set in modern-day New Orleans and scheduled for broadcast on March 20, which is Palm Sunday, the kickoff to the Holy Week of Easter. Included in the spectacle will be a procession of hundreds of devotees carrying a 20-foot lit cross through the streets of the Big Easy to a stage at Woldenburg Park on the banks of the Mississippi River.The concept is borrowed from a Dutch version of “The Passion,” which has been a television staple in Holland since 2011 and has reaped huge ratings. No cast has yet been announced, but in a press release the network noted that “popular music” would accompany the drama. It’s unclear if that means it will include the same music as in the Dutch production, which is of a rock vintage along the lines of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Whatever music is used, it will be arranged by Adam Enders (“Glee”). Eye2Eye, the Dutch entity behind the original version, will co-produce along with Dick Clark Productions and Anders Media, Inc.The project is a no-brainer and poised to draw a huge audience. (In Holland, it has consistently commanded a 46% market share.) While a live broadcast of the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice “Jesus Christ Superstar” would be a chancy bet, a more reverential approach would likely draw numbers similar to those of “The Bible,” created by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey. The ten-part mini-series concluded two years ago at Easter with an average audience of 11.7 million viewers — about the same as “The Wiz Live!”In 2004, Mel Gibson directed a controversial film on the same subject matter — “The Passion of the Christ” — that grossed more that $600 million world wide, nearly $371 million coming from the United States. The Fox production no doubt will steer clear of the charges of anti-Semitism that tainted Gibson’s movie. In a statement, David Madden, president of entertainment at Fox, said, “‘The Passion’ is wonderfully entertaining and genuinely inspirational. We are so thrilled to have the multi-talented Tyler Perry join us for this epic musical production.”Perry, who was born in New Orleans, has been a phenomenally successful author, playwright, and filmmaker whose satiric send ups, such as the “Madea” film franchise based on a tough elderly matriarch, have been vehicles not only for comedy but also for expressions of faith and gospel.
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