Whether you go for theatrical reasons, or artistic reasons, or religious reasons, you really ought to drop by the Spire, in downtown Jamestown, during the run of the Stephen Schwartz and Jan Michael Tebelak musical ''Godspell.''
The show provides a whole gamut of experiences: religiously inspiring, musically entertaining, artistically presented and a whole lot of fun, on top of it.
The show is based upon the parables of the Gospel according to Matthew, and focuses on the life of Christ, from his baptism by John the Baptist, to his crucifixion and his resurrection. The show is sincerely religious and probing into the nature of the teachings it portrays, although it presents much of its message with a bit of grin.
It is also energetic, full of color and motion, and music in the popular style. The cast is a complete mixture of tall and short, thin and heavy, blonde and dark, and more. Not everyone who sings is a singer, although nobody is bad. Not everyone who dances is really a dancer, although they are all wonderfully committed and full of energy. Like the human race, it takes all kinds to make a cast, and a world.
Angelo Giuffre directed with a good eye for stage motion and characterization. He also sang the moving ''On the Willows,'' which is one of the show's most beautiful songs.
Anne Ecklund was co-director and was vocal director, conducting the four instrumentalists who accompanied. Members of the band were Glenn Wahl, Wendy Marlinski, Sara Rafaloski and Lydia Iarocci.
Logan Norris Beard portrayed Jesus, bringing great warmth and courage to the stage and a sweet, lyric tenor. He might have been a bit more authoritative, in the passages where Jesus needs to rein in his boisterous flock, but in all, it was a masterful portrayal.
Vince Liuzzo had the show's biggest arc, starting the show as John the Baptist, then grasping for pieces of silver as Judas Iscariot, at the end.
He's a good looking young man who was intensely and accurately focused on his shifting role within the performance. Bravo.
It would be senseless to point out individuals among the disciples, because each of them played a dozen different roles, and each of them brought a different positive to the show. They were Jillianne Higgs, Cathy Covarrubias, Shannon Nixon, Tim Dohl, Rachel Phillippi, JamieLee Bonfiglio-Davis, Ylsa Giuffre, Laura Classon, Michael Frank and David Zuech.
Choreographers were Rudi Andalora, Jillianne Higgs and Ylsa Giuffre.
''Godspell'' was reviewed at dress rehearsal, at the company's request. It will be performed tonight, Saturday and April 27-28 at the Spire, which is located in the former Congregational Church, on East Third Street, directly across the street from the U.S. post office, in downtown Jamestown.