Following the success of "Grease: Live," Fox's latest musical presentation is perfectly timed for Lent. "The Passion" is a modern take on the last few hours of Jesus Christ, but it is unlike any other musical production. In fact, Fox is keener on calling it as a "live spectacular."
"The Passion" is set in New Orleans and was broadcast live for two hours on Palm Sunday, March 20. But for those who failed to watch the live event, Fox has immediately put up videos of the musical on its website and via the Fox Now Apps for mobile devices. The videos can be streamed beginning March 21. Global distribution and additional streams will also be added on Netflix beginning March 22, per Deadline.
The special features musical greats like Trisha Yearwood (Mary) and Seal (Pontius Pilate), as well as "American Idol" finalist Chris Daughtry (Judas) and telenovela star Jencarlos Canela (Jesus).
"Trisha was so important because she's the anchor of the show. They're big songs, they're big moments," said producer Adam Anders, who has worked with "Glee," via Variety. "[Seal] brings such a cool element to the show. He can walk on that stage and he's really a powerful man," Anders added. He also said that Daughtry was their first and only choice for Judas and Fox managed to work it out with the singer's schedule.
Letting the stars sing familiar modern songs and deciding to do away with no religious music to go with the story had always been part of the plan for the musical. "When you go through the hits from the last couple decades, it's unbelievable how many No.1 songs have religious messages," Anders said.
They had to work hard at finding the right music for "The Passion," such as using hits from Celine Dion, Whitney Houston and Katy Perry. The soundtrack to the live spectacular will be released at Walmart and Target retail stores and it's now out at Amazon.
