2011- A Big Year for Jesus on Broadway.

While discussing Ken Davenport's much publicized Godspell revival this week, I asked if it made sense to try to market a show directly to Christian America, a group that certainly has used their money to buy political clout, but is rarely marketed to by Broadway. I even suggested that it might make sense to stunt cast a Christian recording artist in the show to get more publicity within those circles. However, it occurred to me this morning that the gospel lane might be a little more congested than normal in the upcoming Broadway season with Sister Act and Leap of Faith both aiming to open to 2011.

Sister Act certainly has the most name recognition of the three shows, thanks to a successful franchise of films starring Whoopi Goldberg, who also served as an executive producer for the musical version that has been playing at the West End for the last year. However, as proven by last year's flop 9 to 5, that doesn't guarantee a long New York run. that particular show had everything you would want from a new musical; familiar source material, a great cast, a prime location for tourists at the Marquis, and a score by the beloved Dolly Parton. As it turned out, Dolly's score wasn't that memorable, country music fans weren't flocking to Broadway, and the reported $15 million budget featuring Joe Mantello's "put more set pieces on the stage" approach sunk the show.

To make things more challenging, this version of Sister Act will resemble the movie in name only. Alan Menken eliminated the audience friendly Motown-inspired score in favor of disco music. Unlike the movie, the musical will be set in 1978, and as of this moment, there is no star attached to the production, which seems almost like a necessity for the New York run. How much would it cost to get Jennifer Hudson to star in the show? Wouldn't that be a slam dunk???

Leap of Faith, currently in previews in Los Angeles, does have the star power. The always reliable Raul Esparza might not be familiar to tourists, but Brooke Shields certainly is. Like Sister Act, the show features an Alan Menken score, little of which we know about aside from the teasers that are popping up on Youtube.

Sidebar- why is the choir in the back unable to clap on the downbeat?? Am I Missing something.

With no reviews printed at the moment, it's hard to get a sense on what will happen with Leap of Faith, the story if a flim flam revival tent preacher who sees the light. The Steve Martin movie was never a big hit at the box office, and has largely faded into obscurity with casual fans. If the production gets good reviews, it could squeeze into a Broadway theater next season, although I hope the producers follow the example of Catch Me If You Can, who went into rewrites after tepid response from the Seattle tryouts. If The Addams Family and Shrek musical adaptations have taught us anything, it's not to rush a show to New York before it's ready.

That leaves, Godspell, who is counting on a social networking community to do part of the marketing legwork. Capitalized at what I can only imagine will be a much smaller amount than the other two shows ($5 million according to Davenport), their road to recoupment will theoretically be easier, even if the track record for revivals of dated musicals hasn't been good. Finian's Rainbow was loved by the critics, but sure didn't fill the St James, which is why I am hopeful that Davenport mounts this in a much smaller, more intimate theater.

What do you think? Is Broadway ready for three religious themed musicals next year? Which one, if any, will recoup? Your feedback is always welcome.