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The scenery was very impressive, the centre piece being a huge metal crown of thorns, raised up high. Around the edge of the stage were walkways, reached by metal ladders and from the centre walkway, there was a big set of steps leading down to the stage.
All could be seen as we entered the auditorium. We took our seats and in a short while the orchestra started playing the overture and James came on and stood for a long time at the side of the stage, showing all the emotions that the role of Judas required, while waiting to sing the first song. Both his facial expressions and body movements showed the character of Judas perfectly, a man worried about what was happening with Jesus and being very unhappy about the situation.
His performance was wonderful and it was impossible to take your eyes off him and then he sang the first song, brilliantly.

His voice throughout was amazing, delicate, sweet, quiet at times and yet incredibly powerful and fantastically strong. It was clearly visible that he put everything into his performance, the sinews in his neck stood out as he threw his head back to open his mouth fully, to give the full volume and power of his voice for the dramatic moments of the songs.

James was constantly on stage and his role was physically demanding, needing him to frequently climb the laddering and crouch on the walkways, always showing the emotions of disgust and contempt at how Jesus and his followers were acting. Each scene showed him as an unhappy and worried observer to the events that were unfolding.

The role of Judas was a very complex and emotional one and required much acting skill as well as a tremendous voice with a large vocal range. The scenes when arrangements were made for Jesus to be betrayed and the actual betrayal itself, required a huge physical and emotional response, to allow the audience to have an insight into the anxious and troubled mind of Judas. James put everything into these scenes, to show the emotion needed. In my opinion, he interpreted the role perfectly. He showed Judas the man, struggling to live with having betrayed Jesus and being horrified at how Jesus had been treated after his arrest. It was so convincing, that you empathised totally with the character and his distress. Judas' death scene was very moving.

When the voice of Judas reappeared towards the end of the production, James had changed from his basically brown costume to an all white one of T-shirt and jeans. His backing singers wore red sparkly dresses. He sang the song brilliantly and received a fantastic applause after he'd finished. James was sensational and his eyes sparkled, as quite a different emotional response was needed with this song, compared to the earlier ones. Again, he dominated the stage and produced a rocky and a very physically exhilarating performance.

Too quickly we had reached the end of the show, and then the cast came on to take their bows. Glenn Carter, James and Emma Dears came on together. All the audience rose from their seats to give them a standing ovation. It was a remarkable sight and something I've never seen before. The smile on James' face was very special and a moment not to be missed.

James was superb, he had given everything to his performance and he had shown yet again his enormous talent, not only with his musical ability, but now he could add another string to his bow, he had shown considerable acting ability as well. His singing was perfect and his diction clear, his vocal range and power were very impressive. James had made his theatrical debut at the Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre and without a doubt, he was a huge success. None of his performances, that we had witnessed before, could have prepared us for this one.

We have seen James perform brilliantly on many occasions, including Eurovision and the Lulu tour. He had surpassed his usual high standard in this production and had moved up to another level. His performance in JCS had all the usual qualities, charisma, fantastic vocal range and the ability to involve his audience and more. His acting skills were very evident, especially in the emotional scenes, that were needed in his portrayal of Judas. James was the perfect choice for the part. He was superb in every way and the best I'd ever seen him. He dominated the stage and gave a breathtaking performance. He is now, in my opinion, a major theatrical talent and I cannot wait to see him perform again.