The Regent Theatre - Arlington, MA - Arlington's Show Place of Entertainment

Resurrected

Giving new life to 'Jesus Christ Superstar' tunes, rock opera fans turn a setback into a blessing

By Jonathan Perry, Globe Correspondent

November 17, 2006 ARLINGTON

From the pink hair to the platform boots, the glam face paint to the slinky evening gowns, and the people dancing everywhere, the spectacle on the Regent Theatre stage seems more a party than an opera.

In some respects, the production -- billed as "A Night at the Rock Opera" and hosted by a group that calls itself the Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra -- feels precisely like that: one big party with live music, courtesy of a killer band made up of no fewer than 18 singers and eight musicians.

"Hey, you guys know what time it is?" teases MC Sal Clemente, strikingly bald and black-clad, standing center stage. "It's rock o'clock. So, you wanna hear some Beatles?"

The question is, of course, rhetorical. Whoops and hollers of approval go up from the nearly 500-strong audience -- and a few from the stage, too. That eruption is quickly drowned out by the harmonies, bass line, and fuzz guitars that kick into "Paperback Writer," one of a handful of Beatles tunes performed during a 90- minute show packed with vivid covers of Queen, Bowie, the Who, and -- perhaps most significantly -- selections from the rock musical "Jesus Christ Superstar."

For Ultrasonic cofounders Clemente and Alan Ware, whose orchestra makes its Boston debut at the Berklee Performance Center tonight, Tim Rice's and Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1970 album of the same name has been both an inspiration and an albatross.

Five years ago, Clemente and Ware, who've been playing in rock bands together for 15 years and run a Somerville-based film and music production company also called Ultrasonic, began recording their own version of "Jesus Christ Superstar." ( That CD and a concert recording of "A Night at the Rock Opera" performed in March at the Regent, are available at ultrasonicproductions.com.) They intended their "Superstar" as a tribute to the album that had shaped their musical lives, and had wanted to chronicle the process of making their album with an accompanying documentary film.

As its climax, the film was to feature a live performance of "Superstar" in its entirety, with more than two dozen singers and musicians hand-picked by Clemente and Ware. Or so they thought.

"We knew we'd have to get [Lloyd] Webber's permission for the rights to use the music in the film," said Clemente before last Friday's performance here. "We had been in contact with the Regent, which had agreed to let us use the space for the performance, and we were ready." But Lloyd Webber balked at having a new production of "Superstar" recorded for the as-yet unfinished film. "Alan and I literally had a good cry over it," Clemente said. Instead of canceling that 2004 performance, Clemente (who also sings) and Ware (who also plays drums) hit upon Plan B: The URO would perform a few "Superstar" selections for the film (Lloyd Webber consented to allow up to five numbers), but would round out the rest of the concert with covers of such classics as "Pinball Wizard," "Ziggy Stardust," and "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds."

"We did the show and it went over huge -- we were amazed," said Clemente. Emboldened by the response, Clemente and Ware have since written their own mini-rock opera that centers on a would-be composer's dream to write the ultimate rock musical and win the admiration of his hero, Andrew Lloyd Webber. One track is even cheekily titled "Andrew Lloyd Webber Said No." If anything, the setback that might have been a crippling blow to the company has instead strengthened its resolve -- and its creative energy. "No matter what we do," observed Ware, "it all seems to work and turns out right."

URO has grown into a 26-member collective culled mostly from in and around Boston. Together, they are an insanely versatile outfit capable of bringing off even the most intricate of rock pieces -- say, Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" -- with effortless ease, lighthearted humor, and an audacious display of vocal prowess. As if to demonstrate the company's limber musical chops, URO even spins a homemade "Wheel of Rock" board and performs whatever tune the wheel's needle hits (unless, that is, it happens to like another song on the wheel better on a given night).

Among its ranks, URO numbers several familiar faces from Boston's rock community, such as lead guitarist Tony Savarino, Collisions singer-guitarist Bo Barringer, and Alto Reform School frontwoman Chantal Ambroise . "I fell in love with the show," said Ambroise, who joined the URO upon the recommendation of Savarino, who'd been playing guitar with her band. "A lot of it is music I grew up with, and it's [opened] up my range. As a singer, I want to be a part of anything that stretches me." Ambroise said she had recently moved to Seattle with her boyfriend, but flew back especially for the shows.

Savarino said when he auditioned for the ill-fated "Superstar" concert two years ago, he had not learned any of the songs on the album. But the original double LP had been a favorite of his father's, who had played it around the house while he was growing up.

Besides, Savarino, who graduated from Berklee College of Music and now teaches guitar, was a quick study. There are key differences, however, between performing with the URO and Savarino's usual experiences in the rock realm. "This is probably a tighter ship, and in clubs there's more reckless abandon because alcohol is being served," said Savarino. "Here, you have kids and families in the audience. But this is just as valid. It's still rock 'n' roll."

BITS & PIECES. Tonight Brainwashed.com begins a three-day "Brainwaves" music festival at the Regent Theatre. Performers at the festival, which celebrates the website's 10th anniversary, include the Dresden Dolls, Volcano the Bear, Windy & Carl, and many more. Complete show schedule available at brainwashed.com. Brian Wilson is at the Orpheum. Cheap Trick is at Avalon. Reverend Glasseye is at T.T. the Bear's. Trumystic is at the Middle East Upstairs. Tomorrow Los Lobos is at Avalon. The Detroit Cobras are at T.T. the Bear's. Aberdeen City is at Great Scott. Two Dollar Guitar (with Sonic Youth's Steve Shelley ) is at P.A.'s Lounge. The Eilen Jewell Band and Ray Mason are at the Lizard Lounge. Monday The New York Dolls headline Little Steven's Underground Garage Rolling Rock & Roll show at Axis. Tuesday G. Love & Special Sauce are at Avalon.