Pinay theater actress Gab Pangilinan cast as Mary Magdalene in 'Jesus Christ Superstar'

Jesus Christ Superstar in Manila has found its Mary Magdalene!

Award-winning Filipina star Gab Pangilinan is set to lead the Manila run of the iconic musical at The Theatre at Solaire from May 2 to 31. She will share the stage with principal performers from the show’s acclaimed UK, North American, and Australian tours, including Luke Street (Jesus), Javon King (Judas), Ethan Hardy Benson (Pilate), Grant Hodges (Caiaphas), and Kodiak Thompson (Annas).

Pangilinan is a multi-awarded stage and screen actor known for her performances in The Last Five Years, Side Show, Ang Huling El Bimbo The Musical, and Mula Sa Buwan. She is a three-time Philstage Gawad Buhay nominee for Pingkian: Isang Musikal (2024), The Last Five Years (2023), and Mula Sa Buwan (2022), and won Best Leading Female Performance (Digital) at the 27th Asian Television Awards for Still: A Musical Narrative Series.

She has worked with leading theatre companies including PETA, Tanghalang Pilipino, Atlantis Theatrical, and Full House Theater Company, and recently appeared in We Aren’t Kids Anymore and Othello.

Jesus Christ Superstar, a 70's hit and Olivier Award-winning production by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, explores the biblical portrayal of the extraordinary events that led to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as seen through the eyes of his betrayer, Judas Iscariot.

The story, told entirely through song, explores the personal relationships and struggles among Jesus, Judas, Mary Magdalene, Jesus’ disciples, his followers, and the Roman Empire. Originally released as a concept album, the iconic 1970s rock score contains well-known numbers such as Superstar, I Don’t Know How to Love Him, and Gethsemane.

It opened on Broadway in 1971 at the Mark Hellinger Theatre, while the original London production premiered at the Palace Theatre on Aug. 9, 1972 and ran for over eight years. After closing at 3,358 performances, it had become the longest-running musical in West End history at the time. The production has since been reproduced regularly around the world in the years that followed.

Tickets are available via TicketWorld.