plans for musical canceled



Jewish leaders objected to the production at the former Nazi camp.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) -- A former Nazi death camp has canceled plans to host a production of the rock opera "Jesus Christ Superstar," the director of the site's museum said last week.
Museum director Edward Balawejder said he changed his mind about hosting a production of the musical after Polish newspapers reported Jewish leaders' objections.
"It was not a good idea. It did not take into consideration the relations between Christianity and Judaism," Balawejder told The Associated Press. "I decided that there will be no performance because we must stick to the message of the museum, which is truth, memory, reconciliation."
Director Jacek Boniecki of the Lublin Musical Theater in eastern Poland said the intention of the July production had been to present universal issues with no religious context.
Piotr Kadlcik, leader of Poland's Jewish community, said he was "very happy" that the performance would not take place.
Former Israeli ambassador to Poland Shewach Weiss said on TVN24 television that Balawejder's mistake had "been set right now, and we should move forward toward reconciliation and solidarity."
Museum officials say 230,000 people, including about 100,000 Jews, were killed during World War II in Majdanek, one of a network of Nazi death camps in occupied Poland.
"Jesus Christ Superstar," which debuted on Broadway in 1971, tells the story of the last seven days in the life of Jesus.
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