Grammy winners Michael W. Smith and Yolanda Adams are the latest cast in Tyler Perry’s The Passion, a live musical set for Palm Sunday.
Smith will play one of the 12 disciples along with American Idol alum Chris Daughtry, who will play Judas. Adams will kick off the production.
“There’s a lot of emotions that go into the music,” Daughtry tells Billboard. “It’s very human and very relatable.”
Other cast members include Jencarlos Canela as Jesus and Trisha Yearwood as Mary, the mother of Jesus.
“Let’s make an impact on our world through this very special event and night!” Smith posted on Facebook. “Excited to be a part of this.”
TV Line reports it will involve many iconic New Orleans locations and will culminate “in a procession of hundreds carrying a 20-foot, illuminated cross from Champion Square outside the Superdome to the live stage at Woldenburg Park on the banks of the Mississippi River.”
“The Passion is both wonderfully entertaining and genuinely inspirational,” Fox Entertainment president David Madden tells Deadline. “Tyler Perry is the perfect host to lead the cast – and viewers – through the streets of New Orleans in this contemporary re-telling of a timeless story.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, this telling of The Passion is inspired by an annual production that started in 2011 in the Netherlands by Eye2Eye Media, which is serving as a producer for the Fox production along with Dick Clark Productions and Anders Media Inc.
