The opening credit reads: “Godspell, a musical based on the Gospel according to St. Matthew.” All other credits come after the film. John-Michael Tebelak's credit for writing the theatrical version of Godspell reads: "From the play conceived and written by." Tebelak is credited onscreen as co-writer and creative consultant; however, in a Dec 1972 Var letter to the editor, co-writer-director David Greene stated that “Tebelak and I are enjoying an ideally smooth working relationship...But he is not codirecting the film with me. He did not write the screenplay. He participated only minimally in pre-production planning and discussions, and attended very few rehearsals."
       The film consists of a series of parables from St. Matthew told and acted out by Jesus, played by Victor Garber; John the Baptist, played by David Haskell, who also plays Judas; and eight disciples, all of whom are called by their real first name. [Although many contemporary sources list Garber’s character name as “Victor” and Haskell’s as “David,” neither name is used in the film.] Different lighthearted musical theater styles are utilized, including cabaret, vaudeville, burlesque, puppetry and mime. Cast members wear circus-inspired costumes, including Garber, who is dressed in a Superman t-shirt and clown shoes, and perform in a stylized, exaggerated manner, as if spontaneously acting out the Biblical stories in an improvisational theater.
       The film begins in the crowded streets of Manhattan, but once the disciples are gathered, they wander empty streets. In the final scene, the streets are once again filled with people. As noted onscreen, the film was shot entirely on location in New York City, and production materials list specific locations such as the Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Times Square and Coney Island. The “All for the Best” dance sequence was shot on various city rooftops, including that of the then-unfinished World Trade Center twin towers, which were completed in 1973, but after the film's release. During that sequence, Jesus and John dance a soft-shoe number in front of the Accutron by Bulova sign atop Times Square.
       A Jan 1973 HR article reported that the New York police department helped to control activity around the shooting sites. The resulting stillness was remarked on in a Sep 2006 LAT article about the film, in which the writer with the critic stating that "New York is made to look deserted...a stunning effect, downright eerie at times."
       As noted in a Mar 1972 HR news item, the word "godspell" is an archaic variant of "gospel." The Var review and various contemporary sources described the film’s genesis: Trebelak wrote the play Godspell as his 1970 master’s thesis while at Carnegie Mellon University’s theater program. After the play ran as an off-off-Broadway workshop at the Café LaMama theater, Tebelak invited fellow CMU alumnus Stephen Schwartz to add songs and a score. The new version opened off-Broadway at the Cherry Lane Theatre on 17 May 1971, a production of Edgar Lansbury, Stuart Duncan and Joseph Beruh. [The theater is featured in the film as the location of the "Prodigal Son" scene.] The play was very successful, and generated multiple road companies, as well as a popular cast recording, featuring the number-one radio hit "Day by Day."
       As noted in a 13 May 1972 DV news item, Columbia Pictures contracted with the producers, Tebelak and Schwartz to film the musical. While an Aug 1972 HR news item stated that the original Broadway cast would appear in the film, the cast was culled from various stage companies performing the play. The film follows the theatrical version fairly closely. The song "Beautiful City" was added by Schwartz for the film version, substituting for "We Beseech Thee," a song in the play’s opening act. As noted in a Jan 1973 HR article, the prologue of Jesus gathering his disciples also was added for the film.
       Godspell marked the feature film debut of composer Schwartz, who went on to write Academy Award-nominated scores for such animated films as Pocahontas (1996) and Enchanted (2007), as well as the long-running 2003 Broadway hit Wicked. It also marked the debuts of Garber (1949--), noted stage, screen and television actress Lynne Thigpen (1948--2003), who originated the role of "Lynne" on the stage, and of actor and television director Charles Haid, who worked as a directorial assistant on Godspell.
       A modern source adds the following actors to the cast: Daniel Levans, Joe Madden and Burt Richards, as well as Tebelak as the voice of the Pharisee monster. The soundtrack album was released on Bell Records, a division of Columbia Pictures. The score won a Grammy award. Godspell was released the same year as Jesus Christ Superstar (see below), a better-received modern musical retelling of the story of Jesus. Despite its mixed reviews, Godspell also was nominated for the Golden Palm at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival, and Greene and Tebelak earned a WGA nomination for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium.
       As noted in a 1980 People article, Tebelak went on to become an Episcopal priest. The article also noted that the film popularized "Godspell Masses," a blending of contemporary music with Christian liturgy. In Dec 1978, HR reported that Schwartz's music publishers had sued the Today television show for copying his "Day by Day" song in their theme song, entitled "This Is Today." A federal judge found the NBC network, Today composer Ray Ellis and his publisher liable.