Southern Light meet Sir Tim Rice in an unforgettable meeting

Members of Southern Light, Edinburgh’s oldest amateur theatre company, had the incredible honour of meeting Sir Tim Rice — multi-award-winning, internationally renowned lyricist —during his stop at the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh on Easter Sunday as part of his UK tour of Tim Rice – My Life in Musicals: I Know Him So Well.

This unforgettable moment comes as Southern Light prepares to bring Jesus Christ Superstar — with lyrics by Sir Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber — to the Festival Theatre stage from 7–10 May 2025.

Capital Theatres is the home of Edinburgh’s largest community companies, providing them with a platform each year to share their work. Southern Light, founded in 1897 is a beloved part of Edinburgh’s theatre scene and usually perform at the King’s Theatre, now undergoing an exciting redevelopment. Find out more about the King’s Theatre redevelopment here.

The amazing timing of the meeting on Easter Sunday and being just a few weeks away from the company’s performance was warmly welcomed by Southern Light:

Sara Whelan "It's not every day you get to meet the person who wrote the show we are currently rehearsing for so it was a special moment for us as individuals as well as Southern Light as a company."

Colin Sutherland "I would say it was a real stars-aligned kind of day. Lucky enough to be playing Jesus and meeting Tim Rice on Easter Sunday! Not to mention, he’s an absolute gent.

And a few of the ensemble describe the wonderful meeting with their hero:

Diane Scougall "As a Jesus Christ Superstar fan for fifty years, it was a delight and a privilege to meet and chat with Sir Tim Rice. They say "never meet your heroes", but he was affable, charming and funny. He answered our questions about lyric changes over the years, and shared his memories of getting the show from concept album to stage show back in 1971. His show in the evening was fantastic too - with the added excitement of knowing I would be on that stage in my favourite show in a couple of weeks!"

Charles Leeson-Payne "Some people are worried about meeting their heroes. There was no need with Sir Tim Rice. A brief photoshoot turned into a marvellous private history tutorial and a personal company workshop for our production, like he’d known us for years. A Superstar, no less."

For more information on SLO: Jesus Christ Superstar, or to purchase tickets click here.