John Legend isn't sweating about taking centre stage for this weekend's live TV performance of hit musical Jesus Christ Superstar, despite insisting it's "a big deal".
The All of Me hitmaker will take on the titular character in the Biblical rock opera on Easter Sunday (01Apr18), opposite singer/actress Sara Bareilles as Mary Magdalene, rocker Alice Cooper as King Herod, and Broadway star Brandon Victor Dixon as Judas.
The U.S. show marks John's big stage acting debut, but as the premiere looms, the La La Land star's yet to feel rattled by nerves.
"I feel good," he smiled as he discussed preparations for the performance on breakfast show Today on Friday (30Mar18). "We've had some really good rehearsals, the team is really good around us, and I feel really supported and I feel like we're gonna be in top form on Sunday night."
John's wife, pregnant model Chrissy Teigen, and their two-year-old daughter Luna have been regular visitors during rehearsals, but he will have many more relatives cheering him on from the audience for the live show.
"It's really a big deal, a lot of my family is coming in from Ohio and around the country, they're gonna come see the show live here in New York, and we're all excited about it," the singer/actor shared. "We grew up in a family that was very religious: a lot of preachers and choir directors and singers, and we've been talking about Jesus my entire life, and now I'm playing Jesus Christ in Jesus Christ Superstar."
Fans will also be able to get up close to John and his co-stars during the gig, as 1,300 members of the public have been invited to create a "mosh pit" around the stage, bringing a little extra energy to the production.
"The crowd is really part of the show," he explained. "We wanted there to be a (crowd) presence in the show so we're gonna feel them, we're gonna have a mosh pit, we're gonna have audience all around us. We wanted it to be a hybrid between a concert and a theatre experience, and also, of course, we're broadcasting it on television."
The one-off production for NBC's Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert will be broadcast from the Marcy Armory in Brooklyn on Sunday.
