YORK Light Opera’s June production of Godspell has presented the group with a unique challenge.

How to take the messages of this Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak musical, based on the Gospel of St Matthew, and update it for the digital era. For a musical first created in the 1970s, many years before the internet, mobile phones and the selfie, this seems a daunting prospect at first glance.

Yet the cast were eager to rise to this challenge as they prepared to play Jesus and his 12 followers at Upstage Centre Youth Theatre, 41 Monkgate, York, from June 23 to 27.

Instead of performing the original 1971 Broadway production word for word, they have adapted it to include references to social media, mobile phones and popular television shows, weaving these into a contemporary re-telling of such parables as The Good Samaritan and The Prodigal Son.

Director Hilary Dyson reveals the reason for this was to make us reconsider our obsessive attachments to technology and the internet. “When we first meet the cast they are locked away in their own worlds, focusing only on themselves, their TV shows, video games and Facebook updates, living with the frustrations of 21st century life. When Jesus arrives, he teaches them how to communicate with each other again, and work together to form a better society," she says.

“We've taken this angle with Godspell because, while Jesus’s teachings remain the core of the show, we wanted to demonstrate what people are capable of when they put down the smartphones and work together as a community to build something beautiful.”

Godspell was one of the earliest compositions by Stephen Schwartz, now better known as the composer of Wicked. The songs vary in style from the lilting Day By Day to the show-stopping All For The Best, and York Light has decided to include Beautiful City, absent from the original musical but added for the 1973 film, to represent how over the course of the show Jesus and his disciples work together to create their own beautiful city.

Throughout the show Jesus teaches his disciples the value of respecting each other and working together, and soon they are playing musical instruments, engaging in in complex dance routines and acting out the parables as you have never seen them before. So, has York Light found it hard to update Godspell while keeping its core message and values intact?

“It’s been an intense rehearsal period for certain, especially when you consider everyone remains on stage for almost the entirety of the show," says Hilary. “But the cast are fantastic and their enthusiasm is infectious. Many of the ideas you will see have come from them, and every single cast member gets the chance to prove how talented they are as individuals as well as part of an ensemble.

“We want this to be a show that everyone, of all ages and all backgrounds, can come to and enjoy. It’s funny, silly and light hearted but has a strong message about the importance of working together and not isolating yourself from the world.”

In keeping with the new show’s digital themes, the cast members have all thrown themselves into the selfie craze, so much so that their pictures of themselves will feature in the show. These selfies also are being posted on York Light Opera’s facebook page and Twitter account @YLOC, introducing the cast members, who reveal their favourite things about performing in Godspell.

Tickets for Godspell's 7.30pm evening shows and 2.30pm Saturday matinee cost £12:50 on 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk