The action largely follows the canonical gospels' accounts of the last weeks of Jesus' life, beginning with Jesus and his followers arriving in Jerusalem and ending with the Crucifixion. Twentieth-century attitude and sensibilities as well as contemporary slang pervade the lyrics, and ironic allusions to modern life are scattered throughout the political depiction of the events. Stage and film productions accordingly feature many intentional anachronisms. A large part of the plot focuses on the character of Judas who is depicted as a conflicted, tragic figure who is not satisfied with what he views as Jesus's lack of planning, and alarmed by his relatively recent claims of his divinity.