THE BOOK OF MORMON: That old-time Broadway religion (in a naughty package)

THEATRE: Eugene O’Neill Theatre, New York

DATE: May 17, 2005

TIME: 19:30

WITH: Andrew Rannells, Josh Gad, Nikki M.James, Rory O’Malley, Michael Potts, Lewis Cleale, Brian Tyree Henry, Scott Barnhardt, Justin Bohon, Darlesia Cearcy, Asmeret Ghebremichael, Maia Nkenge Wilson

DIRECTOR: Trey Parker & Casey Nicholaw

CHOREOGRAPHER: Casey Nicholaw

Hallelujah! “The Book of Mormon” is that rare Broadway beast: an original musical. And it is good! It is also rude and blasphemous, which should be no surprise as its creators are Trey Parker and Matt Stone from “South Park” and Bobby Lopez of “Avenue Q”. But what is surprising is its heart, love of the American musical, and that it actually has something to say. Despite these qualities I was constantly surprised by what this hilarious production is getting away with in the world’s biggest commercial theatre arena. Nobody is walking out (you have to be really, really offended at those prices). On the contrary it has become the hottest ticket in town and won 9 Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

The story features a bromance between two 19-year-old Mormons, who are send on a mission to Uganda. Their new surroundings are a shock to the system of naïve and clean-cut Elder Price (Andrew Rannells) and Elder Cunningham (Josh Gad). The majority of the local population is terrorized by war and stricken by AIDS, female circumcisions are the norm, and babies are raped as a supposed cure for AIDS. If all this does not sound particularly funny, believe me it is. The creators and an amazingly talented cast make it so.


During the musical Elder Price - the most devout Mormon - loses his faith, but eventually regains it with the help of his clumsy buddy Elder Cunningham, who turns out to be a cunning miracle worker. He is able to convert villagers – by mixing up the Book of Mormon with popular mythical Western tales - and changes their lives for the better. This results in, for instance, a ‘fuck frog’ (don’t ask) and Bobba Fett becoming part of the Mormon religion in Africa. 

 One of many send-ups of The Lion King

When the big number of baptisms reach Salt Lake City the church leaders decide to visit Uganda. As a tribute to them the locals put on a pageant of The Book of Mormon, as they have learned  it from Cunningham. This results in one of the most hysterically funny moments in the show and is the equal of ‘Springtime for Hitler’ from The Producers. Needless to say the church leaders are not amused. If you are completely ignorant on Mormonism, like I was, do not worry. The whole history of The Book of Mormon, featuring prophets like Joseph Smith (a frequent guest on South Park) and Brigham Young, is cleverly woven into the fabric of the story.

 Josh Gad, Nikki M. James, Andrew Rannells & company

Mormon's ensemble is simply beyond believe and Andrew Rannells’s  (who looks a bit like Jim Carrey) character has an ego to rival the biggest musical divas. This could easily become obnoxious and it certainly is, but Rannells also has a quality that makes him rather endearing. His winning sincerity spins Cunningham’s ego-tripping songs -  ‘You and Me (But Mostly Me)’ (a tribute to Elphaba’s ‘The Wizard and I’ from Wicked) and ‘I Believe’ - into pure gold. Josh Gad is equally winning as the annoying, clumsy sidekick, who turns into the reluctant hero of the story.


Also worth mentioning is Nikki M. James as the sweet daughter of the village chief, Nabulungi (Gad’s constant butchering of the name is a running gag), whose dreamy tribute to Salt Lake City: ‘Sal Tlay Ka Siti’ (get it) equals the best ‘I want’ songs in Disney. The one who runs away with the show though, no mean feat in this company, is Rory O’Malley as the closeted Elder Mckinley who runs the Ugandan mission. He turns repression into a stunning show stopping number ‘Turn It Off’. This amazing young actor (whose role was especially created for him during production) lifts the song (arguably the best of the bunch) into the stratosphere and leaves the audience on a natural high that is hard to beat.

 Rory O'Malley and the Mormon boys

There have been many musicals of late satirizing the musical form e.g. The Producers, Urinetown and  Spamalot. These shows, though, did not have a great score like The Book of Mormon. I would even rate it as the best musical comedy score in years. The songs are not only extremely funny, melodic, ingenious in its musical tributes (ranging from The Sound of Music to The Lion King - wait till you hear their answer to Hakuna Matata - and Wicked), but also serve character and story extremely well, and are wonderfully orchestrated by Larry Hochman and Stephen Oremus (who is also the  musical director). An instant classic!

Although the show specifically makes fun of Mormonism it really is a clever critique of all religions. Especially of believers who take the sacred texts too literal. At the same time the production also shows that a lot of people need the hope, guidance and rituals that religion provides. Whether it be from The Bible or pop culture. Stars Wars, Star Trek and Lord of the Rings are mixed up to great effect with The Book of Mormon to make this point. Mainly, though, the show is about the gospel of the musical, which at its best can raise the human spirit like no other art form. The show succeeds in this whole-heartedly and, like Glee on TV, will convert many souls for years to come.

Getting in

Tickets for The Book of Mormon are hard to come by and extremely expensive. If you have the time I would recommend trying the daily lottery (see website) or getting standing room tickets. I did the latter and can highly recommend it. These tickets are affordable and the view is excellent. You do need to have time to spare though, because the line starts early. We were there around 10:00 a.m. (second in line) and the tickets are only sold about an hour before curtain time. This queing, as the English would say, is definitely an experience in itself and you get to meet all sorts of interesting people.

The day we stood in line was also the first day that the cast recording was released and the entire cast, Stephen Oremus and Bobby Lopez were in attendance to sign copies during the afternoon. (I'm addicted to the CD!)  While standing in line Eric McCormack (Will from Will & Grace) walked by and Will Swenson (Hair, Priscilla: Queen of the Desert) stopped by to buy a couple of CD’s himself. 

All this made my Book of Mormon-day heavenly and highly memorable. Hurry to the Eugene O’Neill theatre and get yourself some of that old time Broadway religion (in a naughty package).