The Book of Mormon

Musical (2011)
By Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone

With Mark Evans (Elder Price), Christopher John O’Neill (Elder Cunningham), Alexandra NCube (Nabalungi), Stanley Wayne Mathis (Mafala Hatimbi)

Telling much of the story of The Book of Mormon gives it away, but suffice it to say that this hilarious show is about two young Mormon guys assigned to Uganda for their two year evangelical Mission. One of them is a young Mormon superstar who does everything right and the other is a doofus who knows he’s meant to play second fiddle. Nonetheless, the challenges of Ugandan life test their strengths and weaknesses in unexpected ways. What they, and we, expect from each of them gets severely challenged under the circumstances, as do the strictures of Mormon liturgy. The result is not only incredibly entertaining but, in its own wild way, truly visionary.

Everything they say about this musical is true – it is witty, it is totally irreverent, and it is kind of a work of genius. I have listened to the Broadway cast recording of The Book of Mormon many times over and have been taken, from the beginning, with the ingeniousness of the book and the catchiness of the music and lyrics. Don’t worry – this isn’t Sondheim – it’s not the finest of music and the lyrics are catchy but not – well, Sondheimesque – though they are damn good. But it is the structure of the book itself, its totally wacky way of bending things unexpectedly, that is really inspired. That basic structure is really very interesting, and how these guys – Stone, Parker and Lopez saw through their idea is anybody’s guess. The show was apparently in development for seven years and perhaps it is partially the durability and persistence of that effort that resulted in something so deeply satisfying and incredibly entertaining.

Years ago I saw the big Broadway hit The Producers when it came through Boston with its road tour. Though it was entertaining enough, it was, as they say, not as great as it was cracked up to be. The guys who played the leads in that road show were okay, but they weren’t Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, and no amount of catchy Susan Stroman staging was going to save the day entirely. It was fun but not spectacular.

My experience of seeing the road tour of The Book of Mormon was very different. Here, the show seemed to stand entirely on its own legs and did not seem to depend on the talents of particular Broadway stars. The leads were just great, the ensemble worked fine, and the staging was totally adept and on the mark.

And the leads in this touring show, in fact, were distinctively great on their own terms. In particular, Christopher John O’Neill (Elder Cunningham), is making his professional debut in this show and does a fabulous job. He is a total, schlubby scream, and, for playing a total nerd, he has incredible charisma, exactly what’s required for this role. Alexandra NCube (Nabalungi) is dazzling, charming, beautiful, and captivating in the female lead. Their romantic duo, Baptize Me, was passionate and electric – it really rocked.

All in all, this was a great, fun evening at the theatre.

– BADMan