On Saturday the 15th of April, I had the absolute privilege to see the esteemed comedy-musical The Book of Mormon at the Prince of Wales West-End theatre. Written by the renowned comedians Trey Parker and Matt Stone (creators of South Park), with the assistance of songwriter and musician Robert Lopez, the musical first came to stage on Broadway in 2011. After winning nine Tony awards (!!), the Book of Mormon subsequently went on two US National Tours, before coming to London in 2013.
I have been enthused by the music of The Book of Mormon for several years now, and have become very familiar with the Original Broadway Cast Recording, even as far to have discovered a youtube slime tutorial (bootleg) of the original cast performing in New York. Therefore, I admit that I had some specific expectations prior to seeing it live. I’m very pleased to say that I was far from being disappointed! Of course there were differences- I never expected an exact reenactment of the one performance I witnessed beforehand: I understand that that’s exactly what theatre is about – every performance has its unique quality and ardour. I didn’t just see The Book of Mormon. I saw The Book of Mormon on Saturday 15th April at the Prince of Wales theatre! And it was sensational.
However, before delving into the specifics of this performance, I’d like to express my admiration for the musical at its principle. It is a perceptive and witty satire of not only institutional religion, but of musical theatre itself. It follows a very formulaic plot arch and certainly does not shy away from stereotypes within its music. In fact, the style of music and the lyrics often specifically reference other mainstream musicals- such as the song ‘Hasa Diga Eebowai’ being a very obvious reimagining of Hakuna Matata, only with a very different message. Instead of singing about having no worries for the rest of their days, the poverty and disease ridden community of Ugandan villagers sing what is translated to as “f*ck you God!”. This is one among many satirical reimaginings and references, yet The Book of Mormon remains strikingly unique. I believe that this is due to the risks that Parker, Stone and Lopez took in the writing process. Firstly, to escape any repercussions for naming their musical by the same name as the religious book that an entire religion is based around- and then to proceed by slagging off the fundamentals of this religion, for the sake of comedy, again without any backlash or controversy, is an accomplishment. Secondly, they appear to have taken all the liberties they wanted to use as much explicitly obscene language as they liked. To make my point clear, I’m going to have to include some examples of genuine, verbatim lyrics:
“Joseph Smith! Magical AIDS frog! Brigham Young, frog on his clit-face!”
– The entire Chorus of singers in ‘Joseph Smith American Moses’
“F*ck you, God, in the ass, mouth and c*nt-a, Hasa, f*ck you in the other eye!”
– Another Chorus of singers in ‘Hasa Diga Eebowai’
“I have maggots in my scrotum”
– Solo lyric, reprised in several songs.
Without the necessary context, these lyrics are very obscure. And to some, they are entirely outrageous. For centuries, theatre has been a highly respected and luxurious form of entertainment. Only in the last hundred years has it opened its doors to middle and working class audiences- for too long, theatre was reserved as entertainment for the upper-classes only. And now, for performers to be singing about such blasphemy in a grandiose theatre with a respectable history would be seen by some as a mockery of such an art form. Much to the contrary, these reasons, these risks, are the very reason this show is so successful! Because it’s hilarious. And this original, risky style of comedy is drawing in audiences that may never have even considered going to the theatre! It’s so important for the theatre industry to be appealing to new domains in the target-market, in order to keep theatre alive and relevant! Of course, this business-mindset can always go too far if the only objective is to produce theatre that is as mainstream as possible in order to make as much money as possible. We can observe this in many cases where blockbuster film concepts are adapted into cheesy musical productions: sometimes it can be interesting to see a popular story with no prior association with the performing arts undergo such a genre-flip, but oftentimes, the intentions of the producers is clear- this sh*t makes money, and they are happy to exploit this industry as long as it continues to do so. And that is why originality will always be valued in theatre. And that is why I truly admire The Book of Mormon.
Now, to proceed from gushing about the genius of the concept, I’m going to effusively express my admiration for the performance of it! Firstly, the cast were remarkable. I was especially overwhelmed by the fantastic portrayal of Elder Cunningham, by the performer Conner Peirson: his use of physicality and comedic timing was just on point. His interpretation of the character wasn’t far from Josh Gad’s original characterisation, yet his performance was unique, and the punchlines seemed fresh, despite my familiarity with them. I did worry that this affinity with the original soundtrack would take away from some of the comedic anticipation, however, I found that most of the humour remained very effective in creating genuine reactions within myself and the audience as a whole, due to the professionalism of the performers. The absolute pinnacle of Pierson’s performance, in my view, was during his solo in the Act 1 finale: ‘Man Up’. The song requires a lot of energy and charisma, and he was not caught lacking ONCE!! What made it all the more an optical feast was the electrifying light show that accompanied it, so great acclaim is due to the light designer, Brian MacDevitt, for increasing the energy of this spectacle ten-fold.
Of course, one of the most sensational parts of experiencing live musical theatre is the live music, and I had the absolute pleasure, from where I was sat, to be able to observe the musicians and conductor in the band-pit. This was enlightening to see, as I was made conscious to appreciate the music to a greater extent, and was inspired by their musicianship as an aspiring musician myself. So, credit to all the musicians in the orchestra at the Prince of Wales theatre!
I realise I could go on for pages if I really wanted to, but I’m satisfied that I’ve expressed my appreciation well enough by now… perhaps too much, but if I can’t express my passions and admiration here, then where else? Thank you if you have read this far, and I strongly recommend that if the opportunity to see The Book of Mormon presents itself to you, you won’t regret taking it.
Reflections ~ This is the first review I’ve written about anything ever, and I’m sure now that it won’t be the last. Why don’t mental health professionals recommend just gushing about all your favourite experiences? And expressing an appreciation for artists, creators and producers, whom you deem very worthy as subject to your recognition? It’s been very therapeutic. And I’ve come to understand how important it is to offer compliments and genuine support to others. Refusing to acknowledge when others make accomplishments will never make your own accomplishments more worthy. Community > Competition. Thank you for reading !
by Ruben Goodfellow
The Thinkings of a Fellow 