THEATRE: BOOK OF MORMON
Filthy smut or the best musical ever? The Book Of Mormon is possibly both, reckons
ALMOST 50 years ago, a hippy-inspired musical called Hair made its Broadway debut, bringing the 1960’s countercultural revolution to the stage. With its themes of pacifism, drug use, sexual freedom and nudity, the show was picketed by church groups, faced legal action and received bomb threats, even in Australia. Jesus Christ
Superstar, The Children’s Hour, Avenue Q and Angels In America have all survived similar controversy to become classics.
Enter The Book Of Mormon, the musical by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. It made its Australian debut last month and, for a show that mocks religion and contains some of the crudest lyrics yet, has managed to escape backlash. Perhaps it’s a reflection of the “disruptive” times in which we live, where the transgression of political correctness is considered de rigueur.
With subject matter including female circumcision, maggots in testicles, raping babies and lyrics like, “Fuck you, God, in the ass, mouth and cunt!” this could easily have been a disaster, yet it has become a multi-million-dollar sensation garnering nine Tony Awards. In a sliding scale of critical response, London’s Daily Mail called it “the most over-hyped show on God’s earth,” while the New York Times said it was “something like a miracle.”
As for the Mormons, they’re standing by the adage that any publicity is good publicity. Their latest campaign: “You’ve seen the play, now read the book!”
The story is simple. Two missionaries travel to Uganda to spread the word. Winding up in a remote village, the young elders find the locals are uninterested in their preaching, with greater concern for AIDS, female circumcision and a stand-over warlord. But when Elder Cunningham begins to change the scripture to include colourful characters from Star Wars and Star Trek, he gradually wins them over. The crux here is that he changes the story but not the overall message, achieving the original goal – a miracle indeed.
The cast includes Ryan Bondy as Elder Price and AJ Holmes as Elder Cunningham. Both have played their roles internationally. In fact, Holmes has played Elder Cunningham in every production of the show thus far. Victorian College of the Arts graduate Zahra Newman plays Nabulungi, Bert Labonte ( Animal Kingdom) is Mafala, and Augustin Aziz Tchantcho ( The Lion King) plays the fearful General Butt-Fucking Naked.
The cast, choreography and overall direction are spot on, with song-and-dance numbers to rival Aladdin. The downside for some will be the crudity, which rules supreme. But, if you’re familiar visceral tone of South Park and Team
America, you’ll survive. Interestingly, Parker and Stone were criticised by GLAAD for using the word fag in South
Park, but praised by the same organisation for a particularly gay-friendly episode. Barbra Streisand and Sean Penn, both victims of South
Park, have attended The Book Of Mormon. Oh, to have been a f ly on that theatre wall! Nine Tony Awards says a lot. To many, The Book
Of Mormon is the best stage show in history. To others it’s the emperor’s new clothes. But, if you can cringe through the vulgarity, you may just find a message as uplifting as that of Hair!
MORE: The Book Of Mormon is showing at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre. Visit: bookofmormonmusical.com.au
Is it the most overhyped show on God’s earth or something like a miracle?