The Book of Mormon Skewers Religion Yet Spreads a Positive Message at Orpheum Theatre

The Book of Mormon is an original musical with music, lyrics, and book from the creators of South Park Trey Parker and Matt Stone and Avenue Q co-creator Robert Lopez. Winner of nine 2011 Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Original Score. The musical comedy follows a pair of polar opposite, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ missionaries, Elder Price, and Elder Cunningham sent to spread the Good Word to Ugandan Villagers. The villagers however have no interest in converting they are too busy trying to survive life under the harsh rule of the local General, who’s name I probably shouldn’t repeat here. Living with Aids, famine, and the threat of genital mutilation, their version of “Hakuna Matata” is “Hasa Diga Eebowai” which means F*** You God. If that made you gasp, this probably isn’t the show for you. This is a show that pokes fun at everything, but particularly religion and more specifically the Mormon Church. Of course for those of us not fully versed in the Mormon religion they have to explain some of the basic beliefs. Once you’ve heard some of those, the jokes just kind of write themselves, I would think. The Book of Mormon is a wildly entertaining and blasphemously funny show that has a shockingly upbeat and positive message.

The cast, particularly Diego Enrico and Sam McLellan, are very funny. Enrico plays Elder Cunningham, the sidekick pop culture obsessed follower to Sam McLellan’s Elder Price. Mclellan’s got the face and physique to play Elder Price who is clearly God’s gift to the Mormon church, he really embodies the character you imagine would sing a song like “You and Me (But Mostly Me)“. Meanwhile Enrico is full of over enthusiasm and awkward social behavior. It all works achieving big laughs. Keke Nesbitt plays Nabulungi, whose name Elder Cunningham comically mispronounces throughout the show, a young woman in the village. She is the first person Elder Cunningham ever baptises which is hilariously performed while they sing “Baptise Me” as a double entendre for losing their virginities, which they don’t. This is one of the songs that really stuck out as being alternatingly funny but also genuinely sweet, and Nesbitt showcases an incredibly sweet voice. With great ensemble work from the cast as fellow Missionaries and as the Ugandans, one thing I was expecting was how good some of the choreography from Jennifer Werner building off the original choreography of Casey Nicholaw.

I laughed a lot and had a great time with The Book of Mormon which runs through December 15th at Hennepin Arts Orpheum Theatre in Downtown Minneapolis. From more information and to purchase tickets go to https://hennepinarts.org/events/the-book-of-mormon-2024 . There is a $25 pre-show lottery before each performance of The Book of Mormon. The lottery begins two and a half hours before showtime. Cash only, up to two tickets can be purchased by each winner.

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