By Sandi Masori
SAN DIEGO — It all started when Boba Fett battled the Death Star and Gandolf told the ancient Jews to find Joseph Smith… wait, that’s not quite right, that may not have been how it happened at all. The Mormon history gets hysterically misconstrued in Broadway in San Diego’s staging of the musical The Book of Mormon by Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Robert Lopez. If those names sound familiar, it’s because Parker and Stone are the very same guys who created South Park. Once you know that, one would assume that you’re in for some off-color and possibly offensive humor.
The story follows young missionaries Elder Price (Sam McLellan) and Elder Cunningham (Sam Nackman) who have just received their assignment to work in Uganda. Upon arriving there they find a brutal environment under the control of a violent warlord (Dwight Braxton Jr) who among other crimes wants to circumcise all the women. The villagers are also suffering from rampant AIDS, crime, famine and other ailments.
Price suffers a crisis of faith, which leaves the compassionate but less educated and experienced Cunningham to minister to the natives. The only problem is that he has never actually read the Book of Mormon, and so as he attempts to help the villagers solve their problems he embellishes the stories in the good book with characters and plot lines from popular science fiction, superhero and fantasy movies. This results in the conversion of the villagers, who are encouraged by Nabulungi (Keke Nesbitt) the sweet daughter of the village liaison (Lamont J. Whitaker).
The story is actually really cute and endearing, in spite of the scrambled history and very blue humor. If you know South Park then you know they aim to offend everyone equally, so even when they’re poking fun it’s done in a way that somehow doesn’t seem quite so offensive.
Now that we’ve gotten the basics of the plot out of the way, let’s talk about the experience of it. Hilarious! The music is popping, the songs are ear-wormy, the action moves quickly, and the sold-out audience was thunderous in its approval.
I really liked the “Hasa Diga Eebowai” number, in which the villagers teach Price and Cunningham their philosophy of life. This Swahili-like made up phrase is sung so joyfully in response to strife that we are led to think it was like Disney’s “Hakuna Matata” from the Lion King. But the audience quickly learns this is not the case when Cunningham asks if it means “don’t worry for the rest of your days.” Then I thought that maybe it was more like the Jewish adage “this too shall pass.” But no, we quickly learn that it means “F- you G-d” (it’s the South Park guys- what else do you expect?)
Another scene that was a favorite of my companions was the villagers retelling of the Cunningham version of the Book of Mormon for the visiting Mormon elders. Hysterical!
As for stand out performances- Nesbitt was incredible as Nabulungi. Her vocals and performance really shined. Nackman was perfect as the over-eager and awkward Cunningham. I also thought Braxton brought a special energy to the part of the general. The dance numbers were all vibrant and energetic and a pure joy to watch.
The sets are incredible and elaborate. They make use of multiple drop-down curtains, screens, projections, painted scrims, a ton of props and set pieces. The costumes were equally elaborate and plentiful. The cast changed costumes so often and so quickly one would imagine that they needed extra rehearsals just for that. I can’t even imagine how many trucks they need for the sets and costumes- it is not a show that packs light, that’s for sure. They really captured the feel of an African village though.
Before seeing the show, I was thinking that the only Jewish angle I might find would be in the audience. But fear not, we were mentioned and shouted-out multiple times in the show. The first shout-out came in a song where the missionaries were explaining the Book of Mormon was the third book completing the trilogy started by the one book of the Jews and the second of the Christians.
We also get a dream scene with Hitler in hell and are mentioned in a few other ways- especially in the Mormon origin story.
There were some people near me that were absolutely cracking up at some of the lines that went over my head, so I assume that they were Mormon, and that the show hit on some real truths and in-jokes for the in-crowd. The creators do a good job of walking the line between laughing at and with the church.
All-in-all it was a really enjoyable performance. You may want to brush up on the actual history of the Mormon church before you go- just to be able to separate fact from fiction, though most people probably know that the Star Wars characters have nothing to do with the real history of the church. By the end of the show you will be grinning and humming one of the many memorable songs.
The show plays through September 24, and there’s a lottery for extremely discounted tickets that you can enter via this webpage.
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Sandi Masori is a food and theatre reviewer for San Diego Jewish World. When she’s not covering food or theatre, she helps authors self-publish, hangs out with her kids, and searches for the best sushi in town.