“Tomorrow is a Latter Day”
Hello, my name is Elder Tarpley. And I would like to share with you the most amazing play now showing at The National Theatre!
Since its debut on Broadway way back in 2011, The Book of Mormon has been continuing to stun audiences all over the world with its funny, offensive, but surprisingly sweet story, and top-notch music sure to make the Musical Theatre Greats of the Twentieth Century proud… minus all the F-bombs… and the satirical sacrilegious look at organizational religion…. and blase approach to making AIDS a joke… did I mention there is a lot of offensive takes on sensitive subjects in this production?
But this play is the brainchild of Trey Parker and Matt Stone (South Park) and Robert Lopez (Avenue Q), so if you are aware of those two other shows, you should have a pretty good sense of what is in store for this production. It’s raunchy, it’s offensive, it’s foul-mouthed, and it’s catchy as hell. Laden with multiple big dance numbers, I was surprised to find myself wondering who was in more need of catching their breath: the actors executing these high energy routines on stage, or the audience from laughing so constantly throughout?
The story itself is nothing too complicated. Two nineteen-year-old missionaries from the Church of Latter Day Saints receive their assignment to travel to a Ugandan village in order to spread the word of their Heavenly Father and baptize others into the Mormon church. Once there, our two protagonists, Elder Price (played by Sam McLellan) and Elder Cunningham (played by Sam Nackman), must go through trials and tribulations to overcome personal disappointment and lack of confidence to find a way towards forging one’s own path and friendship while guiding the members of a besieged Ugandan Village to find their own paradise within their own hearts.
But the real magic of this show is in all of its spectacular musical numbers. While given its content it’s not your typical musical, at the same time it has everything musical theatre goers will love. Say what you will about the content, but this show is a musical theatre spectacle in the best sense and the show creators really know how to write a love-letter to the great Broadway hits that came before.
Whether it’s the show stopping Chorus-Line number of “Turn It Off”, led beautifully by Sean Casey Flanagan’s Elder McKinley, or the nod to Les Misérables in “Man Up”, or the nod to The King and I’s “Small House of Uncle Thomas” in “Joseph Smith American Moses” (now with dysentery!), musical theatre lovers are sure to appreciate the extra layer of love and attention that goes into making this phenomenal show. Even after 13 years, the choreography by Jennifer Werner is still crisp as ever, and the entire cast never ceases to WOW with each number!
But aside from the homage to the Greats of Broadway, this show is really just one catchy and hilarious tune after another. In case it has not been made abundantly clear, this show goes out of its way to be offensive and deal with some realistically dark and heavy topics. Yet each depiction of offensive material is meant to be over the top and tongue-in-cheek outlandish in such a way that the audience is lulled into dropping their defenses and ultimately laugh at the ridiculousness before them as they tap their toes to the sunny, up-beat music. You’ll know if you’re into the show by the time you hear “Hasa Diga Eebowai”, led by the village leader Mafala Hatimbi (played by Lamont J. Whitaker). Meant to invoke a feeling akin to The Lion King’s “Hakuna Matata”, Whitaker introduces our two religious missionaries to the daily struggles of poverty, warlords, famine, and AIDS in an upbeat number that will have you dancing in your seat to a tune that at first leads you to believe this mantra has the positive message like “no worries”. I won’t fully spoil it for you, but “Hasa Diga Eebowai” does not mean anything like “Hakuna Matata”.
While the company led numbers are fantastic, the more character driven and intimate songs featuring only one or two characters are outstanding as well. McLellan does well in leading his Act II turn-around with the highly satirical “I Believe”. Meant to convey Elder Price’s new-found resolve in completing his mission, McLellan invokes the sense of idealized optimism oozing from every pore while paired with the stark (and hilarious) difference between his naive and endlessly optimistic (at least in that moment) joyous energy paired with General Butt F… well, I’ll just call him General BFN’s (played by Dewight Braxton Jr.) straight, no-nonsense real-world posture is a sight of comedic beauty all by itself.
Meanwhile, “Baptize Me” will continue to impress with the undeniable comedic chemistry between Nackman’s Elder Cunningham and the village leader’s daughter, Nabulungi (played by Keke Nesbitt), as they each give a priceless experience to the other: being each other’s first… baptism. Performed like a love-song, this number will have you swaying gently in time, in between chuckling at the abrupt innuendo.
While not for everyone, if you have an open mind and the ability to allow yourself to laugh at the sacrilegious and raunchy humor that is The Book of Mormon, then my friend you are in for a real treat! Playing now through March 17th, The Book of Mormon will only be in DC for a short time. Don’t wait for someone to come ring your doorbell to tell you about this phenomenal show; get yourself down to the National Theatre today!
Running Time: Approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes with one intermission
The Book of Mormon plays through March 17th 2024 at the National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20004. For tickets call the box office at (202) 628-6161 or purchase them online.
