The Book of Mormon at Golden Gate Theatre
Come on down to Golden Gate Theatre for The Book of Mormon, a musical comedy is brought to you by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the creators of South Park, offending people for the last two decades! Follow the story of two latter-day saint missionaries as they jet off to a remote village in the heart of Uganda. The devout, supercilious missionary-to-be Elder Kevin Price and Elder Arnold Cunningham, an insecure and compulsive liar, are challenged by the lack of interest from the locals, who are distracted by more pressing issues such as HIV/AIDS, famine, female genital mutilation, and oppression from the village warlords. All in a day’s work for these devout men of God.
The Book of Mormon Tickets
“Book of Mormon’ is the most profane musical in Broadway history” – The New York Post
“‘The Book of Mormon’ the most explosively funny musical in memory and the best musical in years.” – Playbill
“Indecently funny. The killer whale of comedy.” – Evening Standard
“The best musical of this century.” – The New York Times
“A confetti burst of profanity, blasphemy and hilarity. It’s the Mormon moment.” – The New York Times
The story of The Book of Mormon is, essentially, the story of the devout missionary-to-be Elder Kevin Price, played by Cody Jamison Strand, and the insecure Elder Arnold Cunningham, played by Dave Thomas Brown, and their fateful two-year mission to Uganda. Upon arrival in northern Uganda, the two are robbed by soldiers of a local warlord, General Butt-Fucking Naked, played by Derrick Williams. Then they are welcomed to the village they will be living by the villagers repeating the phrase “Hasa Diga Eebowai” meaning Fuck you, God. The villagers repeat the phrase to make their lives seem better, after all the daily reality of living in appalling conditions while being ruled by the General makes them feel a little better. The two Missionaries, determined to succeed where previous missionaries have failed, begin teaching the villagers about Joseph Smith through a song that begins as a tribute to Smith but eventually descends into a tribute by Price to himself. The General arrives and announces his demand for the genital mutilation of all female villagers and after a villager protests, the General murders him.
Cunningham quickly makes up stories by combining what he knows of LDS doctrine with pieces of science fiction and fantasy combining Joseph Smith, hobbits, Lt. Uhura, Darth Vader, and Yoda rationalizing that if it helps people, it surely cannot be wrong and he starts to see some success and Ugandans are interested in the church. Elder McKinley, played by Stephen Ashfield, the district leader points out that unless the General is dealt with, no one will convert. Price, seeing the chance to prove his worth, sets off on the “mission he was born to do”. After re-affirming his faith, he confronts the General, determined to convert him, but the General is unimpressed and has Price dragged away. Later we see Price in the village doctor’s office, having the Book of Mormon removed from his rectum. Having lost his faith, Price drowns his sorrows in coffee. Cunningham finds Price and tells him they need to at least act like mission companions, as the mission president is coming to visit the Ugandan mission. Price reflects on all the broken promises the church, his parents, his friends and life in general made to him.
The villagers perform a pageant for the mission president, played by Lewis Cleale, to “honor them with the story of Joseph Smith, the American Moses”, which reflects the distortions put forth by Cunningham, such as having sex with a frog to cure their AIDS. The mission president is, appalled, and orders all the missionaries to go home, telling the villagers that they are not members of the church, heartbroken that they will never reach paradise they curse God “Hasa Diga Eebowai”. How will the villagers face the General when he comes for his female mutilation? Will Price and Cunningham be able to save the village or are we all doomed? Come and watch The Book of Mormon at Golden Gate Theatre to find out!
The Book of Mormon has grossed over $500 million, making it one of the most successful musicals of all time, was awarded nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, two Outer Critics Circle Awards for New Broadway Musical and Outstanding New Score, a Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical, a New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Musical and a Helpmann Award for Best Musical. The original Broadway cast recording became the highest-charting Broadway cast album in over four decades, reaching number three on the Billboard charts and as of July 27, 2019, it is the 14th longest-running Broadway show. The music, lyrics and book by Trey Parker, Matt Stone, the creators of South Park and longtime critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and Robert Lopez a well-known writer and songwriter of musicals and song for films, best known for his songs in Disney movie Frozen and its sequel Frozen 2.
“The filthiest, most offensive, and—surprise—sweetest thing you’ll see on Broadway this year, and quite possibly the funniest musical ever.” – Vogue Magazine“Vulgar, blasphemous, juvenile and unrelenting, ‘The Book of Mormon’ may be the most influential piece of musical theatre Broadway has seen all century.” – Matt Hickman, Anchorage Press.
“Sacrilege and sanctity (and a generous helping of potty-mouth humor) blend seamlessly in this show that markets itself as “God’s favorite musical.” – broadway.com
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released an official response to inquiries regarding the musical, stating, “The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening, but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people’s lives forever by bringing them closer to Christ. Of course, parody isn’t reality, and it’s the very distortion that makes it appealing and often funny. The danger is not when people laugh but when they take it seriously—if they leave a theater believing that Mormons really do live in some kind of a surreal world of self-deception and illusion.”
– Michael Otterson, the head of Public Affairs for the church.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released an official response to inquiries regarding the musical, stating, “The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening, but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people’s lives forever by bringing them closer to Christ. Of course, parody isn’t reality, and it’s the very distortion that makes it appealing and often funny. The danger is not when people laugh but when they take it seriously—if they leave a theater believing that Mormons really do live in some kind of a surreal world of self-deception and illusion.”
– Michael Otterson, the head of Public Affairs for the church.
