Ad disclosure: We were provided with press tickets for the purpose of this post.
Olivier and Tony Award-winning musical The Book of Mormon is embarking on a new UK tour and Birmingham is the current stop! We were invited along to the press night at the Alexandra Theatre, and so James and I went along to see the show for the first time.
From the creators of South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and Bobby Lopez, the co-writer of Avenue Q and Frozen, The Book of Mormon narrates the story of an unlikely pair of Elders who embark on a challenging mission together in a distant location.
This musical is absolutely hilarious and brimming with satire and sarcasm. The rather innocent and idealistic Mormons are confronted with the somewhat overly stereotypical realities of the village in the remote area of Uganda they have found themselves in.
The group of Mormons stationed there face disgrace for not converting a single local to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, but run into trouble when they come face to face with a village full of very sweary Africans who are under threat from the nearby warlord General B*tt F*ing Naked and more worried about survival than listening to the missionaries preaching the ‘good word’.
Drop into this peculiar situation two young men, each eager to succeed for their own different reasons, one grappling with a crisis of faith while the other struggles with the uncontrollable power of his imagination. The result is one of the strangest yet most hilarious musicals I’ve ever had the pleasure of witnessing.
Nothing escapes the abundance of sarcastic humour, with jokes about aids, scrotum maggots, and the absolute lack of logic that this take on the Mormon religion is full of. The audience (including the two of us!) were kept laughing throughout the entire two hours; even the sweetest moments were full of humour.
Throughout the show, there were running jokes that only got more ridiculous as it progressed. Among these were various characters that you wouldn’t have expected to appear in a show about Mormons in Africa – but I won’t spoil it too much by telling you who popped up, you’ll just have to see it for yourself.
The music is incredibly catchy and just as full of fun and humour as the dialogue. Both James & I had “Hello!” firmly stuck in our heads until our heads hit our pillows last night. We’ll definitely be adding the broadway album to our music libraries! As well as being full of toe tapping good music, it is visually appealing too, with gorgeous sets and costumes.
The cast was absolutely fantastic. The leads delivered wonderful performances, and the ensemble was equally impressive. There wasn’t a single weak link on stage, and they maintained a high level of energy throughout the entire show.
The Book of Mormon has won an astonishing number of Tony and Olivier awards, and it’s easy to understand why. I don’t think I’ve laughed so much at a theater before. While it’s absolutely jam-packed with swearing and a fair amount of juvenile humour, it manages to avoid feeling uncomfortably crass and instead is just hilariously & ridiculously outrageous and irreverent.
The theater was packed with people who had seen the show before and were returning for a second or even a third viewing. The humour is so infectious that I can easily understand why they would pay to see it again and get a good dose of endorphins.
This show is definitely not suitable for families due to its excessive use of vulgar language and offensive jokes that are so crude I can’t even mention them here. However, if you’re seeking a good laugh and aren’t too easily offended, it’s definitely worth checking out!
The Book of Mormon is on at the Alexandra until 28th December 2024, and tickets are available from just £25. They are also releasing 15 tickets for £15 each week so you might be able to get yourself a bargain! The show has a running time of 2 hours 20 minutes, including the interval.
