THEATRE REVIEW: "The Book of Mormon" at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre (New York, NY)

      On April 7th, 2011, I saw a performance of the Trey Parker / Matt Stone / Robert Lopez musical "The Book of Mormon" at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre in New York.  The show had opened recently.  My mom had seen it while it was in previews, and got me a ticket to the April 7th performance.  The Eugene O'Neill Theatre is intimate as far as size.  My seat was in the back row of the mezzanine, but it was still close to the stage.  








     The cast included Andrew Rannells (Elder Price), Josh Gad (Elder Cunningham), Nikki M. James (Nabulungi), Rory O'Malley (Elder McKinley/ Moroni), Micheal Potts (Mafala Hatimbi), and Brian Tyree Henry (General.  I enjoyed the show, and believed it when my mom and other people talked about how big the show was going to be.  Sure enough, "The Book of Mormon" swept the 2011 Tony Awards, also winning the Tony Award for Best Musical.   Scott Pask was the scenic designer.  Wasn't that a random twist in the flow of the paragraph?  Anyway, my favorite scene (as far as scenic design goes) was "Spooky Mormon Hell Dream."









     It confuses me as to why "I Believe" was sung at the 2011 Tony Awards.  I think "Sal Tlay Ka Siti" should have been performed, especially since Nikki M. James ended up winning the Tony Award for her performance in "Book of Mormon."  Or, better yet, I think the song "Man Up" should have been performed.  It is a funny song.  Plus it turns into a montage of a bunch of different songs from Act One, so everyone would have performed.  I guess it doesn't matter though, since "Book of Mormon" won so many Tony Awards.  













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     From December 11th, 2012 to October 6th, 2013, the Chicago Production of "The Book of Mormon" played at the Bank of America Theatre (now called the CIBC Theatre).  Kathryn got us tickets as a Christmas present, so she and I saw the production in early 2013.  The Chicago cast starred Ben Platt and Nic Rouleau.  I thought the show was funny.  By the time I saw the Chicago Production, I had listened to the Original Broadway Cast Recording numerous times and could understand the songs without having to hear all the lyrics.  







     
     When "The Book of Mormon" performed at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre for the first time, the Mormon Church bought all the ad space inside the Playbills that would be distributed to theatergoers.  I don't know if the same thing happened in Chicago or New York, but I noticed an ad in both playbills that said "you saw the musical, now read the book," and the ad showed a smiling face of a man next to a copy of the Book of Mormon.









     Anyway, besides Ben Platt (Elder Cunningham) and Nic Rouleau (Elder Price), this production of "The Book of Mormon" starred Pierce Cassidy (Elder McKinley / Moroni), Syesha Mercado (Nabulungi), James Vincent Meredith (Mafala Hatimbi), and David Aron Damane (General).  From what I remember, this was a good cast.  I just remember thinking it was a good production, yet complaining to Kathryn (who paid for the tickets) about not being able to see all of the scenic design.  I'm such a jerk.... and there's not one perk for being a jerk.  Hey, I'm good at rhyming.  I should write musicals.  




Syesha Mercado and Ben Platt in "The Book of Mormon."





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       The third time I saw "The Book of Mormon" was in 2016 when the National Tour performed in Chicago for about six weeks.  I had gone down to the theatre box office to inquire about employment,  and wound up buying a ticket for that day's performance of "The Book of Mormon."  







     I needed a laugh that day, and got more than I bargained for.  The show was just as good as it was the previous two times I had seen it.  I'm grateful I saw it the times I did, because I certainly got the laughs at that sort of subject matter out of my system...at least for the next ten minutes.  While seeing "The Book of Mormon" this time around was just as good, it was different seeing it by myself.  










     The cast of this Chicago Engagement of "The Book of Mormon" included Ryan Bondy (Elder Price), Cody Jamison Strand (Elder Cunningham), Candace Quarrels (Nabulungi), David Aron Damane (General), and Sterling Jarvis (Mafala Hatimbi).  Towards the beginning of the show, I didn't really like this cast of "The Book of Mormon."  But, as the musical went on, they didn't exactly grow on me, but I started to appreciate their acting styles.  I think I wanted to be able to compare replacement casts with the Original Broadway Cast.  It got boring after awhile, so I decided to just enjoy the show, which was much easier to do.  

     



Ryan Bondy and David Aron Damane in "The Book of Mormon."















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