It’s likely you’ve been hearing about The Book of Mormon and probably not the Joseph Smith ‘magical glasses’ version. The play, penned by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, has been the toast of critics since its Broadway debut in 2011, earning 9 Tony awards, a Grammy and heralded by the New York Times as “The best musical of this century.” And now it’s making a stop in Toledo at the Stranahan Theater for an 8-show run—just in time to bring us a healthy dose of heresy for the holidays.
Hello! I’d like to talk to you about our Lord Jesus Christ
The show is centered around the journey of two missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Elder Price and Elder Cunningham and their journey to spread the good word of the Book of Mormon. The faithful and rising Church Star Elder Price, hoping to land a sweet gig proselytizing in Orlando, FL, is shocked when he is partnered with Church black sheep, Elder Cunningham, and stationed in Uganda. Upon arrival, they learn that a healthy helping of faith might not be the answer in the war-torn, AIDS-ridden plains of Africa.
While that brief synopsis might lead you to expect a venomous deconstruction of the Mormon religion in typical South Park fashion, the show actually paints a surprisingly warm, albeit sharp and snarky, picture of the faith. Not to say you shouldn’t expect the show to be pushing the envelope of raunchiness, but its real genius covers the spectrum from filthy to philosophical, delivering not just a hilarious caricature of one of America’s quirkiest religions, but a satire of all organized religion. In fact Parker has described the show as,“An Atheist’s love letter to religion.”
Though the South Park duo is known for always-offensive and foul-mouthed cartoon antics by four small town kids ripping through pop culture, Parker and Stone both have a background in musicals. Starting in college by raising 100k to produce and film the campy cult classic Cannibal: The Musical (now viewable on Netflix) and all the way to an Academy Award nom for Blame Canada, a song from the 1999 South Park movie, they’ve proven their ability to pull a song out of off-color humor. Those chops, coupled with their upbringing in the very Mormon-friendly state of Colorado, are the basis for the show.
Shut up and Take My Money
The play’s original Broadway-run tickets have been notoriously difficult to acquire and it’s looking like Toledo is no exception. If you want to get seats, you need to act fast; a Stranahan Theater box office representative stated, “It’s easily been the fastest selling ticket of the year, and we’re on pace to sell out every show.”
Get your tickets for The Book of Mormon at theaterleague.com/toledo/BookofMormon, or call the Stranahan Theater box office at
419-381-8851.