Every morning for the past three weeks I have read the same billboard advertising The Book of Mormon outside Manchester Piccadilly station. It’s hard to miss with its huge, capitalised slogan: ‘THE MORMONS ARE BACK’.
I didn’t understand the significance of the return of this outlandish but hilarious show until last night. Yes, I must confess, I was experiencing this production for the first time, but it has already been on stage in Manchester in both 2019 and 2021.
The plot follows the story of two missionaries sent to preach the Mormon religion to a Ugandan village. This remote setting comes as a disappointment to star-pupil Elder Price (Adam Bailey) who had his heart set on being a missionary in Orlando.
To further his anguish, Elder Price is coupled with Elder Cunningham (Sam Glen) who has a penchant of exaggerating the truth.
After a Lion-King send-off at the airport, they meet their fellow Mormons in Uganda who have had little success with zero baptisms and conversions – but Price and Cunningham hope to change the odds.
This duo is a delight to watch as they navigate Africa together trying to persuade the villagers to believe the teachings of the Mormons. Of course, this is no easy feat as the locals have no regard for any divine powers in a world of famine, AIDS and tyranny – just listen to the tune Hasa Diga Eebowai.
Among the laughter there was also an awe for the voices of Elder Price and Elder Cunningham who helped sing hits including I Believe and Man Up. Nabulungi (also called Nutella, Neutrogena and Nigel Farage) (Nyah Nish) sang tunes such as Sal Tlay Ka Siti, captivating the audience’s attention.
During the interval – and a much-needed Little Moons break – I was able to gauge what my fellow theatregoers thought of the show. To my surprise, it seemed many of the audience members were watching The Book of Mormon for the second or third time.
Even my guest had seen it in 2019 – this proved to be a great comfort during some of the more outrageous jokes. I regularly found myself turning to them, with my hands over my face in shock, for support as if to say, ‘have I just heard that right?’ or ‘did they actually just say that?’.
It’s not hard to see how this show brings audience members back as it is a melting point of catchy songs, extravagant dance routines and humour both offensive and risqué. I have never laughed so much – and I must specify laugh-out-loud laughter – during a theatre performance in a very long time, perhaps ever.
It was certainly refreshing to see a comical musical, subverting our expectations of the theatre genre. Such genius is commended to South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.
The Book of Mormon was a musical I had always heard of but never seen – after last night’s performance I’m glad to say I now know what Hasa Diga Eebowai means. This outrageously funny musical is playing at The Palace Theatre until 5 October 2024, so if you’re not easily offended, grab some seats and watch it while you still can.
Tickets are available here.
Featured image credit: Paul Coltas
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