OMG! this play is sickly awsome! but whats it all about especially now that its winning all the Tonies and breaking soundscan as well as billboard records! (and what made it catch my eyes and ears?!). The Book of Mormon is a religious satire musical with a book, lyrics, and music by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone. Best known for creating the animated comedy South Park, Parker and Stone co-created the ....
music with Lopez, who co-wrote and co-composed Avenue Q. The show lampoons organized religion and traditional musical theatre, reflecting the creators' lifelong fascination with Mormonism and musicals.
The Book of Mormon tells the story of two young Mormon missionaries sent to a remote village in northern Uganda, where a brutal warlord is threatening the local population. Naive and optimistic, the two missionaries try to share their scriptures—which only one of them knows very well—but have trouble connecting with the locals, who are worried about famine, poverty, and AIDS.
After nearly seven years of development, the show premiered on Broadway in March 2011. The Book of Mormon has garnered positive critical response and numerous theatre awards, including nine Tony Awards. An original Broadway cast recording was released in May 2011, and became the highest-charting Broadway cast album in over four decades.
The Book of Mormon contains many religious themes, most notably those of faith and doubt. Although the musical satirizes organized religion and the literal credibility of the LDS Church, the Mormons in The Book of Mormon are portrayed as well-meaning and optimistic if not a little naive and un-worldly. In addition, the central theme that many religious stories are rigid, out of touch, and silly comes to the conclusion that, essentially, religion itself can do enormous good as long as it is taken metaphorically and not literally. The show's creators described The Book of Mormon as "an atheist's love letter to religion
The Book of Mormon received broad critical praise, mostly for the plot, score, and choreography. Vogue Magazine called the show "the filthiest, most offensive, and—surprise—sweetest thing you’ll see on Broadway this year, and quite possibly the funniest musical ever." The New York Post reported that audience members were "sore from laughing so hard". It praised the score, calling it "tuneful and very funny," and added that "the show has heart. It makes fun of organized religion, but the two Mormons are real people, not caricatures. now hear what the church had to say about it:
Church response
The response of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to the musical has been described as "measured". The church 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. Michael Otterson, the head of Public Affairs for the church, followed on April 2011 with measured criticism. “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,” Otterson wrote, outlining various humanitarian efforts achieved by Mormon missionaries in Africa in recent years.
Stone and Parker were unsurprised by this response:
The official church response was something along the lines of “The Book of Mormon the musical might entertain you for a night, but the Book of Mormon,”—the book as scripture—“will change your life through Jesus.” Which we actually completely agree with. The Mormon church's response to this musical is almost like our Q.E.D. at the end of it. That's a cool, American response to a ribbing—a big musical that's done in their name. Before the church responded, a lot of people would ask us, “Are you afraid of what the church would say?” And Trey and I were like, “They're going to be cool.” And they were like, “No, they're not. There are going to be protests.” And we were like, “Nope, they're going to be cool.” We weren't that surprised by the church's response. We had faith in them.
All i really care about is how good the music is because its awsome (been listening to it since yesterday). The music is really nice which the play is too, except for the emphasis on REAL FOUL LANGUAGE (well what do you expect from the creators of South Park).
If i were in the US, i would go see it ASAP so thank God for the Internet! lol
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