Heaven in the West End does exist and it can be found at the Prince of Wales Theatre.By now, nearly everyone knows that this collaboration between Trey Parker and Matt Stone (the creators of South Park) and Robert Lopez (composer of Sesame Street parody Avenue Q) is about as offensive as they come: full of foul-language, blasphemy and slanderous images. But, like the water-into-wine miracle, all these elements merge magically into a show that brims with purity and kindness.
How can a show as defamatory as this possibly posses a heart of pure gold that could match any Rodgers and Hammerstein musical? Well, the answer comes in the form of the creator’s love of musicals, full stop. Parker and Stone have dropped several hints over the years, none so obvious as the 1999 feature film of South Park that contains over 16 musical numbers, with one of them (‘Blame Canada’) even being nominated for an Academy Award. The talented duo now combines forces with Lopez and this mixture is a cocktail for anarchy.
The Book of Mormon follows naïve but plucky Mormon missionaries as they are set down in the ever so unfamiliar world of Uganda. Unlike The King and I, these confident educators are not a widowed British governess sent to the 19th century court of Siam, but two limp young believers sent from the home of Mormonism in Salt Lake City to 21st century Uganda. Here the pair is confronted with villagers riddled with AIDS and a tyrannical warlord with one eye and a penchant for genocide – so, as you can imagine, finding their feet in this alien world is not so easy.
Along their difficult journey to salvation, Elder Price (Gavin Creel) and Elder Cunningham (Jared Gertner) find themselves tap-dancing with a group of closeted homosexual Mormons, descending down to the depths of hell where they encounter Adolf Hitler and Satan himself. They even manage to lose their faith and then be born again, all in the space of three minutes! Sounds funny enough, right? Well, the real genius comes when these dark ideas and moments are set to bright, plucky melodies creating one giant, cutting pastiche of the all-American traditional book musical, but at the same time fervently defending and embracing the art form.
The Book of Mormon is co-directed by Casey Nicholaw and one of the creators, Trey Parker. This pairing sees the musical brim with Parker’s natural flair for jeering at all things sacred in the most schoolboy of manners, while also retaining an air of utter class and finesse that must come from the steady and seasoned hand of Nicholaw.
The production’s choreography also comes from Nicholaw, who is obviously utterly fluent in the language of musical theatre, creating the quintessential version of every dance style ever seen in a musical with a sardonic flourish to rival even Parker and Stone. This superb choreography manages to evoke the tap orgies of Busby Berkeley, the over-zealous dancing of latter-day Broadway and even modern dance, making each number ridiculous and also genuinely moving.
Lopez’s score manages to parody the likes of Les Miserables, The Lion King and even the Sound of Music without ever once compromising on the quality of the music. If we didn’t all know their beginnings, the songs would still stand up to critique. It is this complex mixture of reverence and ridicule that keeps The Book of Mormon firmly in the territory of brilliant entertainment rather than cutting aggression.
Scott Pask’s evocative sets and Ann Roth’s well-judged costumes contain just the right amount of heightened reality before becoming cartoonish or overly absurd. Pask manages to transport the audience from Utah to the rotten poverty of a plagued African village several times in various inventive ways; quite some feat.
Nearly all of the cast give outstanding performances. They seem to know they are part of something quite brilliant, so they all raise their game to match the show. In particular, the sweet but savvy village girl Nabulungi is given a charm and earnestness by Alexa Khadime, never once letting on or sending up the naivety of her character – plus Khadime has one hell of a voice. The ensemble must all get a mention here for their commitment, enthusiasm and – surprisingly – their individuality. It is a hard task to stay as one cohesive unit while, at the same time, shining as an individual performer. However, every single one of the ensemble manages just that.
The Book of Mormon not only deals in heaven, but it takes its audience to a comic paradise like no other. It’s worth the price of the ticket several times over.
