A Mormon's Review of The Book of Mormon the Musical

Last week I went to see The Book of Mormon Musical! (WHAT?! But you're a member of the church!?) Relax. I sat through two hours and did not lose faith. Before I went, I had quite a number of people say things like, "You sure you want to do that? I hear it's pretty crude." and "Uh, you know what the musical is about don't you?" I am well aware of the satire produced by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, creators of South Park. I was prepared to be offended. I was also prepared to laugh. I am able to find humor in just about everything, why would I stop at my religious beliefs?

 To put it plainly, I liked it. I did not love or hate it. I have seen a few shows here in London and after most of them I thought, 'I want to see it again.' However, I did not have that thought after seeing The Book of Mormon. Once was enough, although, I did like a lot of the songs they sang.

 Was I offended? Nah, not really. The show is offensive the way a rated 'R' movie is or if you live on this side of the pond a rating of '15'. I don't think the musical is offensive to just Mormons. I think anyone who believes in God and Christ would feel offended. There were two songs I did NOT applaud after. In the first act, a song called "Hasa Diga Eebowai" which in real life is gibberish, but in the musical it meant F-you, God. I could not in good nature clap after that musical number. The actors and dancers did a great job though! The other song was called "Man-Up". The lyrics said something about how "Jesus grew a pair when he died on the cross." Uh, yeah.

 The story was good, I liked all the actors and the set and the musical numbers were wonderful! I did write a review for one of my classes. Its only the first draft, but I will post it on here so you can read an unbiased opinion.

 Would I recommend it to other members of the church? Yeah.

 Also, I'm really proud of the response the church gave to this Musical. Did you know that the church bought advertisements in the Playbill? It said things like, You've seen the play, now read the book. Genius!

Below is a video of the opening song to the musical. It was preformed at The Tony's. Its my favorite.

Here is my review, keep in mind its a rough draft:

South Park creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have been pushing the envelope since 1997 with their crude humor and jokes at others expenses through animation. More recently the two and Robert Lopez released a musical, The Book of Mormon which came to the West End of London in February of this year.

The musical, which consists of two acts, follows two Mormon missionaries, Elder Price and Elder Cunningham. They are sent to a village in Uganda to serve for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and share the gospel. The two missionaries are plucked from their safe haven of Provo, Utah and faced with difficulties such as, culture shock, AIDS, poverty, famine and a warlord that terrorizes the village.

The cast is comprised of a range of talented artists. Most notable for his performance is Jared Gertner for his portrayal of Elder Arnold Cunningham who seemed to get the most laughs. His best and most anticipated lines came when he would incorrectly address the character Nabulungi. Through out the musical he goes through an evolution of names such as: Jon Bon Jovi, Nabajama, Nutella, Neosporin and Neutrogena. Gertner’s delivery was spot on and he knew what the audience liked.

Elder Kevin Price was played by Gavin Creel who shows true emotion of a distraught missionary. Of all the cast members, he seemed to connect with what being a Mormon missionary is really about.

One highlight from the show are during the ‘Spooky Mormon Hell Dream’ scene. While the portrayal of “Mormon Hell” is completely inaccurate, the use of dancing coffee cups along side characters Jeffery Dahmer, Hitler and Johnnie Cochran brought the house to their knees with laughter. It is questionable how many audience members actually understand the reference that Mormons abstain from drinking coffee and tea as part of their doctrine.

The music and the choreography were spot on throughout the show. Some songs from the show will have you singing for weeks after seeing the musical, including the opening number ‘Hello’ and also the catchy and brutally honest, ‘You and Me (But Mostly Me)’. Also, ‘I Believe’ is belted out beautifully by Creel in the second act.

Some songs were head scratchers. For example, “Baptize Me”, a song about a female villager who agrees to be baptized into the church was dripping with sexual innuendos. There was also, “Hasa Diga Eebowai”, which in reality has no meaning but in the musical it means, “F*ck You, God”. This song is just one of many ways that Parker and Stone attempt to get a rise out of the audience.

Another running joke throughout the play is about a villager who suffers from AIDS and openly admits to raping babies to cure himself of the disease. It is surprising to hear chuckles from the audience during these confessions.

Overall, the musical is funny and you will not walk away without laughing. The musical to some may seem offensive but if you have ever watched a South Park episode you will know exactly the type of humor to expect.

Susan "Hello!" B.

Troll Pelvic Bones

This semester is FLYING by! I can't believe I only have 5 weeks left of classes! Where did the time go? I have been busy with mid-term assignments and of course my senior project. Hence the reason for a slow blog season. I have been taking picture on my runs through Hyde Park. This is my favorite time of year in London. The trees are starting to turn golden and I love the changing colors.

 Alyssa and Duncan met me at Da Mario's for an early birthday dinner.  It was supposedly Princess Diana's favorite local pizzeria. I love Da Mario's pizza and pasta. It was great to catch up with Alyssa. We talked about how quickly my 2.5 years flew by!

 I run past this arch all the time but it caught my attention and I thought, "that looks like it could be a troll pelvis bone." I stopped running and snapped a photo. Far off in the distance is Kensington Palace. The Arch is by Henry Moore. It is six meters high and weighs 37 tons. It is made from seven traverstine stones from Northern Italy. It was presented to Kensington Garden by Henry Moore in 1980.

 See the bits of gold on the trees. There are also a ton of golden leaves on the path.

 I see these guys a lot when I'm out. Its all the Queens horses and all the Queens men. Just kidding. I bet she has a lot more than that. Its probably just some of them.

 They slow down traffic.

 I think they were on their way to rescue Humpty Dumpty.

 Union Jack at Buckingham Palace. 

 More golden leaves.

Successful selfie taken by Alyssa. I could never take a selfie that good.

Susan "It's my birthday month!" B.

Grilled Cheese And Sunshine

The weather has been so nice in London since I got back. I'm still wearing flip-flops! Any day in London that I get to wear flip flops is a good day. I've been trying to take advantage of my last semester here and seeing as much of London as I can. A couple of weeks ago, Shannon and I went to to the V&A late. The exhibitions were about destruction. Very interesting. On our walk there. the sunset was so beautiful!

 We found these crazy chairs to play in!

 Museum fun! 

 Borough Market is a hot London spot for foodies. It's always packed, there are plenty of different cheeses, specialty foods, and drink to taste and try plus really good prices on produce.

 About a year ago, some of the STABS (Study Abroad Students) kept raving about these grilled cheese sandwiches from Borough Market. I made it my life's mission to eat one. I had one failed attempt last summer when I couldn't find the grilled cheese guy, but this time I searched (in the pouring rain) and had an awkward conversation with a woman who knew very little English so we resorted to hand gestures. But she pointed me in the right direction and I found the queue for these Uh-mazing toasted sandwiches!

 Once I was in the right queue, the woman in front of me recognized my accent and asked where in the states I was from. She was from Denver and was visiting friends for the week. She used to live in London because of her husbands job and she came back for a quick girl's holiday. Sweet lady even let me stand under her umbrella. Everything I heard about these grilled cheese sandwiches was true! Toasted on Sourdough bread with bits of garlic and onion mixed in with the cheese. YUM! INCREDIBLE!

 I know I said London weather has been nice, but on the day we went to the market it rained, a lot, and we didn't have umbrellas. Luckily, the market is covered in most areas. Above is a shot of the newly built Shard building.

 Shannon and I found a place to stay out of the rain.

 So, I'm not a fan of taking pictures of food (unless it is cake) or seeing anyone else's picture of food. As a rule, there are three things that I will NOT 'like' on Facebook or Instagram: Food, Alcohol and work out regime. But this is a farmers market and there was a lot of really great colors so I took a few photos of my favorite things.

 Someday (soon, I hope) I will meet a boy and he will buy me roses as beautiful as the ones above.

 Then, that boy will ask me to marry him and I will choose Gerbera Daisies for our wedding flowers.

 Shannon ate an Ostrich burger. They also had Kangaroo burgers!!!

Next, we went to a great little chocolate shop and had a sample (or two).

 Wall of chocolate! Don't let the sign fool you. The wall was made of wood, which held the chocolate.

 I'm training to run the Tinker Bell 1/2 marathon in January. On one of my morning runs the weather was so beautiful I stopped and took a few photos.

Susan "Kangaroos Are Our Friend, Not Food" B.

Beck's Going Away Party...Almost

So Beck has been living in the U.K. until her visa runs out. Well, the Queen said, she's gotta go by October 1st. So we all got together for a quaint farewell. Let me back up a bit. Beck had been busy packing and getting ready to lead a student trip to Belgium. Whilst packing, she was rocking out to some Britney Spears, dancing around her room like she is Beyonce when a kick ball change gone wrong, breaks her foot. This is why they banned dancing in Footloose. After going to the doctor, they couldn't confirm that it was broke and told her to come back for X-rays. Well, she had a farewell party to go to so she decided X-rays could wait. Long story short, it's broke, she didn't get to lead the trip to Belgium and she needs to stay in U.K. to reap the benefits of medical insurance. We had a great night and I'm super glad she will be living in London for a little longer. Even if it's only a week longer.

 Tracy and Kelly.

 Beck and I.

 Silliness.

This last picture says it all.

Susan "Ooops, Beck Did It Again" B.