Interview: Jacob Aune of THE BOOK OF MORMON at Cadillac Palace Theatre

Fifteen years after its Broadway premiere, The Book of Mormon remains one of the most popular, sold out shows, and it’s returning to Chicago for a limited time! 

BroadwayWorld spoke with Chicago-based Jacob Aune who plays Elder Cunningham about what makes this show continue to be so popular, what we can learn from Cunningham, and how this show is a full circle moment for him. 

The interview has been edited for clarity and length. 
 

---

I know this is a full circle moment for you. Can you talk about your relationship to The Book of Mormon?

When I was 13 years old, I'd been seeing ads for a musical, and I had never gotten to see a Broadway show yet. I was begging my parents, ‘Can we please go see this show?’ I got into the soundtrack, I knew what I was getting into. I convinced my mom to bring me to see The Book of Mormon at the CIBC Theatre in Chicago, and we both loved it. I was quite young at the time. My mom was maybe a little hesitant about bringing me to it, but it ended up being one of both of our favorite musicals.

Fast forward to last year. I'm fresh out of college. I moved to Chicago, and pretty much right away, I see a listing for their casting of the Book of Mormon Tour. I submit my materials, and just a few weeks after doing so, I'm debuting as Cunningham in the same theater I saw it when I was 13 at CIBC. It was truly full circle. 

What does it mean to be playing Elder Cunningham on the national Broadway tour, and to be performing it here in Chicago? 

It's incredible. I feel so lucky everyday, truly. I tell all my close friends, every day I get to do this and bring it to a different city — I don't take it for granted. With a show like this that has this incredible list of amazing actors and comedians that have played these roles, it's really an honor to step into that. The part that I feel most proud of is to be able to look at the people like Josh Gad or Ben Platt and to be able to bring my own spin to it. I'm really proud to take on that challenge and make it my own every night, 

 

What would you say your spin on Cunningham is?

He's just a bundle of energy and joy. He's like a lightning bolt of excitement. So I don't find that too hard to bring every night. I love to be able to channel that. But I think what makes the comedy work for the show is to really put myself into it. It's one thing if we went out there and we just repeated what's been done in the past. A reason why the show has survived as long as it has and just continues to do really well in these cities that we visit is because of the new cast members that we have. We all bring ourselves into the role, so it's fresh every time you see it. The comedy works because even if you're a longtime fan, I can guarantee that I'm not bringing the exact show that you saw last time. Or Ethan Davenport, my friend who plays Elder Price, isn't going to be the same Elder Price as the last time you saw it. 

 

Like you just said, the Book of Mormon is one of the most successful shows in Broadway history, having won nine Tony Awards including Best Musical and the Grammy for Best Musical Theatre Album. A lot has changed since it premiered in 2011. What about a show described as “the filthiest, most offensive, and sweetest thing you’ll see on Broadway” makes it so popular and withstand time? 

We come to these new audiences watching the show, and we still get the same response. The show's about two Mormon missionaries who are sent on a mission, and they're met with these unimaginable and impossible circumstances that they have to overcome. And somehow, the story is so well written that you watch these boys rise to those impossible challenges, and you can't help but see the parallels to today and what we're seeing. It doesn't sound too far off — rising to these impossible circumstances and trying to find community. It's a story that's as old as time. I think that's what carries the show in today's time. People can still come and laugh their ass off, but also they leave with that message. 

 

This is your national tour debut! What has been your favorite memory of the tour so far? 

That's a tough one. We’re together all the time. This cast — we can't escape each other. We've made so many memories on the road. I don't know if I can think of something specific, but I've met many lifelong friends, even from this season. I joined about a year ago and we're on my second season of this tour, and we just got a bunch of new cast members and everyone's amazing. But even some of the people that have left from this year to last year, I’ve just made lifelong friends. I feel incredibly lucky to have that in my life. I'm so happy. 

What have you learned from Elder Cunningham?

I feel like there's part of Cunningham that allows me to connect with part of myself a little bit. He's the comedic lightning bolt of the show. Right from the top of the show, he's there and we can't avoid seeing him. He's going to make himself clear on stage, Right off the bat, it's also very clear that he is the odd one out of the bunch. But behind the comedy of that trope is a very sincere story about wanting to fit in and wanting to matter and, in the end, gaining courage to believe in yourself. Being able to do that every night connects to that part of me that I think we all feel at times. 

What do you hope people take away from The Book of Mormon after they see it at the Cadillac Palace?

I'm always hoping people can come and have a great time and laugh. There may be a few jokes that have your eyes widen, which is just the style of Trey Parker and Matt Stone. We want people to see the show, have a great time, and leave realizing and being kind of shocked of how sweet the story is. It's a story about community and building that community in tough times. I think we can all relate to that. That's what we hope that people take out of it. 

---

Thank you to Jacob Aune and Broadway in Chicago for this interview! 

Get Chicago Emails & Offers

Get the latest news, discounts & more