At the end of the first act of The Book of Mormon, now playing Austin's Bass Concert Hall for a two week run, I thought to myself, 'This is the most distasteful, crude, offensive, and subversive musical I've ever seen, and I'm loving every minute of it.' When I went out to the lobby, it was clear that the audience agreed. Everyone was smiling and wiping away tears of laughter as they quoted some of the best lines so far.
Yesterday's SIP lineup featured a Facebook video from KINKY BOOTS' Lena Hall and Annaleigh Ashford, a little shoe swapping from CINDERELLA's Laura Osnes and Santino Fontana, Broadway's MATILDA, plus ANNA NICOLE Opera, PETER AND THE STARCATCHER, Crown Uptown's CATS and more!
THE BOOK OF MORMON, the religious satire musical written by Trey Parker, Matt Stone (the creators and writers of South Park), and Robert Lopez (Avenue Q) has given the national tour its latest missionary assignment: The Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, Texas.
It's Saturday, and that means it's time for BroadwayWorld's 'Saturday Intermission Pics' round-up. Today's photos come from the casts of THE FANTASTICKS celebrating 20,000 performances this weekend, the national tours of EVITA and GHOST, THE BOOK OF MORMON, CHICAGO, JERSEY BOYS, THE COLOR PURPLE and TOP HAT in the West End, and more!
I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. My sisters took dance classes several nights a week, so it was easier for my Mom to just bring me along. I think I was about six when I started taking class. One weekend a bunch of the moms were taking their daughters to audition for The St. Louis MUNY and I tagged along. I marched in place and belted out 'You're a Grand Old Flag' at the top of my lungs and, to my delight and surprise, ended up being cast in the children's ensemble of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. I became addicted to performing almost instantaneously. I went on to do shows at The MUNY and other local theaters for many years to come.
Yesterday, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz helped unveil a new mural, painted by artists and student volunteers from Groundswell, in the underpass of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway on Atlantic Avenue. Scroll down for photos!
In March 2011, Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone's joyfully irreverent, soulfully blasphemous, and wholly scandalous comedy THE BOOK OF MORMON took Broadway by storm, going on to win 9 Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Score. The musical quickly developed a ravenous parish of fans that simply couldn't get enough of the bawdy spectacle, and left many around the nation counting the days until the First National Tour kicked off. After a short two-and-a-half year wait, Houston audiences are getting their chance to experience the production, and judging by last night's reaction, we couldn't be more enthusiastic or pleased. Now holding a coveted spot as one of the best musicals I have ever seen, this show was definitely worth the wait!
Yesterday's photos included shots from PIPPIN, Broadway's MATILDA, the national tour of THE BOOK OF MORMON, FOOTLOOSE, and the final SIP from the 25th Anniversary National Tour of LES MISERABLES. Plus, photos from freeFall Theater's SPRING AWAKENING, featuring Rachel Potter and Chase Peacock, Ogunquit's JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT and more!
THE BOOK OF MORMON is an absolute go see production for anyone who is not a language prude or a religious fanatic. It is filled with total delight, magical showmanship, a marvelous score, creative dancing and fine staging. It's everything a modern musical that is meant for pure entertainment, with a sip of philosophy, should be!
The Book of Mormon opened in Toronto last Thursday, kicking off a sold-out six week run at The Princess of Wales Theatre. Arguably the most hyped show of the year, Toronto audiences have been clamouring to get tickets to this Tony Award Winning production. BWW was on hand opening night to see if the show does in fact live up to the hype, and we are happy to report that the Mormons are indeed a crowd pleasing bunch.
'The Book of Mormon' may be outrageous, irreverent, and puerile in the extreme, but the most offensive thing about this insipid show is its insulting lack of wit.
Starring Mark Evans as Elder Kevin Price and Christopher John O'Neill as Elder Arnold Cunningham, the comedy duo bring convulsive comedy to the stage rivaling veteran actors Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Each elder attempts to spread the good news in his own way; Arnold seems to pull scripture out of his a$$ to fit whatever point he is trying to promote. Kevin tries the traditional method but winds up having to pull the actual book out of his a$$ after it was unceremoniously placed there by a terrorist. It's never fun being the butt of a joke.
It would be easy to be either immediately won over by the hype surrounding this show before ever seeing it, or to be disappointed once you had, because it couldn't possibly live up to it. That's why I go into these things with reasonable expectations. I'm already a fan of Trey Parker and Matt Stone (South Park, Team America, Cannibal! The Musical, etc) and Robert Lopez (Avenue Q, Phineas and Ferb, etc), and I can certainly appreciate the work they did creating the book, music and lyrics for this show, THE BOOK OF MORMON. But, I do think you have to be attuned to their particular brand of humor in order to fully appreciate it. Poking fun at religion is certainly nothing new for any of them, and they've always brought a sense of the conventions of musical theatre to whatever art form they've tackled, and with THE BOOK OF MORMON they've produced something which is both terribly funny and catchy as well.
Prospect Theater Company will present a developmental reading of TAMAR OF THE RIVER, a new music theater work with music and book by Marisa Michelson and book and lyrics by Joshua H. Cohen. The reading will be directed by Daniel Goldstein.
Prospect Theater Company will present a developmental reading of TAMAR OF THE RIVER, a new music theater work with music and book by Marisa Michelson and book and lyrics by Joshua H. Cohen. The reading will be directed by Daniel Goldstein.
Broadway Across America - Fort Lauderdale has announced their subscription series presented by Florida Theatrical Association in partnership with the Broward Center for the Performing Arts sponsored by Bank of America. From the creators of South Park and winner of nine Tony Awards, The Book of Mormon will play a limited three-week engagement November 26 - December 22, 2013. Season Subscribers receive priority ticket opportunities to shows so a season subscription is the only way to guarantee seats to The Book of Mormon.
Mark Evans and Christopher John O'Neill just joined the cast of the national tour of The Book of Mormon as Elder Price and Elder Cunningham respectively. They replaced Gavin Creel and Jared Gertner who join the West End company at the Prince of Wales Theatre from February 25. For a complete list of tour stops, visit: http://www.bookofmormonbroadway.com
BroadwayWorld brings you photos of the new cast in action below!
