Photo by Joan Marcus

Horribly offensive but I couldn't stop laughing. I wasn't sure what to expect going into The Book of Mormon but I have only heard how good the musical was and how hard it was to get tickets because it was always sold out. Let me tell you that The Book of Mormon totally lived up to its hype.

Photo by Johan Persson

The Book of Mormon follows two new "Elders" of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Elder Kevin Price and Elder Arnold Cunningham who are teamed up and sent to Uganda on a two year mission to convert the African people there to Mormonism. Elder Price, who's dream was to preach in Orlando, Florida, thinks this turn of events is a punishment. After a failed attempt to convert the locals, he ends up abandoning Elder Cunningham, leaving him with the gigantic task of converting at least one African before a status update needs to be sent to the Mormon leader by the end of the week. However, Elder Cunningham has a little problem with lying embellishing the truth and that leads to hilarious consequences.

The Book of Mormon was conceived by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone; Parker and Stone are the same people who created TV's South Park, so expect the same type of witty, potty mouth humour. This is definitely not a show to which you can bring your kids. The religious satirical musical was full of swearing, sexual connotations (there's even a song revolving around it), and is politically incorrect. It is offensive but equally offensive to everyone - religion, AIDS, Africans, Chinese even! The play may leave you in a state of shock because they are not afraid to offend; You have to have a good sense of humor and remember that that is the intention.

Photo by Joan Marcus

Despite this, the musical is offensive to the point of hilarity and the songs were so catchy. It starts off with the upbeat song "Hello" and maintains that same type of high energetic tone throughout the whole show. I wouldn't have expected anything less from Robert Lopez, who brought you the songs from Avenue Q and Disney's Frozen! There are a lots of WTF moments when you listen to the lyrics closely. I know what will be on playing on repeat on Spotify tomorrow!

The cast was brilliant with their energetic singing and dancing. I could tell they really enjoyed playing their roles in the musical as much as we enjoyed watching them. The sets were elaborate and fun, and had really smooth scene transitions. There were also lots of pop culture references (great little gems for TV and movie fans!). The play does end on a pretty funny note and had a standing ovation. The audience couldn't get enough!

The Book of Mormon is musical not to be missed! It is playing for a limited run at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver from now thru Sunday, April 12th, 2015 only. Make sure to catch it before it's gone! Get your tickets at http://vancouver.broadway.com/shows/book-mormon-baa.

The Book of Mormon have a few (but expensive) tickets still available but there is still a chance for you to get your hands on tickets for only $25 each! Entries for a lottery will be accepted at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza beginning two and a half hours prior to each performance, every day. A limited number of names are drawn two hours before curtain. Read more about the lottery rules here.


Photos provided courtesy of Broadway Across Canada. 


Disclosure: Tickets to the show were received from Broadway Across Canada free of charge. The opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own and have not been influenced in any other way.