REVIEW: THE BOOK OF MORMON @ THEATRE ROYAL PLYMOUTH

🎭 The Book of Mormon

📍 The Lyric, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Royal Parade, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 2TR 

🗓 Wednesday 15th January 2025

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

BRILLIANTLY BLASPHEMOUS!

Brace yourself Plymouth, the Mormon's have arrived! Filled to the brim with humour that is closer to the bone that Colonel Sanders' chicken, THE BOOK OF MORMON follows two young missionaries as they head to war-torn Africa to convert the locals to Mormonism.

Adam Bailey is the wide-eyed rising star of the church Elder Price who gets paired with Sam Glen's socially awkward Elder Cunningham, who just wants a best friend and soon discovers that Africa is nothing like The Lion King!

Simply put, the combination of Bailey and Glen is genius casting. As well as shining individually they made an iconic duo, managing to deliver all the iconic lines from the show whilst still making the characters their own. Bailey as a real charisma which shines throughout and Glen has perfect comedic timing. They are both a joy to watch and have fantastic vocals, creating a wonderful dream team.

It's seems nothing if off limit for the writing team of Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone, and fans of their previous works will know that if you are easily offended then this show is not going to be for you! The wonderfully poetic way the Mormon religion is dissected is a work of genius, especially during the song I Believe where we see just how blindly members of the church will follow the teachings.

The staging of the production is a phenomenon and the choreography from Casey Nocholaw is a thing of beauty. The big numbers such as All-American Prophet and Spooky Mormon Hell Dream are visually pleasing, but my personal favourite moment was Turn It Off, led by Tom Bales who was gloriously camp as Elder McKinley.

The harmonies on display were absolutely incredible from start to finish and songs such as Hasa Diga Eebowai had me in a state of amazement of the talent on the stage. Nyah Nish had a gloriously pure vocal and held the audience in hushed awe as she performed Sal Tlay Ka Siti. As Nabulungi she had a wonderful stage presence and was endearing throughout.

This show was outrageously and fantastically offensive and it had me laughing until I snorted! Just when you think there's nowhere left to go, it continues to push the boundries and is unapologetic! Without doubt it's the funniest thing you'll see this year!

THE BOOK OF MORMON is something incredible and is playing at Theatre Royal Plymouth until Saturday 25th January. Click here to check availability and to book tickets.

Neill Kovacic-Clarke

All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one person.

My ticket for this performance of The Book of Mormon was gifted by the Theatre Royal Plymouth who invited me to watch the show in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given.

CAST LIST:

Adam Bailey as Elder Price; Sam Glen as Elder Cunningham; Nyah Nish as Nabulungi; Tom Bales as Elder McKinley/Moroni; Kirk Patterson as Mafala Hatimbi; Will Barratt as Price's Dad/Joseph Smith/Mission President; Rodney Earl Clarke as General/Satan

Ensemble: Tolu Ayanbadejo; Dan Burstow; Hayden Cable; Benjamin Cameron; Olympia Curry; Daniel George-Wright; Daniel David Griffith; Savannah Hall; Alex Hayden; Aaron Levi; Zachary Loonie; Jessica Oppong; Jake Reynolds; Kayode Salina; Harry Simpson;

RUNNING TIME (approx):

2 hours 20 minutes, including interval

CONTENT WARNINGS:

Flashing lights; Complete blackouts (short); Gunshots; Explicit language; Offensive content