FROM UTAH TO UGANDA

When the missionaries in The Book of Mormon embed themselves in an African village, raucous comedy ensues

STORY BY Page Leggett

If you’ve ever encountered a clean-cut, young man in white shirt and tie from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints—and who hasn’t?— you’re familiar with the peripatetic youths who are central to the religion founded by Joseph Smith in the early 1800s.

Joseph was both the founder of a faith and a zealous proponent of polygamy, which, In this musical, makes him a target for comedic jabs. (In this musical, anything could be a target, including musicals.)

But the raucous, raunchy and irreverent The Book of Mormon doesn’t poke fun at the notion of faith itself. It draws the line somewhere. As offensive as it may be to some, there’s a gentle side to it, too, said Lamont J. Whitaker, who plays Ugandan village chief Mafala Hatimbi. (The action takes place in Utah and Uganda.)

Whitaker’s favorite moment in the show is the final scene when the Mormons and Ugandan villagers come together to sing “Tomorrow Is a Latter Day.” He said, “It’s the last moment in the show, but it’s the first time we’ve all come together as one group with one voice and one harmony.”

I see my friends through times of joy and sorrow. What happens when we’re dead? We shouldn’t think that far ahead. The only latter day that matters is tomorrow.

Sweet, right? It’s a far cry from the song Whitaker sings in Act I that he describes as “one of the craziest songs in the show.” It is certainly that, and Whitaker won’t reveal its sacrilegious English translation. He’ll just say that his high-minded character “wants peace and prosperity for the village.”

One thing that makes the ending so satisfying for Whitaker is that it’s Elder Cunningham who “uses his own weirdness to pull everyone together and save the village.” And that’s after he began as the awkward, unsure, less-experienced missionary—the one who, Whitaker said, “is always half a step behind everyone else.”

From The Kings Of Crude

The Book of Mormon was created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the mad geniuses who gave the world the long-running, animated sitcom South Park, and Robert Lopez, composer of the equally irreverent musical Avenue Q (along with Disney’s Frozen.)

The Book of Mormon, which opened in 2011, follows two Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints missionaries, the previously-mentioned goofball Elder Cunningham and the smart and wholesome Elder Price (both roles played—and both Tony Award-nominated—in the original Broadway production by Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells, respectively), as they attempt to bring the gospel to villagers in a remote part of Uganda. Other Mormon missionaries have failed to convert a single soul, but Elders Price and Cunningham are undaunted.

The musical, replete with sexual humor and F-bombs, didn’t seem to offend Tony voters. It won nine Tonys, including Best Musical, and it’s become one of the most successful shows in Broadway history.

Whitaker sees it as much more than a comedy. He believes in the message of the musical and said, “Musical theater always has a message.” And if you’re thinking of the show as purely an (at-times) vulgar send-up of Mormon missionaries, that message might surprise you: He said it’s a show about the “power of faith.”

But more than that, it’s about “the power one person can have to change a community.” And here, that one person doubted his abilities. Elder Cunningham comes to see his own unique gifts.

A Natural For The Role Of Tribal Chief

Whitaker, who was born and raised in Miami, joined the tour last summer and was gearing up for his 267th performance when he spoke with Encore. And he’s still having fun.

Even though he finds the material laugh-outloud funny, he said it’s not hard for him to maintain a straight face onstage. “My character finds nothing funny,” he said. “At the end of the day, I know I need to stay true to my character and the story.”

Prior to The Book of Mormon, Whitaker toured with Summer: The Donna Summer Musical. His other credits include Grease, A Bronx Tale (regional premiere), The Color Purple and Legally Blonde (West Coast premiere).

His role as the village chief requires him to speak in an African dialect, which he said comes naturally. His grandmother worked to connect Black people in Miami/Dade County with the African diaspora. “Growing up around her, I was always around people from Africa,” he said. “So, I don’t even think twice about the dialect.”

His role as Chief Mafala has added meaning because, in honor of her work as a cultural ambassador, his grandmother was given the honorary title of chief of the Nigerian town of Badagry. There was one ceremony in Miami and another in Badagry to mark the occasion.

Although his grandmother has since passed away, Whitaker said, “This role makes me feel really connected to her. I think she’d be proud. It’s a fullcircle moment.”

NETWORKS PRESENTATIONS

PRESENTS

BOOK, MUSIC AND LYRICS BY

TREY PARKER, ROBERT LOPEZ AND MATT STONE

WITH

SAM M c LELLAN SAM NACKMAN

KEKE NESBITT SEAN CASEY FLANAGAN LAMONT J. WHITAKER

TREVOR DORNER DEWIGHT BRAXTON JR.

BERNIE BALDASSARO DeVON BUCHANAN GIDEON CHICKOS

JARIUS MIQUEL CLIETT MATT COSCO MATTHEW DANT TIANNA DAVIS

JUSTIN FORWARD CRAIG FRANKE AARON CHANCELLOR GILMER LARS HAFELL

ELIAH B. JOHNSON KISAKYE VANCE KLASSEN EVAN LENNON

JOEY MYERS CONNOR OLNEY TRINITY POSEY THOMAS ED PURVIS

MICHELLE RAY REYNEL REYNALDO KYLE SEGAR CHELSEA M. SMITH

SET DESIGN COSTUME DESIGN LIGHTING DESIGN SOUND DESIGN

SCOTT PASK ANN ROTH BRIAN M ac DEVITT CHAD PARSLEY BASED ON THE ORIGNAL DESIGN BY BRIAN RONAN

HAIR DESIGN ORCHESTRATIONS DANCE MUSIC ARRANGEMENTS

JOSH MARQUETTE LARRY HOCHMAN & GLEN KELLY

STEPHEN OREMUS

ASSOCIATE MUSIC SUPERVIOR MUSIC DIRECTOR MUSIC COORDINATOR CASTING

JUSTIN MENDOZA MASON MOSS JOHN MEZZIO C12 CASTING

TOUR BOOKING AGENCY TOUR PRESS AND MARKETING COMPANY MANAGER

CARRIE GARDNER, CSA

PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER

THE BOOKING GROUP/ ALLIED GLOBAL BRAD SIEBEKING EMMA IACOMETTA MEREDITH BLAIR MARKETING

GENERAL MANAGEMENT EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

GENTRY & ASSOCIATES SETH WENIG NETWORKS PRESENTATIONS STEVEN VARON-MOORE WALKER WHITE

MUSIC SUPERVISION AND VOCAL ARRANGEMENTS

Stephen Oremus

DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY JENNIFER WERNER

ORIGINAL CHOREOGRAPHY BY CASEY NICHOLAW

ORIGINALLY DIRECTED BY

Casey

NICHOLAW AND TREY PARKER

Cast

(in order of appearance)

Mormon VANCE KLASSEN

Moroni..........................................................................................................SEAN CASEY FLANAGAN

Elder Price SAM McLELLAN

Elder Cunningham ...................................................................................................... SAM NACKMAN

Missionary Voice TREVOR DORNER

Price’s Dad TREVOR DORNER

Cunningham’s Dad................................................................................................. GIDEON CHICKOS

Mrs. Brown TRINITY POSEY

Guards ............................... DeVON BUCHANAN, JUSTIN FORWARD, THOMAS ED PURVIS

Mafala Hatimbi LAMONT JOEL WHITAKER

Nabulungi ......................................................................................................................... KEKE NESBITT

Doctor KYLE SEGAR

Elder McKinley SEAN CASEY FLANAGAN

Joseph Smith ........................................................................................................... TREVOR DORNER

General DEWIGHT BRAXTON JR.

Mission President ................................................................................................... TREVOR DORNER

Ensemble DeVON BUCHANAN, GIDEON CHICKOS, JARIUS MIQUEL CLIETT, MATTHEW DANT, JUSTIN FORWARD, CRAIG FRANKE, LARS HAFELL, KISAKYE, VANCE KLASSEN, EVAN LENNON, JOEY MYERS, TRINITY POSEY, THOMAS ED PURVIS, MICHELLE RAY, KYLE SEGAR, CHELSEA M. SMITH

Understudies

Understudies never substitute for the listed players unless a specific announcement is made at the time of the performance.

For Elder Price—CRAIG FRANKE, VANCE KLASSEN

For Elder Cunningham—LARS HAFELL, EVAN LENNON

For Mafala Hatimbi—DeVON BUCHANAN, THOMAS ED PURVIS, KYLE SEGAR

For Nabulungi—ELIAH B. JOHNSON, CHELSEA M. SMITH

For McKinley/Moroni—GIDEON CHICKOS, CRAIG FRANKE

For Price’s Dad/Joseph Smith/Missionary President/et al—GIDEON CHICKOS, LARS HAFELL

For General—DeVON BUCHANAN, JUSTIN FORWARD

SWINGS

BERNIE BALDASSARO, DeVON BUCHANAN, MATT COSCO, TIANNA DAVIS, AARON CHANCELLOR GILMER, ELIAH B. JOHNSON, CONNOR OLNEY, REYNEL REYNALDO

DANCE CAPTAINS

CONNOR OLNEY, THOMAS ED PURVIS

ASSISTANT DANCE CAPTAIN

ELIAH B. JOHNSON

THE BOOK OF MORMON ORCHESTRA

Conductor/Keyboard 1—MASON MOSS; Associate Conductor/Keyboard 2—THOMAS MICHAELS; Guitar—ARI FRIEDMAN; Bass—JOHN CONVERTINO Drums—JARED SHAW; Reeds—ALEX JASHINSKI; Trumpet—SEAN McKAY; Trombone—BRIAN MORGAN; Violin/Viola—ANNIKA PORTER

Keyboard Programmer—RANDY COHEN

THERE WILL BE ONE 15-MINUTE INTERMISSION