http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14900876 The Book of Mormon will make its debut next spring as a Broadway musical, but a lot of Latter-day Saints may not like it. Fans of satire, on the other hand, may love it.
"South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker are crafting a play -- right now dubbed "The Book of Mormon" -- that juxtaposes the story of two eager yet naive LDS missionaries in Uganda with the church's own complicated spiritual history, according to the New York Post.
Don't count on the play showcasing the kind of singing and dancing featured in Manti's "Mormon Miracle Pageant." If "South Park" is any indication, expect instead witty yet raunchy, profanity-laced satire.
Officials with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declined to comment Friday, and the musical's writers couldn't be reached. But the Internet's so-called Mormon bloggernacle is abuzz with the news.
"Count this Mormon as one who is actually excited about the musical," exults Logan resident John Dehlin at mormonmatters.org.
Dehlin spells out 10 reasons why he believes the Mormon musical could be good for the faith, including the notion that the Utah-based church is important enough to mock.
"How can they call us a cult once we're headlining 52nd Street? The Jews got 'Fiddler.' The Catholics got 'The Sound of Music' and 'Doubt.' It's our time to shine," Dehlin writes. "Start spreading the news ... Mormons meet Manhattan."
Other "South Park" fans among the
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LDS faithful are eager to see the production -- set to premiere in March 2011 -- and have no fear of the theatrical barbs.
"I realize we believe things that are crazy and unbelievable to outsiders," says Loyd Ericson, a Mormon studying philosophy at Claremont Graduate University in Southern California. "I'm willing to laugh at my culture and beliefs."
Plus, he says, Stone and Parker are smart enough to know that a mean-spirited production isn't going to attract a big audience. After all, they have gone down the Mormon road before on their long-running television show, Ericson says, and each time the topic has been handled in a critical but affectionate manner.
In one scene, people of diverse faiths are engulfed in hell's flames when Satan tells them, Mormons had the true religion. Another season featured a team of faith leaders, including Jesus, Buddha and Muhammad, taking on the magician David Blaine, who wants to start a religion. LDS Church founder Joseph Smith is among them, "the super friends," as the show is titled.
Then there is one entire episode, "All About the Mormons," which tells the story of a LDS kid who comes to town. He tells his new friends how the church began, a history that is spoofed as "dumb." But the boy, his parents and siblings, Ericson says, are portrayed as loving alternatives to some of the dysfunctional families around them.
The main character in Stone and Parker's 1997 feature film, "Orgazmo," was an LDS missionary who becomes a porn star but uses a stunt double in the sex scenes so he can marry his sweetheart in an LDS temple.
"Even in that movie," Ericson says, "Mormons were seen as kind of gullible, good-natured people trying to do what's best."
But can the duo get away with using the title of the LDS Church's sacred scripture to make fun of Mormons?
Probably, says Krista Weber Powell, a Salt Lake City attorney who specializes in intellectual-property law.
"You can't copyright the title of a book or play," Powell says. "But the LDS Church [via its intellectual-property arm] does own a trademark for The Book of Mormon with respect to audiotapes and CDs, as well as printed religious material, pamphlets and brochures."
That gives church officials some leverage, she says, but it may not be worth the publicity of a lawsuit -- especially against a pair of popular jesters who could use such a legal tussle for more satirical ammo.
Topic: Satirical whizzes bringing Book of Mormon to Broadway (Read 1180 times)