ML - Michigan Avenue

2012 - Issue 8 - December 2012/January 2013

Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!

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Robert Lopez, Matt Stone, Trey Parker, and Casey Nicholaw are just as silly as Mormon stories." When the trio's The Book of Mormon premiered on Broadway, pundits were no doubt ready to assail it as the latest skirmish in our culture wars. Zingingly satirical, the show " Most everyone in the show is presented as being well- intentioned. Th at's the key to it. " —ROBERT LOPEZ riotously recounts the misadventures of a pair of young missionaries as they encounter a despotic African poten- tate. But the Broadway audience is a Catholic bunch, with folks of all stripes sitting in the seats, from Upper West Side lefties to Midwest soccer moms— and they ate it up. No wonder. As Lopez remarks: "Quite honestly, the show doesn't make fun of Mormons that much. Most everyone is presented as being well-intended. That's the key to it. Everyone is a good person trying to do good the best way they can. It's a very conventional show, and it really has a proreli- gion message." Lopez, who collaborated with Stone and Parker on the book, music, and lyrics, was raised Catholic in New York. His understand- ing of Mormonism—unlike that of Colorado-bred creative partners—was typical outsider's impression, leavened by what he picked up in college from renowned literary scholar Harold Bloom, who catego- rized Mormon scripture as akin to J.R.R. his the Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. "He spoke of how literature is transforma- tive," Lopez recalls, "that it changes society and consciousness, but that there's really no difference, say, between Shakespeare and the Bible." Despite its transgressive humor, The Book of Mormon doesn't slam true believers. Lopez, who had a crisis of faith in college, admits, "At one point, I realized that all that stuff I believed as a kid was made-up, it was all theater and phony. And I thought, Oh boy, all that good feeling and spirituality I felt was based on nothing. There's no God, and I should feel alone in the uni- verse. And then, growing up a little bit, I realized the truth of the stories didn't matter. They change people's lives for the better. Whether they really believe in the stories or just take them as examples of how to live, religion and religious stories can be a force for good. That's what we wanted to write about." The Book of Mormon opens December 11 at Bank of America Theatre, 18 W. Monroe St., 312-977-1710; bookofmormononbroadway.com MA DANCE MAN Casey Nicholaw recalls how he scored the job of choreographing Mormon elders. It's a long way from a youth production of Annie Get Your Gun in San Diego to the stage of New York's Beacon Theater on Tony night. But that's the trajectory of The Book of Mormon choreographer and codirector Casey Nicholaw's creative life. Of course, between these milestones, there were the auditions that went nowhere, as well as supporting roles in Victor/Victoria and Thoroughly Modern Millie. But when he rented a studio and invited directors and producers in to see his own choreography, his career assumed a whole new profile. Award- winning director Mike Nichols came calling, and the two teamed up on the Monty Python- inspired Spamalot. Creating the dance numbers for The Book of Mormon, Nicholaw embraced a buoyant style that, at times, makes for a hilarious counterpoint to the crazy goings-on in the story. "There's a theme park, Up with People style to the movement," he suggests. "It's got a fun, cheesy quality." But not in a knowingly ironic way. "Not at all," he says, "It really serves the moment." MICHIGANAVEMAG.COM 69

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