Thanks to huge demand and the natural thirst for a good laugh the book of mormon is making its triumphant return to brisbane in early 2020. Nyk bielak elder cunningham, will blum elder cunningham, ryan. Written by south park creators trey parker and matt stone, alongside robert lopez avenue q, the musical comedy follows the misadventures. The book of mormon has been wowing and i mean wowing crowds around the world for the better part of a decade now, with. You cant fake chemistry the book of mormons two leads know this all too well. The broadway smash hit musical comedy, the book of mormon, written by trey parker, matt stone and robert lopez, celebrated its th. Author newstalk zb, publish date sun, 1 mar 2020, 12. Blake bowden, nyk bielak, tigist strode, tyson jennette, joel granger, andrew broadbent, augustin aziz tchantcho, steve danielsen, kieran mcgrath the book of mormon is a religious satire musical with a book, lyrics, and music by trey parker, robert lopez, and matt stone. While both were a little bit controversial at the time as imports from broadway, both were fantastic in their roles.
Elder cunningham in the book of mormon fop beard enthusiast pizza lover. Queensland blessed with book of mormon encore sunshine. The book of mormon original, musical, comedy, broadway opened in new york city mar 24, 2011 and is currently playing. Originally hailing from winnipeg, canada, he arrived. Words with blake bowden elder price and nyk bielak elder. All of which should send up a cautionary flag to anyone expecting the book of mormon to be a cheerleading session for organized religion. In honour of book of mormons closing night in sydney, here is a compilation of various elder mckinleys screaming crush it. Nyk bielak elder cunningham nyk is pumped to be here in new zealand. The book is clever and funny, the songs, which occasionally slyly nod to wicked and alan menken, are musicalcomedy manna, and the choreography just keeps getting more inventive as the show goes along. We caught up with two of the stars for a quick chat about what the west coast can expect. Nyk bielak, tigist strode and company of the musical comedy the book of mormon. Shauntelle benjamin, blake bowden and nyk bielak in the book of mormon photo by jeff busby. Blake bowden, nyk bielak, tigist strode, tyson jenette and joel granger.
The book of mormons ultimate message is that it doesnt matter what the specific tenets of a given religion are, but that love, compassion and humility are positive forces in the world. The worlds most inappropriate and rude musical is about to open in auckland, but really the book of mormon is a masterclass in satire with heart. The book of mormon is one of the most successful musicals of all time and its opening in new zealand this week. The book of mormon is offensive, sure, but its got a. The book of mormon is to musicals what south park was to animated television. He has also toured the us and canada with the awardwinning. Blake bowen nyk bielak, tigist strode, tyson jennette, joel granger directors. It also happens to be one of the most successful musicals in the world right now, having spawned multiple productions in multiple languages around the world and won awards. Nyk bielak and company of the book of mormon picture. The new york times declared the book of mormon the best musical of the century. Host matt koplik bakes with standbys gabe gibbs and nyk bielak from the book of mormon and discuss the importance of creating your own opportunities, being ready at a moments notice, and the.
I had the chance to see it at crown theatre on opening night and it was the funniest live show i have. The book of mormon, the first broadway musical by matt stone and trey parker the creators of south park. Book of mormon stars full of praise for each other as they. Nyk bielak brings book of mormon to new zealand newstalk zb. Originally hailing from winnipeg, canada, he arrived direct from the new york company of the book of mormon in which he made his broadway debut. Jeff busby following a tour which has taken the company around australia and new zealand, the book of mormon is headed back to brisbane one more time for an encore. Queensland blessed with book of mormon encore queensland times. Blake bowden and nyk bielak reflect on the book of mormon. Tigist strode and nyk bielak in the book of mormon. The book of mormon is a modernday miracle nz herald. Nyk has also had the pleasure of touring the book of mormon across the united states and canada. Nyk bielak is also strong as colead elder cunningham, playing up the goofiness of his role with ease. Book of mormon stars full of praise for each other as they prepare for. The book of mormon plays at qpacs lyric theatre until 31 may and will return to brisbane in january 2020.
The book of mormon, the hit broadway musical by matt stone and trey parker the creators of south park, and bobby lopez avenue q, frozen is now playing in perth until november. Nyk bielak bio, photos, theatre credits, stage history he is currently in book of mormon on broadway. Photos by jeff busby the book of mormon book, music and lyrics by trey parker, robert lopez and matt stone directed by casey nicholaw and trey parker musical supervisor and vocal arrangements by stephen oremus choreography by casey nicholaw lyric theatre queensland performing arts ce. Comedy musical stars blake bowden and nyk bielak reveal what keeps them, and audiences, coming back night after night. Book of mormon actors blake bowden, left, and nyk bielak have performed the show more than times and are getting ready to kick off the auckland leg of the shows tour.
The book of mormon has endured huge success and its fair share of healthy controversy since first stagings in 2011. Photo supplied nyk bielak brings book of mormon to new zealand. The book of mormon stars are on a mission to entertain. Blake bowden and nyk bielak star as elder price and elder. The original australian cast for the book of mormon in 2017 included bom veterans ryan bondy as elder price and a. Blake bowden, nyk bielak, tigist strode and company of the book of mormon picture. This strictly limited season will be performed in the queensland performing arts centres qpac lyric theatre. Perth has waited a long time for the book of mormon, and it was worth it. The staging and lighting design brings it all together to create a largescale, highclass production to match the occasion. The book of mormon musical dingdonged its way into our hearts and funnybones at qpac for the queensland premiere of the highlyacclaimed and anticipated broadway sensation. The stars from book of mormon, nyk bielak and blake bowden were in auckland and auckland live got them to play a fun game to get to know them better.
Turn it off is a tapdancing delight, while spooky mormon hell. On january 25, 2016, christopher john oneill was temporarily replaced by longtime elder cunningham standby nyk bielak. December 2017 melbourne mckinley rowan witt, price ryan bondy, cunningham. Following the adelaide season, the book of mormon will play crown theatre, perth from 3 september 2019, and returns to qpac lyric theatre, brisbane from 3 january 2020. As soon as the mormon missionaries elder price blake bowden and elder cunningham nyk bielak touched down in uganda, i was transported back to those days in the mid90s sitting in front of the television. Blake bowden and nyk bielak in the book of mormon crafted in part by the creators of south park, mormon satirises the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, campy music numbers and all. Originally hailing from winnipeg, canada, he arrived direct from. The book of mormon book, music and lyrics by trey parker, robert lopez and matt stone cast. The book of mormon crown theatre perth 4 september trey parker and matt stone never seem to be able to do wrong. Casey nicholaw, trey parker 16 march 31 may, 2019 lyric theatre, qpac, brisbane.
Ryan bondy plays the slightly fullofhimself elder price determined to be the most successful mormon ever, stuck with nyk bielaks bumbling and loud character elder cunningham. Blake bowden and nyk bielak reflect on the book of mormons. The official database for broadway theatre information. Nyk has performed with all three north american companies of book of mormon. And eight years after its broadway debut, the hit comedy is finally coming to perth. The book of mormon is a musical comedy with music, lyrics and book by trey parker, robert lopez, and matt stone first staged in 2011, the play is a satirical examination of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints beliefs and practices that ultimately endorses the positive power of love and service. The book of mormon stars nyk bielak and blake bowden at the shows opening night party. Blake bowden and nyk bielak star as elder price and elder cunningham in the outrageous broadway smash, which. Broadways breakout original hit from the creators of south park is knocking on perths door on a tonyaward winning comedy mission. The book of mormon opens this week at perths crown theatre and fans have been waiting 8 long years for the international favourite to head to western australia. The book of mormon on broadway official site the show. Parker and stone were best known for creating the animated comedy south park. From south park to baseketball to team america, theyve just gotten funnier and funnier over the last 20 odd years. Its canadian import via the broadway production bielak who steals the show though as cunningham, with his nervous.