The Book of Mormon co-creator Matt Stone (South Park) was on hand to welcome theatregoers back to the Eugene O’Neill Theatre May 27 following the three-week closure of the Tony-winning musical due to a May 4 fire in the theatre’s spotlight booth.
Tony winner Stone noted that it’s the third “time we’ve opened the show,” also referencing the original Broadway opening in 2011 as well as the post-pandemic opening in 2021. The writer thanked everyone who worked tirelessly over the past few weeks to make the theatre “safe and sound.”
Stone was joined onstage by Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who issued a proclamation honoring the efforts of the FDNY firefighters who saved the theatre. The proclamation, declaring May 27 as FDNY Appreciation Day, was accepted by FDNY Chief of Department John M. Esposito.
Watch the complete speech in the video below.
READ: 5 Reasons to See The Book of Mormon on Broadway
The producers of Mormon and ATG Entertainment, the owner and
operator of the O’Neill, previously stated they are “grateful to all of the
teams who worked diligently to get the theatre returned to operation
quickly and safely, and cannot wait to welcome audiences back.”
The Book of Mormon, currently celebrating its 15th anniversary on Broadway, is the longest-running show in the 100-year history of the O’Neill and the 10th longest-running Broadway show of all time.
The Broadway cast is currently
headed by Kevin Clay as Elder
Price, Diego Enrico as Elder Cunningham, Sydney Quildon as
Nabulungi, Charlie Franklin as Elder McKinley, and Jacques C. Smith as
Mafala
Hatimbi.
The Book of Mormon
opened on Broadway March 24, 2011, subsequently winning nine 2011 Tony
Awards, including Best Musical, as well as the Grammy for
Best Musical Theatre
Album. The Broadway production also won five Drama Desk Awards,
including Best Musical; the NY Drama Critics Circle Award for Best
Musical; the Drama League Award for Best Musical; and four Outer Critics
Circle Awards, including Best Musical.
The Book of Mormon features
a book, music, and lyrics by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone.
The production is choreographed by Casey Nicholaw and directed by
Nicholaw and Parker.
READ: As The Book of Mormon Nears Its 15th Anniversary, Broadway’s Elder Price Is Nearing His 10th
The musical also has set design by Scott
Pask, costume design by Ann Roth, lighting design by Brian MacDevitt,
sound design by Brian Ronan, hair design by Josh Marquette,
orchestrations by Larry Hochman and Stephen Oremus, music supervision
and vocal arrangements by Oremus, dance music arrangements by Glen
Kelly, musical direction by Justin Mendoza, and casting by Carrie
Gardner.
The West End production opened in February 2013, winning four Olivier
Awards, including Best New Musical.
