But Is the Script on Golden Plates?

The show that has been dubbed “the best musical of this century,” The Book of Mormon, returns to PPAC this month. Irreverent, unconventional and insanely popular, Mormon still has the ability to shock while providing a superior musical comedy experience. The musical stretches all boundaries of conventional taste, but contains a warmhearted core that continues to resonate. Motif had the opportunity to chat with cast member Jacques C. Smith, who has been with the tour for just over a year.

Smith portrays the village pseudo-spokesman, Mafala Hatimbi, welcoming two young Mormon missionaries with the ebullient cry of “Hasa Diga Eebowai” (a phrase that actually translates into something far more sacrilegious than the missionaries expect). He told Motif that the part, a “connective tissue between the villagers and the Mormons,” has grown over the past year. “Once you start, you know what you’re supposed to do, but then it gets to grow, as opposed to being taught the part by the stage manager or the dance captain. The lines are the lines, but the company [consists of everyone] bringing in your own person. Different cities have different reactions, which helps and propels a performance. It always grows, and I’m old school…I like to go back to the script. It keeps it fresh.”

With a long pedigree of both Broadway and national tours (including Rent and If/Then), Motif wondered if Smith was familiar with Providence. “Yes! I love Providence,” he enthused. “I was here in 2016 with IF/THEN, in 2009 with the RENT tour after the show closed on Broadway, among others. I loved it and I’m looking forward to the food … it’s a nice quaint town. I’m also looking forward to seeing some of the same dressers and local crew, as well.”

With a return engagement to PVD, does he think RI audiences will still be shocked? “Oh, 100%. I think that’s a benefit and something that’s very attractive about our show. They’ve heard about it whether they’ve seen it or not. They just know it’s a highly awarded musical.”

Jacques C. Smith and the rest of Mormon comes to PPAC April 23-28. Visit ppacri.org/events/detail/the-book-of-mormon-2 for more details.