arts & entertainment

Faith Can Be Funny!

Much-anticipated — and very irreverent —
The Book of Mormon comes to the Fisher.

Suzanne Chessler
I Contributing Writer

L

arry Hochman's musical talents
have been linked to Judaism,
Catholicism and Mormonism, but
it's the link to Mormonism that soon will
draw local attention.
Hochman is among many award win-
ners recognized for work
on The Book of Mormon,
the hit musical comedy
on tour and being staged
March 12-24 at the
Fisher Theatre.
The show, with
humor stemming from
Larry
stark irreverence, won
Hochman
nine Tony Awards in
2011. Co-orchestrators
Hochman and Stephen Oremus won both
Tony and Drama Desk awards for their col-
laborations.
"I don't think there's anything in The Book
of Mormon where the music itself conjures
up spirituality as far as the Mormon religion
itself" says Hochman, 59, in a phone conver-
sation from his New Jersey home.
"The play is purely theatrical with enter-
taining music that underscores the story and
what the characters are going through. There
are many musical styles, and they reach from
ballads to metallic rock numbers"
The Book of Mormon humor derives
from the pairing of missionaries and their
unlikely tasks, testing faith and patience.
Elder Price (Mark Evans), very outgoing,
and Elder Cunningham (Christopher John
O'Neill), very awkward, face culture shock
in trying to convert Ugandans immersed in
poverty and AIDS. On Broadway, Andrew
Rannells (now on TV in NBC's The New
Normal and HBO's Girls) originated the role
of Elder Price while Jewish actor Josh Gad
(creator and star of the new NBC series
1600 Penn) played Elder Cunningham.
The musical, for adults, was developed
by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, four-time

Emmy Award winners for the TV series
South Park, along with Robert Lopez, Tony
Award-winning co-creator of the musical
comedy Avenue Q.
"I love the idea, the story and the humor
in The Book of Mormon, and I'm glad
it's been accepted by audiences at large,"
Hochman says. "What's different about this
show is that dramatic problems compound
before the end of Act I instead of later, and
the show never settles down.
"Every single song, which is where I look
for landmarks, outdoes the one before it,
and all the expectations that have been
set at the beginning of the show through
the characters and their problems are far
exceeded by what is delivered"
Hochman has three favorite songs in the
musical — "Sal Tlay Ka Siti" ("Salt Lake
City)" "Baptize Me" and "I Believe" The first
presents the dreams of a young girl, and the
second has double meaning, a religious bap-
tism and the undercurrent of romantic love.
The third song expresses faith.
Hochman comments on the satiric
show for a new book that has com-
ments by just about every Broadway
participant and many critics: The Book of
Mormon: Testament of a Broadway Musical
(Newmarket Press).
Script, songs, timelines and 700 images
help take readers behind the scenes.
"I often see a Broadway score, phrase
by phrase, moment by moment, as me
trying to picture myself as the character"
Hochman has written. "I try to follow the
story and be inside the story. I have to feel
I am telling the story, and I have to feel
myself in it:'
Stone, with Jewish heritage, uses the book
to explain his outlook for the production.
"Mormons are merely our specimen for
this examination of religion" Stone writes.
"Being a minority religion that most people
outside of Utah don't know a lot about, it's a
perfect way to get a theater crowd laughing
at something. Then somewhere they start
realizing that maybe they're not just laugh-

ing at this, but at
some of their own
In The Book of Mormon, young missionaries face culture shock
beliefs"
in trying to convert Ugandans immersed in poverty and AIDS.
Hochman's
involvement with
the show came from Lopez,
able on CD, premiered in 1994 Berlin at
"The phone rang, and Bobby asked me
a Holocaust commemorative concert and
to be the orchestrator" Hochman says.
later was performed in the United States by
"Bobby knew me from The Wonder Pets,
the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra.
the Nickelodeon series that had me as lead
"Writing about the Jewish experience
composer.
goes to my heart and soul" Hochman says.
"I received the music printed out from the
"In Memoriam has strong Hebraic themes
composer and my co-arranger, and I worked
that I feel are very spiritual, offering disso-
at my desk with score paper to write out the
nant and modern music to depict the hor-
arrangements. I was very old school"
ror of the Holocaust:'
Hochman, who has been playing the piano
Hochman, married with three daugh-
by ear since before kindergarten, attended
ters, serves as a role model for the young-
the Eastman School of Music and graduated
est, Laurie, 19. Between the two of them,
from the Manhattan School of Music with a
independently and together, they have
bachelor's degree in composition.
composed three songs for a new album,
His career held three turning points —
Celebrating the American Spirit.
"I still do composing, but it's not the
playing as both a pit and rehearsal pianist in
majority of my work" Hochman says.
New York during the 1970s, composing and
"Working on Jane Eyre and Monty Python's
doing arrangements for TV and radio com-
Spamalot pushed me along as an orches-
mercials in the 1980s, and orchestrating for
trator"
movies and feature films in the 1990s.
Hochman's newest orchestrations will be
His involvement with Catholicism
heard in two productions coming to New
entered the mix with a Michigan connec-
York: Pippin and Big Fish.
tion during the 1980s.
"One of the messages at the end of The
Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really
Book of Mormon is the reaffirming of
Reflect Up? — a musical comedy about
faith" Hochman says. "It shows faith isn't
Catholic schooling performed at the now-
dependent on believing every letter of
defunct Birmingham Theatre — required
every story.
Hochman's yearlong local residency while
"Being Jewish doesn't depend in believ-
he served as conductor.
ing literally. I believe that Moses parted
Music with Jewish themes has brought
the Red Sea, but you don't have to believe
out more somber experiences.
that to be Jewish"
In Memoriam, an original piece avail-

❑

The Book of Mormon runs March 12-24 at the Fisher Theatre in Detroit.
Performances are at 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, 7:30 p.m. Sundays and 2
p.m. Saturdays-Sundays. Ticket prices start at $49. (313) 872-1000; www.
broadwayindetroit.com . Note: The Fisher Theatre box office will conduct a pre-
show lottery for $29 tickets before each performance. Participants can enter
a drawing 21/2 hours before show time, and two hours before curtain, a random
drawing will be held for 20 seats. One entry per person; entrants can request
one or two tickets. Winners must be present at the time of the drawing and
show valid ID. More info: www.broadwayindetroit.com .

Jews

Nate Bloom

Special to the Jewish News

Oz Footnotes
Mila Kunis, 29, and Michelle Williams,
32, who co-star in the new film Oz
The Great and Powerful (see related

story beginning on today's cover)
are in the news for other reasons.
Williams and her boyfriend of about
a year, actor/writer Jason Segel, 32,
announced they were splitting up last
week; their publicist cited geography
as a major factor in the breakup.

44

JN

Williams has long lived in Brooklyn
with her young daughter. Segel moved
in with her about six months ago, but
he has to be Los Angeles all the time
for film and TV work (How I Met Your

"They take so much pride in their
work, and they take such good care of
their employees."

Mother).

The new ABC series Red Widow
debuted March 3 and continues to
air at 9 p.m. Sundays (you can catch
the pilot episode online). Created
and written by Melissa Rosenberg
(Twilight), 50, it stars Radha Mitchell
as a California woman whose late hus-
band was in the Russian Mafia. She
has to agree to work for the mob to

Kunis has just signed to be a
spokesperson for Gemfields, a
UK-based luxury jewelry company
with a reputation for good employee
treatment. Kunis insisted on touring
the company's African mines before
she agreed to be their spokesper-
son. She told Entertainment Tonight:

TV Notes

save her life and the
lives of her children.
Farmington Hills
native Jaime Ray
Newman, 34, who
has been in several
short-lived TV series,
has a supporting role Newman
as Katrina.
The 16th season of ABC's Dancing
with the Stars begins on Monday,
March 18. Gymnast and Olympic Gold
medal winner Aly Raisman, 18, will be
among those competing.

