South Park Creators To Make Mormon-Based Broadway Musical?

[Acturus]

*EDIT* Title is wrong. Should be "South Park Creators"

s'ry about that.

I hadn't seen anything about this posted yet...

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/...ry?id=10373622

tldr: Trey Parker and Matt Stone are discussing making a Broadway musical about the Mormon religion, expected to be released in 2011, but it sounds like it won't be a South Park thing.

Spoiler: show

"South Park" Makers Eye Mormon-Inspired Musical

By Christine Kearney
April 14, 2010

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The creators of television's satirical "South Park" animated show are set to cast their brash brand of humor on the Mormon church in a new musical comedy on Broadway, producers said on Wednesday.

The Emmy-award winning "South Park" creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, will write and direct the musical, called "The Book of Mormon," according to producers of the show. It is set to premiere on Broadway in March 2011.

It centers on two young Mormon missionaries sent to Uganda to spread the gospel of the church, which is formally known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A subplot revolves around Joseph Smith Jr., the church founder.

Calling it a "a dream come true for us," Parker and Stone said in a joint statement: "Growing up in Colorado, a lot of our friends were Mormons and we always thought their book would make a great musical."

Parker, 40, and Stone, 38, previously co-wrote the songs for the "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut," a musical movie based on the hit television show. The cartoon series, famous for its politically incorrect humor, debuted in 1997 and will celebrate its 200th episode this week.

The pair will team up with Robert Lopez, creator and composer of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical "Avenue Q." The show is being produced by Scott Rudin and Anne Garefino, an executive producer of the "South Park" television series.

"It really is in many senses a big traditional musical comedy, with, as you might expect, untraditional subject matter. I can't wait to see how Broadway audiences are going to react when they experience it," Lopez said in a statement.

The musical may prove to be controversial.

HBO recently apologized after an episode of its polygamy television drama "Big Love," starring Bill Paxton as a member of a fictional breakaway Mormon sect who has three wives, prompted calls and e-mails from angry Mormons.

None of the characters from the "South Park" television series, which mostly follows four young boys and their adventures in a fictional town called South Park in Colorado, will be transferred to the Broadway musical, according to a spokeswoman for the show.

Parker received an Academy Award nomination for best song for "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut." He and Stone also created the parody "Team America: World Police" that Parker also directed.

The Mormon church is based in Utah and has some 13.5 million members around the world. They follow the Book of Mormon, published in 1830 by Joseph Smith Jr., as well as the Bible and other scriptural texts.

Church spokeswoman Kim Farah declined to comment on the making of the musical.

(Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst and Paul Simao)

Copyright 2010 Reuters News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

[ZarakiKujata]

theyve been talking about this shit for years. I'll believe it when its opening night and Nathan Lane is playing cartman.

[Qalbert]

but it does say "South Park Creators" >_>
also

The musical may prove to be controversial.

No shit?

[Acturus]

but it does say "South Park Creators" >_>

Thanks for that.

And yeah, I've heard bits and pieces about this as well for a while, but the fact that they are projecting within the next 18 months means to me that there must be substance.

[Rhyis.]

and Nathan Lane is playing cartman

lol, perfect

[Ksandra]

requires posting:

[Conrad]

Joseph Smith was a prophet,
dumb dumb dumb dumb dumb