The Robinson Center will welcome “The Book of Mormon” to its stage Feb. 12-17. The Broadway musical comedy has been touring the states for a year and a half and is stopping in Little Rock for eight performances.
The show has won nine Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Score, Best Book, Best Direction, Best Featured Actress, Best Scenic Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Sound Design and Best Orchestrations. “The Book of Mormon” features set design by Scott Pask, costume design by Ann Roth, lighting design by Brian MacDevitt and sound design by Brian Ronan.
We sat down with Zach Erhardt, who plays two characters in the show — Elder Smith and Elder Zelder. The St. Louis native talks his favorite moment from the show, his favorite roles over the years and more.
How long have you been touring with “The Book of Mormon?”
I am coming up on a year and a half. I joined August of 2017 and before I know it, it’s already January of 2019.
Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into the business?
I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. When I was in sixth grade, I broke my ankle playing soccer and my choir teacher, who had my two older sisters, came up to me and was like, “Hey, I know you’re obviously not playing soccer for the season, so you should audition for the school musical.” It was “Peter Pan” and I auditioned for the show and haven’t really looked back since then. I did theater all over St. Louis, like Stages St. Louis, The Muny and COCA downtown. I went to college for it at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and I’ve been with the show essentially since I graduated from university.
What have been some of your favorite roles over the years?
Oh my gosh, that’s a hard question. I played Emmett in “Legally Blonde: The Musical” — that is a really, really fun one. I did Seymour in “Little Shop of Horrors” and I think that show is so much fun. It’s hilarious and I got to work with some really, really great people as well. I think those are top two for me.
What do you love the most about being on stage?
I think the benefit of this show is that it’s a comedy. So it’s really awesome to be a part of something every night that as soon as we go out there and start ringing the doorbells, people are on our side and they’re having an amazing time. No matter the day I’ve had or the week I’ve had, I can’t leave this show in a bad mood. It’s totally authentic. I have a great time doing this show every night.
Tell me a little about “The Book of Mormon.”
It’s written by the creators of “South Park,” Trey Parker and Matt Stone, with the music by Robert Lopez, who you’ve probably heard from “Frozen.” Basically, it’s about these two Mormon missionaries who get sent off to Uganda and they expect their mission to go one way, and it doesn’t exactly go as they planned. And since it’s from the creators of “South Park,” it’s very hilarious and unexpected and all of the like. The tour’s been going on for six years and been on Broadway for longer than that, so they’re doing something right. It’s a great, great show.
Who is your character?
I play two characters in the show. I play Elder Smith in the very beginning, who gets sent off to France for my mission location. Then once Elder Price and Elder Cunningham get to Africa, I then play a character named Elder Zelder and I’m one of the ensemble dancers so I do all the backup dancing and backup vocals for the main guys when a musical number is happening.
What scene or moment do you look forward to every night?
I don’t want to give too much away, but the end of Act I is when everything sort of comes together and there are little clips of every song that’s happened so far and we’re doing this painfully white hip-hop and it’s super funny. It’s a time where we’re able to break out of our super uptight Mormon boy motifs and move into this funny, hip-hop life. It’s that first time that we’re all doing a dance in unison and everybody’s singing at the top of their lungs. I cannot help but to have an ear-to-ear smile.
For tickets and more about the “Book of Mormon,” head to Celebrity Attraction’s website.