Interview: Dewight Braxton Jr. of THE BOOK OF MORMON at Ohio Theatre

Dewight Braxton Jr. remembers the reactions of some of his professors and football coaches at Ferris State University when he told them he was transferring to Wayne State University to study theater.

“My engineering teachers were like, ‘I don’t think this is a good idea.’ My coaches were like, ‘What? Really?’” said the actor, who plays the General in THE BOOK OF MORMON, which runs from Oct. 8-13 at the Ohio Theatre (39 E. State Street in downtown Columbus).

“Some people were not supportive, but I think I have a lot of perseverance. I really don’t let people dictate what I do.”

Braxton Jr. jokingly compares himself to Troy Bolton, the high school basketball standout who discovers an infinity for theatre in HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL. He enrolled in a theatre class at Ferris State and the professor offered extra credit if a student tried out for the school’s production of DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS.

“You know I love that extra credit,” Braxton said. “Somehow it worked out with my coaches because I was a red shirt that year. It also worked out with my engineering classes.”

Slowly the extra credit project became a life-changing pursuit. Braxton Jr. said the first thing to go was football because he knew he wasn’t going to be playing at the next level. Then once he got an associate degree in engineering, he thought, ‘let me go after this.’”

For the last three years, Braxton Jr. has been pursuing his dream full time as the General, a ruthless Idi Amin-like war lord in Uganda who has a surprising encounter with Church of Latter Day Saints missionaries, Elder Price (Sam McLellan) and Elder Cunningham (Sam Nackman).

The controversial musical, written by SOUTH PARK creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone as well as songwriter Robert Lopez, has as many kudos as it has critics. When it debuted on Broadway, THE BOOK OF MORMON won nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical. However, it was criticized for being off color, offensive, and off-putting.

Growing up as a fan of SOUTH PARK, Braxton Jr. says the mixed reactions come with the territory.

“They walk that line between satire and having a meaningful, powerful story,” he said.

Braxton Jr.’s character is a perfect example. He is nearly always referred in newspapers as The General because his full name can’t be printed in a family-friendly website.

The General is not a people person, solving any personnel problems with violence. Elder Cunningham describes the General in the hilarious song, “I Believe,” as “a warlord who shoots people in the face? What’s so scary about that?”
Off the stage, Braxton Jr. claims to be as far from the General as humanly possible but he enjoys the challenge of playing the villain.

“It's fun. I get to do something I usually don't do,” he said. “It’s challenging trying to make him a three-dimensional character … because one-dimensional villains are just boring.

When he first started on the tour, Braxton Jr. felt this ominous shadow behind him, saying he shouldn’t be there.

“(Compared to the other people in the show) I got a late start in acting. I was constantly battling imposter syndrome,” he said. “You feel like ‘Am I talented enough to be here?’

“That feeling was really bad that first year. I had to sit down and tell myself, ‘They picked you for a reason. Everything that comes to you is yours.’ Now I know I deserve to be here.”

Photo credit: Julieta Cervantes

Head shot courtesy of Allied Touring

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