A member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he asked his local congregation’s leader for help paying his mortgage. That bishop, Nolan says, authorized him to receive $40 for food.
His dismay turned to fury when, months after that conversation, news broke that the LDS Church had allegedly stockpiled about $100 billion in accounts meant to fund charitable works. How, Nolan wondered, could the church hoard such wealth when so many were suffering?
“The Good Shepherds” satirizes the church’s enormous financial portfolio and accusations that it is stingy in providing humanitarian aid. Unlike the popular Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon,” Nolan said his show does not mock the faith’s practices or beliefs.
“It is generating social awareness of the fact that they’re the richest church on planet Earth, that they have zero financial transparency and that they don’t do enough to help others,” Nolan, 39, of Cache County, Utah, said of his musical.
The show is slated to debut in March with five performances in Ogden, Utah, about 30 miles north of Salt Lake City. Tickets start at $19, plus a processing fee.
Doug Andersen, a spokesman for the LDS Church, declined to comment on the musical or confirm Nolan’s interaction with his bishop.
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