Best Of: 'Book of Mormon' turns 15 / Actor Clarke Peters

Fresh Air

Fifteen years after ‘The Book of Mormon’ made its Broadway debut, original cast members Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad once again took the stage as Mormon missionaries — this time at the 2026 Tony Awards. The musical is a satirical — sometimes affectionate, sometimes offensive — look at Mormonism and youthful naïveté. Rannells and Gad spoke with Terry Gross about their first impressions of the show, how their voices have changed, and how the songs in 'The Book of Mormon' are a tribute to musical theater.


Also, Clarke Peters played Det. Lester Freamon in ‘The Wire’ and now plays a retiree in the supernatural thriller ‘The Boroughs.’ He spoke to Terry Gross about both series, and about his continued work as an actor. “I picked this profession so that I would have longevity, so that I could still be acting at 100, if it comes to it,” he says. 

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2026-06-13 48 min

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