Mamma Mia! The Musical

If you still love a good Abba tune then there is lots to like in this new Australian production. Or if we were to mangle some of Benny and Björn’s lyrics Mamma Mia here it goes again….third time round how can we  resist you?  

The audience is gorged with plenty of eye candy. Freed of having to copy a West End or Broadway template, the new set (designed by Linda Bewick) is a bright orange terrace that looks gorgeous and immediately made us feel we were in the Mediterranean.  The younger lads in the cast with well chiselled abs are frequently required to lose their shirts even if the dramatic reason is not always apparent. By contrast the younger female members of the ensemble get to keep themselves under wraps.

The show is also kind on the ear. Music in Mamma Mia! is much more satisfying than what was pumped out by the original Swedish quartet. If you revisit Abba on YouTube after seeing Mamma Mia! you will notice how much of a better sound you get from the stage show. It helps having a larger band and ensemble to flesh out those songs of love and anguish.

Dramatically Mamma Mia! is a little less satisfying. The story-line of a young bride inviting three former lovers of her mother to her wedding - to try to find out which is her father – is of course farfetched.  It is nonetheless a very clever device to drop in Abba songs and rather than being completely immersed in this story, the audience is often amused when hit songs are dropped into the narrative.

The meatiest roles in Mamma Mia! are the women’s characters, led by Donna Sheridan – the mother of the bride.  Natalie O’Donnell -  a veteran of this musical - has come the full circle, graduating from playing the young bride Sophie in the original 2001 production to now being her mother. Her songs felt the most authentic.

The three candidate fathers Sam (Ian Stenlake), Harry (Phillip Lowe) and Bill (Josef Ber) all looked and sounded the part, with pommy voiced Harry coming closest to matching the performance of the corresponding actor in the movie (Collin Firth). The bridegroom Sky (Stephen Mahy) and bride Sophie (Sarah Morrison) also make a lovely looking couple.  

Dancing in this musical never disappoints, with a highlight being the buoyant routine in flippers as the boys head off to their bucks party.  The audience, too, rises to their feet for the final song that is aided by a very impressive flashing disco wall that surprises and delights. A good time is had by all.

David Spicer

Photographer: James Morgan.