SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Dec. 22, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Calling all dancing queens, or at least those who haven’t already toddled in their platform boots down to the Eccles Theater for the brief Broadway tour stop of “Mamma Mia!”
It’s the 25th anniversary tour of the ABBA music packed show, and it may just be the perfect stress-relieving gift to give yourself during the season. And your chances end with Sunday’s matinee. For ticket information and availability, click here.
Opening night audiences showed up in sequins and glitter, feather boas and ’70s throwback fashion, and stood up to sway in unison to curtain call songs.
ABBA, of course, was the 1970s supergroup from Sweden, known for close harmonies, mostly upbeat lyrics, and tracks heavily layered in post production. Besides “Mamma Mia,” top hits included “Super Trooper,” “The Name of the Game,” “Take a Chance on Me,” and especially “Dancing Queen.” Expect to hear the latter multiple times during the 2.5 hour show.
The musical’s premise, of course, is that a an engaged 20-year-old girl (Sophie) raised by her single mother (Donna) on a small Greek Island, has always wanted to know the identity of her father, whom Sophie determines could be one of three men who briefly dated her mother.
So Sophie, pretending to be Donna, sends invitations to all three men to revisit the island. Sophie is determined to solve the paternal mystery and to have one man walk her down the aisle when she marries fiance Sky.
It’s a thin plot, with book by Catherine Johnson and music by ABBA members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, but it’s enough to provide the opportunity for 22 songs, accompanied live, plus lots of dancing and drama.
The sets, by Nancy Thun, are minimal and versatile, with two main pieces and accessories including restaurant tables and chairs, and a bed with bedroom accessories. Filling up the rest of the space is lighting that suggests the blue sky and ocean waves. Sets can be rotated to suggest one or two buildings, indoors and outdoors.
Costumes, by Mark Thompson, are a highlight of the show, and included everything from neon nightmare ware for “Under Attack,” to snorkels, abbreviated dive suits and flippers for groom’s pre-wedding dive, and Spandex ’70s performance costumes, bedazzled, with capes, bell bottoms and the aforementioned platform boots in silver.
Christine Sherrill is a strong as Donna, whose past has caught up with her. Sherrill has a strong voice, but a few times seems vocally to be slightly behind the instrumentals. It seems to be a stylistic choice, but is problematic with an audience that came to hear the exact sound of ABBA.
Sherrill also has just once voice, of course, which doesn’t match the ABBA signature sound of its two female members, Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, with their voices seamlessly blended into one. Additional singers on stage and backstage make up the difference in most cases.
Sherrill has great comic timing and convincingly portrays Donna’s understandable exasperation. Alisa Melendez is also great at Sophie, offering a strong singing voice and a good depiction of youthful love, impulsiveness and mental conflict.
And all three of Sophie’s potential dads — Jim Newman as Bill, Victor Wallace as Sam and Rob Marnell as Harry — are funny and quirky, and well up to the comic and dramatic acting required.
Other cast standouts include Grant Reynolds as Sophie’s steadfast finance, and Jalynn Steele and Cart Sajikive as Tanya and Rosie, Donna’s longtime friends and former backup singers. Both actresses have impressive voices, and their plot antics add a lot of humor, which is a nice break from the inherent angst of the plot. Sajikive gets the biggest laughs of the show with her romantically desperate rendition of “Take a Chance On Me.”
It’s a fun musical that may not change your life, but will get your heart pumping if you remember the ’70s band or the ’90s musical (or the 2008 or 2018 films), or have discovered an affection for ABBA in any other decade. But tickets are going fast, so act soon to secure a seat, and consider your sparkly, retro wardrobe options after that.
