Mamma Mia! The Musical Princess Theatre review: How can we resist you?
REVIEW: THE time was right for Mamma Mia! when we first saw it in 2001 and it still is, four Melbourne seasons, later. It’s the happy summer holiday this city needs.
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THE time was right for Mamma Mia! when we first saw it in 2001 and it still is, four Melbourne seasons, later.
With its warm Greek island setting, melodic ABBA songs and story celebrating strong female characters, it’s the happy summer holiday Melbourne needs.
Now well into their Australian tour, the performers are slick, and glide through the 22 hits that propel the plot forward and bring an emotional arc to the drama.
STARS FALLING IN LOVE ALL OVER AGAIN AS MAMMA MIA! RETURNS
Just as ABBA can be underestimated, Mamma Mia! is such an enjoyable show that it looks easy to scale — but to master the timing and to cast it well is a huge challenge.
This tight production manages to not only overcome those demands, but to excel with fine singing and character portrayals. There are changes in the production — the set is fresh and there is more choreography for the ensemble, which lifts the party atmosphere.
Most characters in the first production were English but the film’s departure from that has been embraced by Melbourne director Gary Young with a mishmash of nationalities.
Some are from Frankston and some are Londoners, which takes some adjusting.
It may have been updated but, at heart, it’s still a story about a single mother, Donna, trying to make it on her own while her more traditional daughter, Sophie, wants to settle down at just 20. She also wants to meet her father, inviting the three potential dads to her wedding day.
The men’s arrival on the island is also a catalyst in their lives, and all three are played well by Phillip Lowe, Ian Stenlake and Josef Ber. They are perfectly cast.
Sarah Morrison is strong as Sophie with the audience eagerly awaiting her first solo with a verse of I Have a Dream and she sets the tone for an evening of triumph. Her fiance, Skye, played by Stephen Mahy, helps bring the house down in the flipper dance.
Natalie O’Donnell makes a perfect Donna. She is suitably feisty, comic and strong, performing some of the toughest songs, such as The Winner Takes it All, with great command and heart. Alicia Gardiner (as Rosie) and Jayde Westaby (as Tanya) carry much of the comedy with brilliant timing and physicality.
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