Donna Sheridan (front), (Fiona Greaves), Tanya (back) (Anne-Marie Case-Miller) and Rosie (Heather Connolly). Photo / Kerry Blakeney-Williams
Donna Sheridan (front), (Fiona Greaves), Tanya (back) (Anne-Marie Case-Miller) and Rosie (Heather Connolly). Photo / Kerry Blakeney-Williams
Forty years after Abba shut up shop as a working band, their music is still more catchy than Omicron and Hamilton Musical Theatre's production of Mamma Mia! is the proof.
Credit to HMT for having the guts to put on a live performance at a time when so many public events have bitten the Covid dust. Everyone in the auditorium had to be vaxx-certed and face masked. But, those inconveniences aside, HMT's production of Mamma Mia! is just intoxicating right through to the end-of-show romp where the cast belts out a bunch of Abba's tunes to the delight of the audience.
Directed by John Drummond, the cast is big but Riverlea is not big. So congratulations to all the people who made the whole thing work, including the musical direction, clever sets and rigorous choreography.
From left: Harry Bright (Jonathan Kay), Bill Austin (Mike Scanlon), Sophie Sheridan (Bethany Petrovich), Sam Carmichael (Lindsay Amner). Photo / Kerry Blakeney-Williams
Based on a book by Catherine Johnson and preceded by a movie adaptation, the stage show centres on Sophie who is living with her mum Donna at their taverna on a scenic Greek island.
Sophie is about to marry her sweetheart Sky, something her mother neglected to do back in the days of free love - as a result Sophie doesn't know who her dad is, and really wants to. Following the trail of 'dot-dot-dots' in her mother's dairy, from 21 years earlier, she invites three potential fathers to the nuptials - a sure-fire recipe for chaos.
This wends its way to a grand finale where everyone ends up with someone and lives happily ever after. It's a great big feel-good.
The lead role of Sophie is played by Bethany Petrovich - and it's her wedding, and her quest to find her father that forms the basis of the whole tale.
A sunny blonde, Petrovich clearly has a stompin' good time and her performance really lifts the show. And if the players are having fun it comes across. Clammy face patches or no, there was no disguising the delight and enthusiasm in the audience.
But she is not alone, big shout-outs to co-principals Fiona Greaves, who plays Sophie's mum Donna, Anne-Marie Case-Miller as Tanya and Heather Connolly as Rosie - Donna's ditzy friends from their crazy days of youth and the possible dads - Sam - Lindsay Amner, Harry, - Jonathan Kay and Bill - Mike Scanlon.
The full company of Hamilton Musical Theatre's production of Mamma Mia! Photo / Kerry Blakeney-Williams
Through the show is threaded Abba's compelling music, despite being Swedish and singing in English as a second language, Abba spent a decade as one of the most popular musical groups in the world and anyone with the ears will pick the classical influences in the work of Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus.
The result of collaboration by a mid-North Island theatre consortium, Hamilton Musical Theatre's production of Mamma Mia! is Directed by John Drummond with choreography by Vicki Loynes, musical direction by Jonathan Hawthorn and production by Maureen Cruickshank,
The Details What: Hamilton Musical Theatre's production of Mamma Mia! When: Until February 19 Where: Riverlea Theatre, Riverlea Rd, Hamilton Tickets: iTICKET
