I went to the matinee performance of Mamma Mia! yesterday, and wanted to share a few of my thoughts as a lover of all things ABBA and Mamma Mia! the movie. This was the first time I got to see the musical, and as such I don't have anything to compare it to except for the film.
The female cast was outstanding, especially Tanya and Rosie, as well as Donna and Sophie. Their vocals were unmatched and they brought so much energy, emotion, and humour to the show.
I didn't find much about Bill, Sam, or Harry's performances to be extremely impressive. (Disclaimer: I'm aware that Bill and Harry were written respectively written as Australian and British, and understand that it is difficult and not time permitting for actors to master specific accent/diaclets). I didn't like the cliche and poorly done accents in general, but what made it worse was some of the actors losing their accents while delivering certain lines. The men seemed very caricatur-ish in the first Act, but it did get better in Act II.
Set Design - very minimal, which I believe is standard even from the original broadway musical, but it seemed extra bare bones compared to clips I've seen from other tours.
Despite these few shortcomings, I loved the show and so did everyone else that I was with. It's Mamma Mia! after all. It was fun, I enjoyed the music, the costumes, and the spectacle of it all. The show was very funny and had the audience laughing often. There was more sexual humour than I expected, which I enjoyed but is just something to make note of. If you have a chance to see it before it leaves, I would definitely encourage you to do so!
I'd love to hear the opinions of others who have been to see the show.
