Is it fair to judge an entire genre of musical theatre, on one musical? The answer is no. But I have so many mixed feels about the production I saw on Mamma Mia the other week.
Before you read my thoughts - Mamma Mia is a great night out and lots of fun. I would highly recommend it!
HOWEVER I've found it so difficult to answer this question: 'So what did you think?', because I thought many things.
I grew up absolutely loving the film and I still watch it a few times a year, it literally makes me feel so happy, even if I am at my lowest. So I couldn't not see the stage version when it rolled into town!
I have seen a lot of theatre in the last few years and I have seen amazing productions in all different genres. Mamma Mia didn't live up to those high standards, and I know already it will soon be forgotten in my mind. Despite the fact Mamma Mia has been around for 18 years, it felt hurriedly put together. There were songs that didn't make sense where they were, in fact I would have cut 'What's the name of the game' because its so randomly placed and ruins the flow of the scene. The dancing feels really early Noughties, I'm sure there could have been some tweaks made to the choreography to stop the show looking dated. Overall I feel the production should have evolved a little bit over time, rather than just keeping it the same, whilst it is still so popular with audiences I doubt that will change.
Unfortunately I found some of the acting painful, like the actors were being fed the lines through an earpiece. Don't get me wrong, I know its not a hard hitting drama, but some emotional integrity would have been appreciated.
This production neither left me underwhelmed or overwhelmed - just whelmed. If you like ABBA music, greek islands and lots of cheese- trust me you will LOVE it. But if you are going to the theatre looking for 'art' in the slightest, try something else.
What are my thoughts on Jukebox musicals? In all honesty I am yet to be impressed by one.
xxx
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