Mamma Mia At Blackpool Opera House Review
TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW.
Reviewed by Cath Joyce
What an ABBA-solutely amazing time we had last night in Blackpool, watching the hit musical Mamma Mia at the world famous Blackpool Opera House!
The stage show debuted in London back in 1999 and has been delighting audiences ever since. Featuring many of the hit ABBA songs that we all know and love, the popular feel good musical is set on a beautiful Greek island paradise where Sophie (Jess Mitchelmore) is about to be married to her fiance Sky (Christopher Foley). Like all brides she would love to walk down the aisle with her Dad but unfortunately she doesn’t actually know who her real Dad is. After secretly reading her Mum’s diary she is intrigued to discover that there were three men romantically involved with her Mum and any one of them could potentially be her father – architect Sam Carmichael (Richard Standing), travel writer Bill Austin (Phil Corbett) and British banker Harry Bright (Neal Craig). Sophie decides to invite all three to the wedding in the hope that she can discover which one is her real Dad is and then ask him to walk her down the aisle on her special day. All three men accept the invitation and arrive on the island and that is when the fun begins!
The story is cleverly told with a combination of dialogue and ABBA songs. Pretty much any ABBA song you can name has been fitted into the show and the favourites are there – Super Trooper, Honey Honey, Chiquitita, Take a Chance on Me, Thank you for the music and my all time favourite Dancing Queen
The show is packed full of humour and it’s hard to pick out a favourite part but we especially loved man eater Tanya’s (played by Sarah Earnshaw) incredibly cheeky version of Does Your Mother Know. She had the audience in stitches and it was a real highlight of the night.
The trio of fathers added lots of fun and laughter to the show, the three actors had great chemistry with other members of the cast and with fantastic voices too they were a joy to watch. Special mention has to go to Sara Poyzer who played the part of Sophie’s Mum Donna who showcased her incredible voice throughout the night and we especially enjoyed her singing “The Winner Takes it All”
The set was simple but effective and let’s face it this show is really about the music and the costumes. With bright flamboyant costumes and of course the infamous ABBA white flared jumpsuits and platform boots it was just what we needed to brighten up a wet Wednesday evening!
Anthony Van Laast’s cheorography was superb, especially at the start of the 2nd half in the “Under Attack” dream scene where the stage was filled with neon scuba divers! In some of the scenes there were a lot of people on the stage and nobody put a foot (or flipper) wrong all night.
By the end of the night the entire audience were on their feet and joining in with all the songs and the atmosphere was simply electric. The whole cast were fabulous and the talent and energy on the stage was simply amazing to watch.
Mamma Mia is a fantastic show and I guarantee you will be singing ABBA songs all the way home!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Mamma Mia is at Blackpool Opera House until Saturday April 1st. For more information or to book tickets click here
or call the box office on 0844 770 0593