Broadway Across America has brought the neon colors and sparkling sequins of "Mamma Mia!" to Indianapolis. The international hit musical is on stage now at the Murat Theatre.
The show is built around songs by the Swedish band ABBA, who hit it big in the late 1970s. If you can't name more than a couple ABBA tunes, you're not the only one. But the show is beyond entertaining, it is a tasty, synthetic pop treat. The show is no highbrow drama, instead it is an unabashedly funny romp.
The story follows young Sophie who, just before her wedding day, attempts to find out who her father is. After being raised on a Greek island by her single mother Donna, Sophie decides it's time to meet the other half of her gene pool.
Donna's best friends are a modern day Lucy and Ethel combo. Played by Christine Sherrill and Allison Briner the duo steal the scene with their hammy antics. Their physical comedy makes for some of the best parts in the show.
Sophie's potential fathers are three very different men who knew Donna 20 years before the fateful wedding day. They are surreptitiously reunited by the curious offspring in the midst of the festivities. Wounds are reopened, sparks are ignited and hilarity ensues.
The show feels like an ABBA concert, but you don't have to been an ABBA fan to enjoy it. The performers' energy and the actors' lighthearted banter make "Mamma Mia!" an absolutely entertaining show.
Performances: "Mamma Mia!" closed Nov. 11, 2007.
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