Last Thursday night, I returned to Paramount’s Mamma Mia! for the first time since we opened two weeks ago, and the experience rewarded so much with renewed appreciation for the stunning performance the cast delivers that I had to go back Sunday night! How alive it is with the love and joy of family and friendship, and how the company keeps growing in the life of their relationships to each other in the play! Their singing of these remarkable ABBA songs has grown in meaning and connection to the characters. I mean, I know I’m smitten with this work, but the show just keeps getting better and better! I’m thinking to myself, “This is why so many folks are writing me and stopping me in-person to say this is their favorite Paramount Broadway Series show yet!” This combination of story and music is phenomenally irresistible!
“Mamma Mia! How Can I Resist You?” is the title of the book about “the inside story of Mamma Mia! and the songs of ABBA.” Upon reading interviews with the show’s creators and their anecdotes and recollections, we rehearsed this story with an integrity reflected there. As contrived as the musical comedy may be, the characters in our production feel real, human, warm-hearted, and you can’t help but fall in love with them every time you see them. I’ve never seen the show before, but I’ve no doubt this is what gives the show its legacy. Book writer Catherine Johnson relates how “when I started working on the outline for the show, Björn (Ulvaeus, ABBA’s lyricist) told me, ‘You can use any of our songs, but always remember that the story is more important than the songs.” These intentions of the writers’ inspires Paramount’s production, and as well, let’s be real, the songs are the catchiest, most fun, most moving and entertaining little stories in themselves! Our orchestra and singers are living this music and its harmonies, with all the glitter and grooves you could want, beautifully designed, all for you right before your eyes and ears, eight shows a week right here on our stage!
Can you tell I’m a little proud of it? Don’t miss this cast in this production running until October 30!
Love & thanks,
Jim
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