"Mamma
Mia" opened in London in 1999 and is still playing there. The show
opened on Broadway in 2001 and is still playing at the Winter Garden
theatre. Just last week it opened in China and has been done in over 16
languages in long running productions in over 23 countries and has made 4
stops in South Florida, the last time being in 2009 when I saw it for the first .

Last
night the touring company stopped at the Broadway Performing Arts
Center for a week and a captive audience that wore more boas than I have
ever seen on woman and men in one place!

For
the few who haven't seen the show "Mamma Mia" is about Sophie (Chloe
Tucker) who is marrying Sky (Happy Mahaney) on the Greek Island where
she was brought up by her single mom Donna (Kaye Tuckerman). Donna has
invited her old friends Tanya (Alison Ewing) and Rosie (Mary Callanan)
who entertained as a singing trio 21 years previously and, unbeknown to
Donna, Sophie, after reading her mother's diary, invites 3 men; Sam
(Tony Clements), an American architect, Bill (John-Michael Zuerlein), A
Swedish writer, and Harry (Paul Deboy) a British banker either one who
may be her father.

Catherine
Johnson wove the stories around the songs of Abba, written by Benny
Anderson, Bjorn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson and their hits from the title
song to such others as "Dancing Queen", "Knowing Me, Knowing You", "The
Winner Takes It All" and 18 others.

The
conductor, Laureen McGee, started the overture with an ear splitting
blast that went on for about 2-3 minutes that sort of had me backing
away and there were problems with the music , songs and sound system
during the show but overall ABBA came through. There was, what sounded
to me, added additional tracks prerecorded, that at times overtook the
singer just as sometimes the orchestra did and there was some
lipsynching.

Kaye
Tuckerman came through with a stellar performance but the antics of
Alison Ewing and Mary Callanan stole the spotlight whenever they were on
stage. Chloe Tucker and Happy Mahaney had chemistry, and good voices,
as the young lovers while of the 3 potential fathers Tony Clements, as
Sam, comes out a step ahead of the other two guys mainly because his is
the more moving role.

No
matter what happens it is after the cast takes their bows and goes into
an encore singing "Mamma Mia", "Dancing Queen" and "Waterloo" and the
audience joins in singing, dancing, clapping hands and throwing those
boas around that sends everyone out of the theatre smiling. Between the
ABBA music and that encore it is not surprising that "Mamma Mia" will be
around for many more years and more stops in South Florida.

1st
act 1 hour and 5 minutes  Intermission  20 minutes  2nd act 1 hour and
10 minutes including encore   total 2 hours and 35 minutes

Controlled smoke, short strobe lights

Tour continues to Kansas City, Mo., Vancouver, B.C. and Erie, Pa and continues at The Winter Garden Theatre in New York City.