What a delightful and fun evening I had with my mum last Wednesday when, for an early mothers day gift, we went to see the long awaited “smash hit musical” – Mamma Mia at Hull New Theatre together. It was just as wonderful as we anticipated and so very funny that we spent a lot of it laughing until we cried! There was no denying that it was a real feel good show and a light-hearted night all round, with all of the ABBA classics, platforms and Lycra that you would expect (and hope for) with Mamma Mia.
We were even seen amongst the many shaking our booties and dancing along to the finale – it was so brilliant, entertaining and A LOT of fun!!
The soundtrack is one of the main attractions for me with Mamma Mia and as soon as the opening song “Honey, Honey” was performed by Emma Mullen (Sophie), I felt so happy and knew it was going to be a really great night.
I of course love the comedy factor of Mamma Mia…the romance and “blasts from the past” too (as well it’s look into mother-daughter relationships – it’s all great) but, the collection of music from ABBA is what really makes it a fave for me! It is filled with joy and oozes the feel good factor, not to mention it brings back so many fun memories of the many times we watched the film from Summer (and then danced along to it again throughout most of Christmas) 2008! Each song is so catchy isn’t it? And throughout the show, I (and many others) couldn’t help but move a little in our chairs, before getting up and full on dancing at the end! It was mint!
Sharon Sexton (who plays Donna) was an absolute pleasure to listen to and has a remarkable voice as she sang many of these classics – throughout it she was incredible and breathtaking. And playing alongside Helen Anker (Tanya) and Nicky Swift (Rosie), they were absolutely hilarious and really made the show so great.
I was surprised to discover that the show of Mamma Mia has been entertaining millions world wide since 1999 and was rightly reviewed in it’s very first show as “could put Prozac out of business!”. That really sums up just how feel good this show is, and of course we all really got a feel for that when it was made into a film back in 2008 (and was watched on repeat by many of us)! Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin firth, Amanda Seyfried and Julie Walters (amongst all the other big names) brought it once again into the spotlight and it quickly became a favourite amongst our generation, as well as out mothers/parents who remembered and loved the original songs! It was lovely then, that here in 2020, we were able to go together to Hull New Theatre and catch it live on stage – all singing, all dancing and celebrating mothers!
The cast were all so brilliant and brought this much loved story to life in a superb and comical way here in Hull last week. It was energetic, colourful, very funny and the music simply spectacular. They had quite a simple set, but the vibe of a Greek Island was obvious and I love how seamlessly it interchanged for each scene around the Island.
And, of course the costumes – oh the costumes! Plenty of frills, platforms, Lycra…some average simple summer fashions and hoards of young athletic men in wet-suits! It all comes together to create a show that you will LOVE and want to see more of!
A Greek Island…A mother and daughter…Three possible Dads and a trip down the aisle you’ll never forget – Mamma Mia is here in Hull until the 21st of March and will for sure make for the ideal mothers day treat or night out! Go on – be a ‘Super Trouper’ and ‘Take a chance on’ it!! I hope you will feel as much joy and have as much fun and mum and I did!
Tickets are available from the website HERE or call the theatre on 01482 300 306.
*Tickets were complimentary for the purpose of this review.
