Got the winter blues? Take an (affordable) trip to an island off the coast of Greece with Tahoma High School Drama’s production of “Mamma Mia,” which opens Jan. 24. Featuring a cast of thespians who have strong vocal, dramatic and dance skills, the musical is high energy, colorful and enchanting.
“We selected this show because it served as a nice contrast to the heaviness of our last musical, ‘Les Mis,’ and our upcoming spring musical, ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame,’” director Melissa Bean said. “It is really just such a fun show.” The mother-daughter moments between Donna and Sophie, the interactions of Donna and her Dynamos and the opportunity to include more strong female leads made this script appeal to Bean, she said.
“I’m also thrilled about the dancing in this show! We have a new choreographer, Mackenzie Malhotra, and she has been a wonderful addition to our program. She has such high expectations and the kids have really risen to the occasion,” Bean said. “If you love the movie or the songs of ABBA, you will love this production!”
From the opening scenes of Sophie mailing off letters to three men who may be her father to the beach full of young men dancing in flippers, to the wedding at the end, Tahoma’s take on this Broadway show is excellent.
“As Melissa said, this is a great contrast to our spring show,” Musical Director Ken Riggs said. “It’s mostly light and fun music, but still very well written.”
One of his favorite numbers is “S.O.S.,” but he said all the songs sound good, and that it has been fun to watch the students grow in skill throughout rehearsals.
“This is a fun and entertaining show,” Riggs said. “Audience members will leave with a ‘smile on their face and a song in their heart.’”
Several of the students shared their take on “Mamma Mia.”
Freshman Ellie Rector, who plays one of Sophie’s friends: “I really wanted to be part of the Tahoma drama program because I had only heard great things about it.” Rector’s favorite moment in the production is “Honey, Honey,” because she loves interacting with her scene partners, she said.
Sophomore Cooper Perez, who is the understudy for Sam, said he loves “Under Attack,” which features nightmare creatures. “It’s a great show — very lively and has a lot of energy,” Perez added.
The energy is evident backstage, where students in the ensemble dance as they sing during rehearsal.
Sophomore Victoria Evans plays Sophie. “I love this show,” Evans said, noting that the theatre program has become a second family to her. The role of Sophie has been wonderful and also challenging, she said. Getting the opportunity to show emotional depth and explore the relationship with her onstage mom, Donna, played by Maddi Fickel, has been amazing. The most difficult aspect is making “Sophie” her own, Evans noted.
Junior Sam Miller, who plays Harry, said the dancing in the musical is “really cool.” “I love the way they took the songs from ABBA and transformed them straight to the stage,” Miller said. In his estimation, the best serious song is “S.O.S.,” and the best funny song is “Does Your Mother Know?”
Sophomore Lucia Selby is a sound tech who was also helping to build sets backstage earlier this week. Last year during ‘Les Mis,’ she enjoyed helping to build the massive buildings for the set out of foam. Selby said she likes to participate in the productions because of staff members like Bean and teacher Paul Remfer. “It’s great life experience. You get to use things like this,” she said, gesturing to a staple gun. “It also looks great on a college application!”
The show runs about two hours plus intermission. Due to subject matter, Bean said she would encourage parents to research the stage version of the familiar story before deciding whether to bring their children to the production.
For show times and tickets go to https://www.tahomadrama.org/current-productions
