Mamma Mia! Performs at National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony - playbill.com

[mmFan]

Posted: 12/4/03 at 8:37pm

https://www.broadwayworld.com/l.cfm?id=14945
Anyone see the performance? If so, what did they sing? Was it any good? Updated On: 12/5/03 at 08:37 PM

[Broadwaylilhead]

Posted: 12/4/03 at 9:38pm

Has anyone seen the Vegas cast of Mamma Mia? You never hear much about that production. I have heard that it is shorter and does not have an intermission so that 2 shows a night can be accomodated. Anyone know any more?

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 12/4/03 at 9:59pm

It is full length, it HAS an intermission.. they DO have two shows a night.. one at like 7 and one at like 11..

[BwayTheatre11]

Posted: 12/4/03 at 10:02pm

Emmamia works in the merchandise shop at Mamma Mia! Vegas. She can tell you... Also, wasn't this going to be on the 10th?

Updated On: 12/4/03 at 10:02 PM

[Phantom2]

Posted: 12/4/03 at 11:13pm

The Las Vegas production of Mamma Mia! is excellent. You should definitely see it. The cast is ABBA-solutely fabulous!!!!!!!!

[mmFan]

Posted: 12/5/03 at 8:22am

How do they compare to other casts? I've watched the videos on the main website and it looks like an amazing cast.

[Phantom2]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 1:08am

It's a Broadway and Las Vegas quality production all in one so you know that's gotta be good! Go see for yourself.

[mmFan]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 9:47am

I've seen the Toronto production 6 times (the last time was a new cast) and the Broadway cast once. I'd love to also add Las Vegas to my list.

[emmamia]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 11:09am

The show is just like all the others it runs 2 hours 30 min ... with the intermission (first in vegas to have one) they include an announcement at the end of act one (Ladies and Gentlemen there will now be a 15 min intermission) Show Times are: Mon,Wed,Thurs = 7pm, Friday =8pm, Sat 7pm & 1030pm and Sunday 5 & 9pm.

February 2nd will be the last day for 4 of our cast members so if ya can come before then because I dont know who replacements are and who knows how good it will be after the change ... February 16th the show times will change (again)

I think they are a fabulous cast that puts in 100% every show. Even at the 1030 sat nite when most people are tired ... they are still putting in 100%. Off Stage they are a very gracious and sweet cast.

Late November our gift shop got transformed into the Taverna and its pretty cool. (wooden floors, Waterloo Boat, lighting like the party scene, ect) I took some pictures and will be scanning them this week to add to my website. Its pretty cool and hehe we are the only ones to have it!!

I caught the last 10 sec of the Tour 1 on CSPAN (thnx JRE for the email) and they were finishing a song but I was told they sang a medley. Looked like it was cold fun!! They sounded pretty good though!

wasnt that just a jumble of info!!

[Phantom2]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 11:40am

emmamia- Who's leaving in February?
The gift shop sounds sooooooooooo cool! When I was there they were out of the long sleeve Las Vegas shirts. Any sweatshirts?

[mmFan]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 11:46am

Emmamia...first i must say that I love your website! What 4 cast memebers are leaving? I'd love to get there soon, but unfortunately I don't think that will happen.

Your comment is true both for the Toronto and Broadway productions...it's amazing how much energy they put into it and can do that night after night. My friend and I also stood by the stage door and met the most recent Toronto cast. They were super nice too and were grateful that we showed our appreciation of their work.

That's amazing about the Taverna! Is it still like that? I can't wait to see your website. I wish I could have seen the CSPAN....I love anything that involves Mamma Mia!

And the info is great.

[JakeB]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 12:15pm

Why did Mamma Mia perform? Why not a decent, new Broadway show that has an original book and lyrics perform? I wish people would stop supporting drivel like Mamma Mia and focus their attentions towards real theatre.

(sorry if this offends MM fans but I loathe these shows more than life itself, it's killing musical theatre forever and I can't understand why people who call themselves theatre fans can support this crap)

[Phantom2]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 12:43pm

JakeB- That was so wrong.

[mmFan]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 1:00pm

JakeB..everyone is entitled to their own opinion. (I disagree with you...but no offence taken). The show is not for everyone. The show's story isn't too deep, but it really is a fun, feel good show. It's the only show I've ever seen over and over again (and will keep seeing it as long as it's around). When I walk out of the theatre, I have such a huge smile on my face I'm ready to see it again. To me, that says a lot!!!

[JakeB]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 2:27pm

Like I say, no offence.. but here in Britain we've just been overloaded so much by them and awful talentlessly written shows like We Will Rock You that it's meant shows like Ragtime have closed after three months. There is no audience for real musical theatre here which is why I envy you guys on Broadway.. we're just full of tribute shows. So no offence, but this is my opinion too.

[Phantom2]

Posted: 12/6/03 at 5:57pm

JakeB- Which cast have you seen? London, Broadway??

[JakeB]

Posted: 12/7/03 at 4:23am

I admit, I haven't seen the show, but I have seen hundreds of clips performed on TV and the internet and it looked too bad to see, plus the marketing campaign aims it at women - I am not a woman therefore I won't put myself through an evening of high camp. Every friend who I take the honest belief of has told me the book is the weakest on the London stage bar We Will Rock You - Mamma Mia is the only London musical I haven't seen except for the latest back-catalogue show Tonight's the Night. They're so poorly written and unimaginative, trust me - I've seen most of them. Plus right at the end they make you get up and dance - why? I don't go to the theatre to dance, I go to be entertained or inspired. I go to a club to dance.

We've gone slightly off though, back to my original point.. why not let a show perform that needs the publicity? Something that has original lyrics and music rather than all thrown together for cheap laughs. It's like letting Les Miserables perform or letting We Will Rock You perform - the producers would pick the latter because it's a crowd puller, IMO it's not a true representation of theatre. Theatre is original, Mamma Mia isn't.

Mamma Mia may be a good show for most people, and yes, I agree it probably is fun for the majority - but for me, I find it devastating that something I love so much (theatre) has resorted to weak scripts with cheap laughs for big crowds.

Like I say, strong strong views on this!

Jake.

[bob8rich]

Posted: 12/7/03 at 6:49am

I have to echo Jake on this point - contrived musicals in general are killing legitimate musical theater and Mamma Mia in particular I found to be utterly awful. I recognize it is a matter of taste and accept that many people enjoy this show and have every right to enjoy it.

But of the literally hundreds of musicals I have seen over the last 35 years, Mamma Mia is the ONLY show I can say I 100% hated when I saw it in London. I thought the book was puerile drivel and the humor was so forced I found it so irritating I wanted to scream. I happen to really like Abba - but their place is in the pop music world, not musical theater - and none of the songs worked in the context of the show for me and I found the staging and arrangements of them ruined the songs for my eyes and ears.

Of course, this is only my opinion and I know that world-wide there are millions of people who disagree with me. But I lament the long run of shows like this when the West End (and even Broadway) is crying out for high class musical theater by such writers as Jason Robert Brown, William Finn, Flaherty and Ahrens, et al.

[Phantom2]

Posted: 12/7/03 at 10:24am

JakeB- Please go see Mamma Mia! and then get back to us. You are sounding like someone else on this board who hates a show before it even starts. That's not fair.