This summer Annisquam will be transformed into a brilliantly-hued Greek island, as the AVP produces one of the most popular musicals of the Broadway stage, Mamma Mia!.  The jukebox musical romantic comedy is based on the songs written by ABBA, an internationally beloved Swedish pop/dance group active from 1972 to 1982. The title of the musical was taken from the 1975 chart-topper song “Mamma Mia.”

The musical opened in London in April 1999 and in New York in October 2001, becoming the ninth longest running Broadway show.  The Broadway opening was shortly after 9/11, and many found the show to be an affirmation of life in the midst of the destruction of 9/11. The show became a major motion picture in 2008 (filmed on the Greek island of Skopelos), and a sequel named Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was released last year.  It is one of the few major musicals where the songs, popular worldwide since the 1970s, predated the show and the movie. Many audience members will recall as teens singing such megahits as “Dancing Queen,” “Super Trouper,” “Mamma Mia,” “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!,” “Waterloo,” and “The Winner Takes It All.” We will not be surprised to see our audiences singing and dancing in the aisles of the Village Hall this summer.

The show tells the story, through the ABBA music, of a young woman (Sophie), raised by her mother (Donna) in the Greek islands, and engaged to be married to her fiancé (Sky), seeking to find her father to walk her down the aisle.  After reading her mother’s diary, she discovers that there are 3 possible contenders (Sam, Bill and Harry), all of whom she invites to the wedding.