REVIEW: Mamma Mia! - PhenoMNal twin cities

The smash hit musical, Mamma Mia! follows the story of Sophie and her single mom Donna. Sophie is getting married soon and would like nothing more than for her dad to walk her down the aisle. The only problem is, she doesn’t know who her dad is! After snooping through her mom’s diary, she narrows the candidates to three men and secretly invites them to her wedding in hopes of identifying which is her father. A group of friends, with hilariously exaggerated personalities completes the cast.

Mamma Mia! is a guilty pleasure indeed. It’s full of predictable jokes, overacting, comedically odd costumes and even some dancing chorus boys in scuba suits. It’s incredibly cheesy and yet I couldn’t resist enjoying it. The ABBA song list is so much fun, mostly because the score is wall-to-wall pop hits and you already know the words. Mamma Mia! isn’t an “important” musical like Next to Normal or even Book of Mormon, but it is certainly a lot of fun. The bright colors and perky music are a perfect little winter pick-me-up.

I will note that there were many audio letdowns throughout the evening that will hopefully be resolved soon. There were many times when the mics picked up ruffling and when the background music drowned the singers. If you see Mamma Mia!, perhaps obtain tickets for later on in the week when all the kinks will be worked out.

Mamma Mia! plays at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis through February 23, 2014.

Tickets start at $34.

DEAL ALERT: Student/Educator Rush will be available for all performances of Mamma Mia!. Policy: 2 tickets per valid ID; $25 per ticket, cash only; available only at the Orpheum Theatre Box Office beginning 2 hours prior to the performance; rush line forms outside of theatre; student/educator must be present with valid ID at time of purchase; resale or transfer of rush tickets is strictly prohibited and all tickets are subject to availability.