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review
Mamma Mia! gets Knoxville on its feet
Dan Barile - Thu, Aug, 10, 2006
Carrie Manolakos was abosolutely adorable as Sophie Sheridan.
Having risen from the ensemble to take on one of the, if not the, leading roles in “Mama Mia!” Manolakos was supurb.
Her bubbly personality that was demonstrated in a pre-show interview with farragutpress came out in her performance. She appeared to be having the time of her life and (even though miked) had a strong voice and could clearly be heard throughout the Knoxville Civic Auditorium — a feat some can’t accomplish.
Broadway in Knoxville General Manager Carl Thompson should be grinning like a “Cheshire Cat” as opening night crowds — and reports from others who attended later in the week-long run — were better than some of the other productions Nederlander Producing Company has sent to Knoxville.
The rumor that by the “end of the show everyone was dancing on their feet” also held true for the week as our “spies” report.
Enough can’t be said about the performance of Laurie Wells as Donna Sheridan, the mother of Sophie. This woman can act and has a voice to match. Her tunes with sidekicks Lisa Mandel (as Tanya) and Laura Ware (as Rosie) were as true to the ABBA sound as cover performers could be.
The story, though simplistic, fit perfectly with the music and audiences, especially ABBA fans, should marvel at how Scandinavians Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus — the composing half of ABBA — could compose “disco” music that would tie together well enough to support a storyline.
Backing up the production was the band led by music director Susan Draus, who seemed to never miss a beat and kept the show flowing.
The score, of course, consisted of a greatest hits tour of ABBA’s best from “Dancing Queen,” “Take a Chance on Me,” “The Winner Takes It All” and the show’s signature tune, “Mama Mia.”
With this success in the bag, Farragut theater-goers have the rest of the Broadway in Knoxville season to look forward to with “AIDA,” “The Producers,” “Hairspray,” “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and “Rent!” filling out the lineup.
