First off, I’d like to thank Cebu Pacific Air for the tickets. I won two Balcony tickets via their Twitter contest some weeks ago. To my Twitter followers, I apologize for flooding your feed for 15 minutes in an attempt to win said tickets. I wouldn’t have been able to go otherwise.
Aids and I got to watch the opening night of “Mamma Mia!” in CCP last January 24. It was so much fun! Have I mentioned how much I love musicals? Because I do. I really, really do š I’d already seen the movie with Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried but as with all movie musicals that started from the stage, it’s much better in its original format.
I loved the cast! I could feel their energy even way in the back. For the record, balcony seats in the CCP Main Theater aren’t that bad. Yes you’re high up but you can still see the actors’ faces and expressions. Their dancing was just superb. No better tribute to ABBA than a kickass dance number.
We noticed a little something about the singing though. Taken individually, the actors’ voices sounded a bit thin compared to our local singers. It was especially noticeable during “Dancing Queen” and “Chiquitita”. However, they sound absolutely amazing as an ensemble. Their voices blend well and nobody’s trying to outdo anybody. Contrast this with our local singers, who try to out-belt each other at every opportunity. Perhaps there’s something to be learned there.
My favorite part was the encore, where the entire cast goes all-out in the singing, shimmying, and spandex. The variety show numbers for “Mamma Mia!”, “Dancing Queen”, and “Waterloo” got the entire audience on their feet and singing and dancing along. These last three songs completed my night š
Details for Mamma Mia’s Manila run over here.