Donna and the Dynamos

MAMMA MIA. Picture by Stephen Jones Photography

To cheer up hotel owner Donna Shridan-Carmichael (Heidi Rice, above centre), who is a bit down at discovering her daughter Sophie has invited three men from her mother’s past to the Greek island in hope of meeting her real father, and having him escort her down the aisle on her big day, Donna’s friends help take her back to a happy time, in the musical Mamma Mia. Wisecracking author Rosie Mulligan (Rachel Crawford, above left), Donna and wealthy multiple divorcée Tanya Chesham-Leigh (Suzan Anderson) relive their days as Donna and the Dynamos.

With bananas as microphones, the trio breaks into a rendition of Abba’s hit Dancing Queen. The song is, of course, one of the Swedish pop group’s many hits that make up the repertoire in the wildly popular musical Mamma Mia! Musical Theatre Gisborne raises the curtain on the Kalokairi hotel and its romantic comedy brought to you by a cast of 34 professionally choreographed and directed local performers on a full-scale set on Saturday July 13.

More than 60 million people worldwide have fallen in love with the music, the characters, and the story of Mamma Mia! Now you can see it all live on stage at the War Memorial Theatre.