By DIEGO CAGARA
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ALBANY — The Mediterranean Sea became softly illuminated, enthralling the audience as the horizon welcomed them on the opening night of “Mamma Mia!” at Albany’s Capital Repertory Theatre on July 11. The artificial sunlight served as ample foreshadowing of just how heartwarming and fun the production would be, despite some hiccups.

Based on the original West End 1999 production, the REP’s adaptation follows 20-year-old Sophie Sheridan (Christina Carlucci) on the eve of her wedding to Sky (Patton Chandler) on the fictional Greek island of Kalokairi. Desperate to know the identity of her father, she invites three men without her mother, Donna’s (Lyn Philistine) knowledge, whose names pop up in Donna’s diary, thus ensuing quite the musical drama. They are Sam Carmichael (Gil Brady), Bill Austin (Brian Cali) and Harry Bright (Gary Lindemann), each eerily looking similar to the actors who portrayed them in the 2008 film adaptation, particularly with the latter two.

The casting was mostly a success, Carlucci portraying Sophie sometimes as too giddy or excitable while Philistine appears somewhat too young to realistically play her mother. The chemistry between Carlucci and Chandler was evident though, especially expressed by the fusion of Sophie’s positive deposition and Sky’s understanding nature.
Donna’s best friends arrived at Kalokairi with a figurative luggage of humor. Kara Mikula plays Rosie, an implied sexually-driven woman who is unafraid to be eccentric around men, almost as if she came straight out of an SNL skit. Carla Woods plays Tanya, the sassy three-time divorcée who is slightly more reserved but still yearning for passion nonetheless. The three used to be Donna and the Dynamos together, a former girl group with a comically fantastical Las Vegas-esque wardrobe that can make Cher jealous.
Production-wise, the set looked simple, replicating Santorini with its blue-and-white livery, Greek-inspired patterns and architecture, and the overall coastal atmosphere. Notably, a blue mailbox—which Sophie used to mail the invitations to her three possible fathers—was built on one of the stage’s columns and the actors made use of the aisles in several key scenes. Overall, the production fully knows how to make the most of its relatively petite stage. Hence, production stage manager Tara Kelly, set designer Brian Prather and choreographer Freddy Ramirez deserve praise. Although an orchestra was not visible, instrumentals of ABBA songs rang out during the various set changes, as extras in floral attire shifted things around, ensuring the musical remained kinetic and fast-paced.
The audience, mainly comprising of full-fledged adults, clearly was receptive to how the musical was populated with multitudinous ABBA numbers, the famous Swedish pop group who dominated the music industry in the 1970s and early 1980s.

“Money, Money, Money” was an elaborate number as Donna, Rosie and Tanya sang about financial hardship while the three possible fathers arrived at its end, much to Donna’s shock. Gary Lindemann also was impressive when dueting as Harry with Sophie on “Thank You For the Music” while playing the guitar.
“Chiquitita” was memorable where Tanya and Rosie comforted an emotional Donna, while yanking Donna and the Dynamos memorabilia from a just-discovered trunk. They would later officially reunite to perform for Sophie and her friends “in all their wrinkly glory” in the most ridiculous and hilarious outfits—which leads to the next point.
The humor was almost glaring, eliciting much laughs whenever one-liners dropped. An example was when Sophie was reading aloud how her mother encountered the three men from her diary to her friends, which each ended with a sinfully-teasing “dot dot dot.” One of her friends notably thrusted harshly as Sophie read that phrase, its hidden message barely unveiled. Another was when Sophie wished that all her possible fathers would walk her down the aisle, to which a friend sarcastically replied, “Let’s hope it’s a wide aisle.” Also, when Donna was distraught about Sam showing up, the cast and extras all held cut outs of Sam’s face, bombarding her with them as she frantically tries to escape.

The overall joy did have a side-effect. The constant sexual humor and sight gags, especially on Rosie’s part, all cause it to come across as a high school production sometimes. It partially takes away the drama and conflicts the main characters face, like how Sophie is perceived as too young to marry, who her father actually is, and how Donna is secretly upset that her daughter is growing up. The musical’s overall lighthearted nature did pardon this uncomfortable sensation but the production still dangerously tiptoed between pure bliss and corniness.
The question of whether the production’s tone felt childish came to mind intermittently but when one is watching a musical filled with 1970s Swedish music, upbeat wardrobe designs and the ideally romantic setting of a Greek island, one simply has to go along with it.
One relatable sequence that yielded emotion, a much-needed break from the jokes and quips, was when Donna pondered how Sophie has come of age in “Slipping Through My Fingers.” The audience quieted down for this number, its universal message hitting home, as they watched Donna help Sophie into her wedding dress, reminding everyone of the musical’s central event—the wedding itself. The lines, “Schoolbag in hand, she leaves home in the early morning / Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile,” provided a heavy bout of poignancy.
The entire musical can perhaps be encapsulated with the lines, “I have a dream, a song to sing / To help me cope with anything,” which Sophie sings both at the beginning and conclusion of the performance. Slowing the perpetual humor and void of drama, these lines greeted and bid the audience farewell, projecting a juxtaposition of hope and pathos. Overall, the opening night mostly was an enormous triumph, evidenced by how the audience stood and waved their hands to the catchy ABBA music in unison amid thunderous applause.
Alone on the ceiling during the final number, hung an actively-lit disco ball, the epitome of unashamed glee which was the tone this production strove for.