Kentucky Fried Chicken. Barry Manilow. Cool Whip. Bodice-rippers. ABBA. These are things that people profess to hate, while secretly they can't get enough of 'em. I mean somebody's buying McDonald's hamburgers and Sandra Bullock movies, right? So when a friend got a deal on a couple of tickets to the ABBA-songfest Mamma Mia at the Winter Garden, well, sure, I was up for it.All I can say about it is a lukewarm "meh." The story line was very thin - but it's an ABBA musical, so I wasn't expecting Sweeney Todd or Caroline, or Change. Most of the songs felt forced into their respective slots and lacked any 70's ABBA spark. The cast didn't seem to be having any fun until the curtain call, when the main characters come out resplendent in true ABBA spandex and sparkles to sing "Waterloo."
Had there been any energy in the thing at all, the audience should have been dancing in the aisles at several points in the show, most especially at curtain call. Nope. Not even much rhythmic clapping. (By contrast, folks are dancing, singing, and going wild during Hairspray's closing number "You Can't Stop the Beat.") I expectd the same kind of energy in Mamma Mia as Hairspray and was disappointed. (Well, and Hairspray has a great plot line, too.)
Knowing me, knowing you - much better to watch Muriel's Wedding to get your ABBA on.
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