Fun with Friends
by JA on 3/14/25Landmark Theatre - SyracuseRating: 4 out of 5As a birthday gift from my children, I was treated to 5 tickets to Mamma Mia! I loved the movie, so I was excited to see it on stage. My husband and I invited our best friends, a wife and husband. They had never seen the movie and knew nothing of the story line. Both really enjoyed the performance with the high energy dance routines and music. A favorite was when Skye and his buddies danced with flippers on their feet. It was amazing!! Also, when the full cast came out in the end to do 3-4 encore songs, the audience was on their feet and we were having a dance party with swaying arms and everyone singing! Soooo much fun!!
All of the performers were easy to hear and understand, except for "Donna."I don't know if there was an issue with her mic or if she was just too soft spoken at times. The stage performance is a little different from the movie, so I needed to adjust a little, whereas my friends did not know the difference. Two songs that were excluded from the movie were on the stage, so I enjoyed being surprised with those. I was disappointed that some bad language was thrown in - there was none in the movie. As far as I am concerned that does not add to the quality of a show, but takes away from it.
My husband and I have been Broadway Theater League members since 1998 in Utica, NY. I miss the days of more elaborate sets. Mamma Mia only had 1 reversable set to indicate either inside or outside. Even though it was minimal, it worked and did not detract from the show. One big highlight for me was having the live orchestra! They were phenomenal and brought so much more depth to the music and quality of the performances. I was so glad to have that live experience again. We no longer have a live orchestra in Utica.
Needless to say, Mamma Mia at the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse was wonderful! Gorgeous theatre, live orchestra, fantastic singers and dancers and great comedic performances from "Tanya"and "Rosie"!! It was a night to be remembered with my dear friends. We decided to start a new tradition of attending a show at the Landmark every year to rekindle our friendship (we live on opposite ends of the state). Well done, cast and crew of Mamma Mia!!