This year, the Curtis Players came together once again to put on Mamma Mia!, with Ms. Bronwyn Fugate and Ms. Mariah Pizzano as directors. For three nights, March 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, the Curtis community got the chance to see the Players’ take on the famous musical and social commentary.
The story of Mamma Mia follows two women on the Greek Islands the day before a traditional white wedding: the independent, freethinking hotelier Donna Sheridan, played by senior Allison Kohn, and her daughter, Sophie, the bride-to-be, played by freshman Gabryella Olango. The play covers Sophie’s journey to learn who her father is in time for the wedding the next day, and Donna’s conflict with the idea of settling down. The drama begins when she invites three men who she believes could be her father: architect Sam Carmichael, played by David Serrano Hernandez, explorer Bill Austin, played by Geoffrey Matthias, and French transplant Harry Bright, played by Eliot Caban, to the island for the event. However, she does so under the pretense of being Donna herself. When all the three men learn why and how Sophie invited them here, they individually swear to walk her down the aisle tomorrow. The situation escalates once Donna learns that the men are present on the island for the first time in 20 years, with all three still professing their love for her. In the end, it’s Donna who walks Sophie down the aisle, but the true plot twist comes when Sophie decides to forgo her wedding in order to spend her youth traveling. It’s Donna that makes the choice to settle down, and she marries Sam Carmichael.
The most impressive part of this year’s show is the execution of the story. “I thought we were ready for a big, splashy, jukebox musical,” director Fugate said. She applied for the rights to put on Mamma Mia! for four years, and dreams became reality this year when they were finally approved. They got right to work, constructing complex light shows, dance numbers, and set pieces all put together within the span of only 5 months, with auditions beginning in September, and production beginning in October. Allison Kuhn and Gabryella Olango, the two stars of the show, do not disappoint with their performance, even after having only a short amount of time to perfect their musical numbers. They weren’t the only ones – the entire cast put care and effort into their performances. Bianka Thimme, actress for Rosie, and Elizabeth Russo, actress for Tanya, put on an animated and entertaining performance as Donna’s closest confidants. “We worked so hard to make the acting vibrant,” Ms. Fugate explained. “I think they [the Curtis Players] did a great job.”
Mamma Mia! is the ideal play to capture the conflict between traditional and modern ideas, and remains relevant with young women today with its themes of freedom and family. In celebrating a woman’s right to choose for herself, it stands as the perfect choice for this year’s play. With another successful performance under their belt, the future is bright for Ms. Fugate and her students. The Curtis community is eager to see what comes next from the Curtis Players.
