It is not often that Shippensburg is graced with the showmanship and pizzazz of the Broadway stage, but as it saw last Tuesday, even a small town in rural Pennsylvania is the perfect host for the magnificence of a Broadway hit.
The H. Ric Luhrs Performing Arts Center played host to the traveling production of the 1999 West End classic “Mamma Mia.” “Mamma Mia” is a musical about a girl named Sophie who lives with her single mother on a remote island in Greece.
The show revolves around Sophie’s quest to discover who her real father is before her wedding the next day. In order to do this, Sophie invites all three candidates to the island and zaniness ensues.
“Mamma Mia” is written with a mix of heartfelt emotion and energetic comedy, which is brought to life through the use of many of the greatest hits from ’70s Swedish rock sensation ABBA. Each song that is used in the show is perfectly placed in the storyline. The show, created by Benny Anderson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, gives ABBA a new life in the lives of the show’s characters.
Some of the classic ABBA songs featured in the show include “Dancing Queen,” “Honey Honey,” “Lay All Your Love On Me” and of course “Mamma Mia.”
The production used fantastic costumes and psychedelic colors to bring to life the extravagant era that was the ’70s. The limitations of a traveling show went unnoticed as the limited set pieces worked well to bring the story to life.
Produced by Work Light Productions and a cast and crew from around the world, the presentation of “Mamma Mia” at the Luhrs Center was a huge success. There was a sold out crowd and the audience was rocking for the entire two and-a-half hour show.
For more information on what shows are coming to the Luhrs Center visit www.luhrscenter.com or call the box office at 717-477-7469.
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