Cast counts on 'Mamma' pleasing
Theater League brings the big Broadway musical to Wichita.

BY BOB CURTRIGHT

Special to The Eagle

After three years of performing with the touring company of the hit Broadway show "Mamma Mia!," Laurie Wells says there's always one thing she can count on.

"People in different cities may laugh at different places. In Mexico, the audience reaction time was completely different," said Wells, who plays Donna, a retired singer and single mom whose teenage daughter is about to be married on a glorious Greek isle.

"But by the end of the show, everybody reacts the same. They clap very loudly, they stand up and cheer. It's such a crowd-pleaser that you can count on it every night," Wells said by phone from a stop in Denver.

Wells will be in Wichita with "Mamma Mia!" for eight performances Tuesday through Sunday in Century II Concert Hall.

It's the second show of the season for the resurrected Theater League, based in Kansas City, which canceled the 2005-2006 season but bounced back big this fall with "Hairspray." "The Producers" concludes the season in March.

"Mamma Mia!" has become something of a modern musical miracle with nine permanent shows and two tours currently running all around the world. It's in its eighth year in London, sixth year on Broadway and fourth year in Las Vegas.

The bouncy show is built around 22 of the disco/pop songs from the 1970s and 1980s by Swedish group ABBA that have been fashioned into a clever story of romance and comic intrigue.

A girl raised by a single mom tries to find out which of three men from her mom's past might be her father so she can ask him to walk her down the aisle at her upcoming wedding.

The three unsuspecting guys -- and the equally unsuspecting mom -- all are set on a journey of revelation and self-discovery by the girl's impetuous actions.

Along the way, ABBA's songs weave their insistent beat and dreamy spell through the story, from "Dancing Queen" to "The Winner Takes It All" to the title tune, "Mamma Mia!"

Carrie Manolakos has played Sophie, the irrepressible daughter, for the past 1 ½ years and says that it's sometimes hard to separate herself from her character.

"Carrie and Sophie are pretty much alike. I love that Sophie is so young, so fun and so hopeful," Manolakos said.

"I love how she always goes for it (life) even when she doesn't have everything planned out. She's a wonderful optimist," she said.

Manolakos, who grew up in Syracuse, N.Y., saw the show as a high school junior and loved it, never realizing how quickly she would become one of the leads.

She was a student at New York University studying drama when a guest lecturer, who was a casting director for the national tour of "Mamma Mia!," singled her out and asked her to audition.

Wells, who plays her mom, understudied her role for two years and has played the role for the past year. She, too, sees a lot of herself in her character.

"Donna is a strong, single mom who did what she had to do to make a life for herself and her daughter. I left home (in California) at 16, but I wasn't pregnant. I had a chance to perform in Nashville," Wells said.

She won a spot at Opryland USA theme park, then sang back-up at the Grand Ole Opry behind such singers as Faith Hill. Eventually, she made it to New York for such roles as Eliza in "My Fair Lady," Nancy in "Oliver!" and Rizzo in "Grease."

Wells said every production of "Mamma Mia!" is slightly different in tone and treatment because of the different people involved.

"I think our version is more poignant than others. We've made the love story more prominent. We were given a lot of freedom," Wells said.

"I think my character's journey is very moving, very emotional."

Despite nothing but good feelings about the show, Manolakos and Wells will leave the tour in March.

Manolakos will return to NYU to wrap up her degree in drama, and Wells will return to New York for her own upcoming wedding.

But both said they leave with regret.

"It's such a happy show. We literally have a blast every night. If you have to do a show eight times a week, this is the one," Manolakos said.