“It was actress Laurie Wells who raked in most of that applause. Sultry even in overalls and sandals, Wells stands far out from the pack as Greek tavern owner Donna Sheridan. Her genuinely felt inner conflict hit the audience most profoundly in “Slipping through My Fingers” as she dresses her daughter’s hair, and in “The Winner Takes It All” when she unleashes two decades of pain and loss at Sam. She finds meaning in arbitrary ABBA lyrics like a talented Shakespearean actor clarifying the Bard’s thickest verse. Yet her stage presence is as down to earth and accessible as a country-music video.”
- ALICIA GREGA-PIKUL, Scranton