ABBA – The Mamma Mia! Story
Louise Gold appeared along with fellow Mamma Mia
London Production Cast 3 Dynamos as Tanya in a clip of Dancing Queen, first
screened on ITV 1 on Thursday 3 July 2008
Appearances By...
Featuring
Benny Andersson (Songwriter & Pop Star)
Piers Brosnan (Film Actor – as a member of the Mamma
Mia Film Cast, playing Sam Carmichael)
Judy Craymer (Theatre Producer)
Colin Firth (Film Actor – as a member of the Mamma
Mia Film Cast, playing Harry Bright)
Paul Gambaccini (Broadcaster)
Catherine Johnson (Writer)
Phyllida Lloyd (Theatre Director)
Cameron Mackintosh (Theatre Producer)
Meryl Streep (Film Actress – as a member of the Mamma
Mia Film Cast, playing Donna Sheridan)
Bjorn Ulvaeus (Songwriter & Pop Star)
Anthony Van Laast (Choreographer)
Louis Walsh (Music Person)
Julie Walters (Film Actress – as a member of the Mamma
Mia Film Cast, playing Rosie)
Appearances By ...
Also Include:
ABBA themselves (Anni-Frid Lingstad, Bjorn
Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and, Agnetha Faltskog)
A Cast of Chess (possibly original London)
Christine Borarski (as a member of the Mamma Mia Film Cast,
playing Tanya)
Dominic Cooper (as a member of the Mamma Mia Film Cast,
playing Sky)
Erasure
Louise Gold (as a member of Mamma
Mia London Production Cast 3, also Cast 2, playing Tanya)
Leona from X Factor
Madonna
Mamma Mia Film
(including: Christine Borarski, Piers Brosnan, Dominic Cooper, Colin Firth,
Philip Michael, Amanda Seyfried, Meryl
Streep, and Julie Walters along
with the rest of the film cast)
Mamma Mia Holland Cast
Mamma Mia International Touring Cast
Mamma Mia Korean Cast
Mamma Mia Original London Cast (in rehearsal)
Mamma Mia London
Production Cast 3 (in particular: Louise Plowright, with Louise Gold, and, Lesley Nicol, recorded February 2002)
Mamma Mia Norwegian Cast
Mamma Mia Swedish Cast
Philip Michael (as a member of the Mamma Mia Film Cast, playing
Pepper)
Kylie Minogue
Lesley Nicol (as a member of Mamma
Mia London Production Cast 3, also Cast 2, playing Rosie)
Louise Plowright (as a member of Mamma
Mia London Production Cast 3, also Casts1, 2, 4 & 5, playing Donna
Sheridan)
Amanda Seyfried (as a member of the Mamma Mia Film Cast,
playing Sophie Sheridan)
Westlife
Production Team
In addition to both clips of ABBA’s own performances and those from the film version of the
musical Mamma Mia, this documentary
featured clips of various Mamma Mia casts performing the ABBA songs. Louise Gold appeared with fellow Mamma Mia London Production Cast 3
Dynamos Louise Plowright and Lesley Nicol in a clip from February
2002 of Dancing Queen.
Judy Craymer of course is
the producer of the stage version of Mamma Mia,
which was written by Catherine Johnson
with music by Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, directed by Phyllida Lloyd, and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast.
ABBA (Anni-Frid Lingstad, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and, Agnetha
Faltskog ) themselves, as well as Judy
Craymer also feature in ABBA The Reunion, as does some footage of both
the Mamma
Mia Original London Cast, and the Mamma Mia
London Production Cast 3 (with
Dynamos Louise Plowright, Louise Gold, and, Lesley Nicol), this was also first broadcast on ITV 1. The programme was also produced
by Judy Craymer.
Judy Craymer, Catherine Johnson, Phyllida Lloyd, and, Bjorn
Ulvaeus appeared on A Week In The West
End which featured several excerpts of the Mamma Mia
London Production Cast 3 Dynamos (Louise Plowright, Louise Gold, and, Lesley
Nicol) in action, including a long one of them performing Dancing
Queen, and some of Louise
Plowright performing The Winner Takes It All. Cameron Mackintosh also appeared in the
programme.
Mamma Mia London Production Cast 2, in particular
the Dynamo’s: Louise Plowright, Louise Gold, and, Lesley Nicol had also appeared on
Jim Davidson Presents performing Dancing Queen, only on that occasion
they did it as their finale version of the song.
Cameron
Mackintosh was also involved with Dear Ralph, and, Mary Poppins, he appeared in the Side By Side By Sondheim 30th Anniversary
Gala.
Erasure appeared on Roland Rat – The Series.
The Bill, Up The Garden Path, and, Spitting Image: Must See TV were also first
broadcast on ITV1.
Piers Brosnan appeared in a
clip and was mentioned on The
Wonderful World Of Puppets.
Summary/ Review
by Emma Shane, 13
July 2008
From
an unpromising listings guide listing, a surprisingly decent documentary, with
a wide range of clips to suit many different viewers. This documentary although
clearly made to promote the forthcoming film, fortunately includes a great deal
more than just clips of ABBA and
clips from the new film of Mamma Mia!. There is a good deal of
footage from various productions of the stage show.
A
variety of people, mainly involved with the film, are interviewed, of
particular interest is Phyllida Lloyd
with the film’s unusual story-board (she did it herself), and two very recent interviews
with Bjorn and Benny. Meanwhile Catherine
Johnson and Judy Cramer also
talk a lot of sense, and mention some of the background to both the stage show
and now the film. While there are the obligatory to promote the new film
interviews with some of it’s stars; and a rather nice one from the show’s
choreographer Anthony Van Laast, who
reveals that he didn’t use much actual ABBA
choreography, except for that one classic hand gesture.
The
clips are a real delight. Naturally there are quite a number from the new film.
And it’s an interesting opportunity to get a taste for the film, although they
didn’t make me want to watch it. I liked the stage show too much, and in
particular Louise Plowright’s
portrayal of Donna. I also found Julie
Walters’s drunk act version of Take A Chance On Me unappealing, although
she has every right to do it that way if she wants to for it is not wrong it’s
just not to my taste. The best of the three is the clip of Christine Boraski’s Does Your Mother Know (and even that isn’t quite
as good vocally as original London Cast Album, but then the latter eclipsed
even ABBA’s own recording). Still
it’s good to see some clips from the film to know that it wouldn’t appeal to
me, but it may well appeal to others, it depends on how you feel about the
stage show. There are of course quite a lot of clips from ABBA themselves, and it’s interesting to compare all the other
clips to these. Of added interest are a few clips of other pop groups doing
covers of ABBA songs. But the real
surprise of this documentary is just what a variety of clips it includes from
different stage productions of Mamma Mia. The original cast get
little look in, apart from a few brief rehearsal clips, were they under
represented? Well perhaps, but then again there is one member of the original
cast who pops up in a couple of other clips as a member of a subsequent cast...
There are quite a lot of clips from the International Touring cast, this will
please the fans of that cast, I did find those clips more fun than the film,
and evidence of the show’s durability, but still lacking a certain something.
By far the funniest bunch of clips were those from the various international
casts from different countries. Some of these were clips from the show itself
and some from auditions. It’s bizarre hearing ABBA sung in so many different languages, quite surreal. And there
I was thinking that an audience sing-a-long of Dancing Queen in Japanese
(in a certain Muppet’s cabaret act) was bizarre, these clips were far weirder!
The
most unexpected delight among the clips however, in my humble opinion, just has
to be that of London Cast 3. This started in a quite unlikely way, with a
discussion of the song The Winner Takes
It All, in which it is explained this song is key to the whole show.
Earlier there had been a clip of Meryl
Streep singing it. Now to introduce it first we had the original ABBA version, but while the various
personnel talked about this song, I couldn’t help thinking “Oh if only they had Louise Plowright’s version of it” And lo and
behold that’s exactly the clip they put on (from February 2002). It’s so
perfect a performance of that song. She makes it very much her own, ABBA themselves could barely match it,
and Meryl Streep’s version though
ok, just doesn’t have the kind of forthright power and shear passion of Louise Plowright’s very impressive
performance. The Winner Takes It All is mentioned as being a great torch
song. Well when it comes to doing big vitriolic revenge torch songs, no one
does them like Louise Plowright
does. She has an extraordinary talent for being able to sing this kind of song
brilliantly. And then if that were not delight enough, we had a clip, also from
February 2002 (A Week In The West End) of Cast 3’s delightful dynamos digging
the Dancing
Queen in the bedroom scene. This clip seemed to be from a slightly
different camera angle from that shown in A Week In The West End, though it’s
clearly the same footage. It starts quite tightly in on Louise Gold singing the verse, very enthusiastically, and yet at
the same time careful not to go too far and camp it up. Louise Gold is one of the most skilful comic singer-actresses there
is, and she knows exactly how far it is acceptable to go. Lesley Nicol provides very able back up, while Louise Plowright demonstrates what a superb portrayal she did of
Donna in this scene, catching the subtlety of the character to perfection, and
looking like she was enjoying the number, as well she should with those
co-stars. This clip is a wonderful frolic, but it’s so skilfully played by all
three actresses that is never descends into complete camp silliness, it never
goes too far over the top. And that is a testimony to its fine sensible
actresses.
So
a surprisingly worth watching documentary, which didn’t have too much repeat
footage or facts, and of the repeat footage that was there is was stuff that
was there it was stuff well worth repeating (one can never tire of Louise Plowirght’s Donna – she played
the part for four years in the West End, after originating the role of Tanya).
I’m so glad to have seen it
Links about ABBA –
The Mamma Mia! Story
IMDB Entry for
the film: http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0795421/fullcredits#cast
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