Broadway Company Performs Mamma Mia!

Arrowhead’s Broadway Company performed the musical Mamma Mia! this spring. Mama Mia! ran from March 4 to March 13. The musical was about two hours and 20 minutes long with a 15 minutes long intermission.

Mama Mia! is about a woman’s journey to find her father the night before she gets married. The Arrowhead musical is typically performed in the fall, however, with the pandemic, the Broadway Company switched things around. In the fall, they had their Musical Theater Nights and in the spring presented the musical. 

Gustavo Chaviano is the director for Broadway Company and also an AHS choir teacher. Chaviano said that the production didn’t change because of the time of year it was performed. He did mention that the cast and crew had to prepare the musical in a more condensed fashion than there would be with the fall date.

Broadway Company instilled performance changes because of the pandemic. The students performed in masks. The leads wore clear masks. 

A limited amount of tickets were sold to the public this year. On the Broadway Company website it says, “Seats next to each other are for household groups only, please purchase all seats in a group.”

“The only problems that came up were when people didn’t purchase all the seats in a particular seating group, so then a couple problems arose where someone was uncomfortable sitting directly next to someone they didn’t know. However, we resolved those issues quickly,” said Chaviano.

Chaviano says that the opening night for the musical was a success. Most people were good with keeping their mask on and sitting in the correct seats.

The Mamma Mia! lead cast list included Maile Beck as Donna Sheridan; Libby Barthel as Tanya; Anna Vifquain as Rosie; Evie Evans as Sophie Sheridan; Makenna Melzer as Lisa; Hannah Dassow as Ali; Jack Sullivan as Sam Carmichel; Luke Wieland as Harry Bright; Kevin McNeil as Bill Austin, Christian Carter as Sky; Niko Petersen as Pepper; and Aidan Folvag as Eddie.

Chaviano said, “I have several favorites from this show, but I think one of the most show stopping solos was ‘The Winner Takes it All’. This song requires a powerhouse voice and sincere acting. Maile Beck accomplished both of those things very well!”

Chaviano said, “Overall, I think everyone that came to see Mamma Mia! had a great time, and were just really happy to be seeing live theater!”

Senior Jones, said, “Despite the obstacles of Covid, we have done our best to create some normalcy in the show and have done a good job with it.”

Jones has been in Broadway Company since her sophomore year and is a part of the ensemble and dance core. “It is super fun to dance in Mamma Mia!, especially since the show is set in Greece and gives off such good vibes,” said Jones.

Jones says she enjoys the atmosphere of working together to put on a show.

“It is so cool to me that all different types of people from such different backgrounds come together and produce such amazing shows. I have created unbreakable bonds during my three years in Broadway, and I will forever be grateful for that,” said Jones.

Jones says she is proud of how well the show came together. Both the leads and ensemble have contributed a lot to the show. Jones enjoys watching the leads perform.

After high school Jones plans to attend a college out of state. She has not decided her career path yet, but she hopes to make one soon.