UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus’ “Mamma Mia!,” the touring Broadway musical based on the songs of ABBA, returns to Penn State for one performance at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, in Eisenhower Auditorium.
The ultimate feel-good show has audiences coming back again and again to relive the thrills. The musical combines many of ABBA’s greatest hits — including “Dancing Queen,” “S.O.S,” “Super Trouper,” “Take a Chance on Me” and “Money, Money Money” — with an enchanting tale of love, laughter and friendship.
Seen by more than 54 million people around the world, “Mamma Mia!” is the ninth-longest-running show in Broadway history. The original West End production is now in its 15th year in London, and the international tour has visited 35 countries. The blockbuster film adaptation, which has grossed $600 million worldwide, is the most successful movie musical of all time.
The Associated Press acclaimed “Mamma Mia!” as “quite simply, a phenomenon.”
Section one and two tickets for the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State presentation are $65 and $56 for an adult, $47 and $38 for a University Park student and $48 and $39 for a person 18 and younger. Buy tickets online or by phone at 814-863-0255. Outside the calling area, dial 800-ARTS-TIX. Tickets are also available at four State College locations: Eisenhower Auditorium (weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.), Penn State Downtown Theatre Center (weekdays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.), HUB-Robeson Center Information Desk (weekdays 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) and Bryce Jordan Center (weekdays 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.). A grant from the University Park Allocation Committee makes Penn State student prices possible.
The musical concerns Donna, an independent, single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island, who is about to let go of Sophie, the spirited daughter she’s raised alone. For Sophie’s wedding, Donna has invited her two lifelong best girlfriends — practical no-nonsense Rosie and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya — from her one-time backing band, Donna and the Dynamos.
On a quest to find the identity of her father so he can walk her down the aisle, Sophie invites three men from Donna’s past to the Mediterranean paradise. In a day’s worth of chaotic, magical hours, love will bloom and romances will rekindle.
Work Light Productions — with other touring productions including “American Idiot,” “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” “Nice Work If You Can Get It” and “Chaplin” — produces “Mamma Mia!”
Artistic Viewpoints, an informal moderated discussion featuring a visiting artist, is offered in Eisenhower one hour before the performance and is free for ticket holders. Artistic Viewpoints regularly fills to capacity, so seating is available on a first-arrival basis.
Audio description, which is especially helpful to patrons with sight loss, is available for this performance at no extra charge to ticket holders.
The Village at Penn State sponsors the presentation. MAJIC 99 and WTAJ-TV are the media sponsors.
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