Mamma Mia at The Marlowe

Taking my children to the theatre is one of my favourite things to do
As a child, teen and young adult I lived on the stage
I loved musical theatre
And it makes me so happy that now my children do too

Tuesday night was a parenting highlight for me
As I took Esther to The Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury
To see Mamma Mia

Mamma Mia is one of my favourite shows
One I have seen more than once in The West End
I had always planned to take Esther for her 13th birthday
But having the show come locally felt too good to miss

We headed to the theatre with Granny which made it even more special

Mamma Mia is an all singing all dancing feel good musical
Cleverly composed of the greatest hits of Swedish super band Abba
It is filled with fun, big dance numbers, ballads and comedy
Every time I have seen this show
I have sung and danced, laughed and cried
And left the theatre bouncing with a new zest for life
And a new love for all things Abba

This time while watching the show
I also kept glancing at Esther
Who was also singing and dancing
Face beaming
Eyes sparkling
Thoroughly lost in the music

Esther did not get all the references and jokes
She did not understand all the naughty language
(of which there seemed to be more in the tour than the London show)
Or pick up on the innuendo
But it did not matter
She understood the story
Loved the characters
And felt the emotion in the stunning performances

Highlights for us both were
Chiquitita
Dancing Queen
Lay All Your Love On Me
Does Your Mother Know

SO many highlights!

There is so much to love about Mamma Mia
The tangled web of love stories
The celebration of girl power
The fantastically styled and choreographed dance numbers
The raw emotional ballads

Slipping Through My Fingers gets me everytime
As I think about my own children growing up and away
And the one daughter that I will never see grow or love or marry

Mamma Mia has something for everyone
It is a masterclass for budding young performers
And a gorgeous gift of nostalgia for ladies of a certain age
Who made up most of the audience at The Marlowe

Jena Pandya who played Sophie Sheridan
Gave a stunning performance and
Sara Poyzer was amazing as Donna Sheridan
I have been lucky enough to see her in the role before
And she is always wonderful to watch
Sophie and Donna really stood out for me
And together gave Esther and I a very special mother daughter moment
As we cuddled and cried together during Slipping Through My Fingers

Our Mamma Mia night is one that we will never forget
We are already planning to see the show again!

Mamma Mia! is running until Saturday September 10 at The Marlowe
I heartily recommend that you take a chance on this fabulous feel good musical
It will leave you feeling like a Dancing Queen!

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