“The best things in life, the very best things happen unexpectedly,” states Donna in the widely-loved musical, Mamma Mia. Wylie High School put on the musical Mamma Mia this past weekend, and many viewers were able to experience the joy this show encapsulated.
Mamma Mia follows the story of 20 year old Sophie, a bride-to-be, and Donna, her hard-working mother. Sophie, played by Addie Fellona in Wylie’s production, has been searching for her father, and she finds three potential men in her mother’s diary. Without her mom knowing, Sophie decides to invite all three suitors to her upcoming wedding. To her surprise, all three men show up a few days before the ceremony, thinking Donna sent them the invite. Donna, played by Aria Kershner, is shocked to see the three guests that arrived, and relies on her two best friends, Tonya and Rosie throughout the plot of the show. The iconic trio, also known as Donna and the Dynamos, reflect on their younger years together and give multiple singing performances united again. Entering the second act of the musical, Sophie has a nightmare in which all three of her potential fathers are fighting over who will give her away on her big day. Following this, one of the potential dads, Sam, goes to Donna with his suspicions, and they both realize they wish they’d never left one another. The day of the ceremony comes, and in the end, Donna walks Sophie down the aisle. At the last minute, Sophie decides she’s not ready to get married because she wants to travel the world with her almost-husband, Sky. However, the attention shifts to Sam as he pops the question and asks Donna to marry him, and she says yes. In the end, neither Sophie nor Donna know which man is Sophie’s biological dad, but Sophie decides she doesn’t need to know the answer, because she loves all three of them as her father.
Lyla Fletcher, who played a bridesmaid, as well as the understudy for Sophie in the musical, talks on the meaning of Mamma Mia to her. The one word she would use to sum up this show was “rewarding.” She said when you put more effort into a show, you get more out of it, not only for the audience, but for everyone personally. You could definitely see the evidence of hard work throughout the amazing production. Lyla’s favorite part of the show was “being able to do what I love while also being able to entertain people and bring joy to audiences.” She said a special part of the show was the overall theme of family, which strongly applies to many teenagers today. She said there is importance in family relationships when “starting the next chapter of your life and making important decisions.” That message was definitely felt by the audience with Aria Kershner and Addie Fellona’s portrayal of an unbreakable mother daughter bond. Thank you to Mrs. Jones and the entire theater department for putting this lovely musical together!
Photo credit: Lyla Fletcher
