An all-POC cast (primarily Asian, significantly Filipino), inspired direction, electrifying choreography, and the most gorgeous of production designs breathe fresh new life into East West Players’ thrillingly trailblazing Mamma Mia!, the all-around best of the many MM!s I’ve seen.

Eschewing a mere diversity-for-diversity’s-sake approach (not that there’s anything wrong with that), director Snehal Desai gives us a Mamma Mia! whose characters don’t just happen to be people of color, their ethnicity informs their identity, whether in bits of dialog translated into Tagalog, or characters who break into the traditional Filipino stick dance known as tinikling or strum a tune on a bandurria, or butterfly sleeves added to the ABBA-wear sported in the show’s trademark sing-and-dance-along curtain-call “Megamix.”

Taking as her inspiration the 1968 Gina Lollobrigida comedy Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell, book writer Catherine Johnson adroitly squeezes one hook-blessed, lyrically stilted ABBA hit after another into the tale of twenty-year-old Greek-born-and-bred Sophie Sheridan (Grace Yoo), who invites a trio of her innkeeper mother Donna’s (Joan Almedilla) ex-lovers to the seaside village she and Mom call home in hopes of determining which of them should give her away when she weds man-of-her-dreams Sky (Max Torrez) with bridesmaids Ali (Nicole Santiago) and Lisa (Jules Aurora) by her side.

Will it be American architect Sam Carmichael (Alan Ariano), who seduced Donna, then abandoned her for his fiancee back home, or London banker Harry Bright (Danny Bernardo), who banged Donna on the rebound, or Aussie travel writer Bill Austin (Michael Palma), the third to plant his seed in the frisky young Filipino-American miss?

Also along for the ride are thrice-married plastic surgery-loving Tanya Chesham-Leigh (Anthea Neri), feisty single gal Rosie Mulligan (Elvira Barjau), and spunky young taverna employees Pepper (AJ Rafael) and Eddie (Kevin Trinio Perdido).

All of this adds up to one of the most crowd-pleasing jukebox musicals in Broadway history, and if Mamma Mia! has gotten itself accused of pleasing crowds with fluff, fluff, and more fluff, director Desai finds the heart and depth that have been lurking under the surface these past eighteen years just dying to come out.

From the moment Almedilla’s Donna greets the man that ran away with barely controlled rage, you know you’ll be seeing Mamma Mia!’s leading lady in a whole new light, and the second Almedilla breaks into song, you can bet you’ll be hearing ABBA hits sung as powerfully as they’ve ever been sung.

Yoo makes for an absolutely enchanting Sophie (with pipes to match Almedilla’s), Skys don’t get any more appealing than hunky Tex-Mex triple-threat Torrez, and Aurora, Perdido, Rafael, and Santiago make for the most fabulous of featured foursomes.

Neri’s Tanya sizzles so sizzlingly, it’s no wonder Youtube star Rafael’s Pepper wants to pepper her snapper and Barjau’s pert-and-perky Rosie is so downright irresistible, it’s no wonder sexual sparks are ignited in “Take A Chance On Me,” particularly with the ever-so appealing Palma as her partner in chance-taking.

Bernardo’s gay-from-the-get-go Harry proves a particularly refreshing surprise as does director Desai’s unexpected twist on Harry’s eleventh-hour revelation, and Ariano shows off pleasing vocal chops as the man who broke Donna’s heart.

Choreographer Preston Mui’s show-stopping all-original dance steps add to the EWP Mamma Mia! excitement, including a snappy “Fan Tan Fannie” twist on “Voulez Vous” and the funniest flipper dance ever, with Steven Agdeppa, Andrew Ge, Edelyn Okano, Ala Tiatia (an amusingly quirky Father Alexandrios), and Dekontee Tucrkile giving Broadway ensembles a run for their money every dance step of the way.

Last but not least, just wait till director Desai restages Mamma Mia!’s two-person final scene to deeply moving, full-cast effect.

Musical director Marc Macalintal provides accustomed bang-up back up, not only in eliciting top-notch vocals and vocal harmonies but also in conducting Mamma Mia’s ABBAtastic house band*, and Christian Lee merits high marks too for his pitch-perfect sound design mix.

Scenic designer Anna Robinson’s Asian-lantern-festooned Greek taverna is a surprise-filled knockout, and Karyn Lawrence’s exquisite lighting makes it (and Stephanie Nguyen’s fabulous Filipino-flavored costumes and Glenn Michael Baker and Josh Shelden’s equally terrific properties) look even more breathtaking.

Allen Weaver is assistant director. Natalie Morales is scenic design assistant, Luis Navarette is lighting design assistant, and Ashphord Jacoway is costume design assistant.

Brandon Hong Cheng is stage manager and Lydia Runge is assistant stage manager. Andy Lowe is casting director

Even if you’ve seen Mamma Mia! more times than you’d wish to count, you won’t want to miss East West Players’ groundbreaking Pacific Islander take on the Broadway mega-smash. As scrumptious as Philippine adobo and as intoxicating as a glass of Manila Sunshine with a Greek ouzo chaser, this is one Mamma Mia! even naysayers will find hard to resist.

*Craig Bunch, Khris Kempis, Macalintal, Vince Reyes, Chris Spilsbury

East West Players, David Henry Hwang Theatre, 120 Judge John Aiso St., Los Angeles.
www.eastwestplayers.org

–Steven Stanley
May 16, 2019
Photos: Steven Lam

Tags: ABBA, East West Players, Los Angeles Theater Review