Musical is best night of theatre fun around

DON’T hang about if you are planning to make a night of it at this ultimate party show in the company of its wildly enthusiastic audiences and masterful pop songs.

Mamma Mia might have come to Manchester for the best part of a month but already many dates are getting full.

It’s that kind of show ­– slight, sentimental, a little broader in the comedy than it was last time out, but nonetheless one of the best nights of fun to be had in any theatre; a guaranteed winner and thus very popular: a Rocky Horror Show for romantics.

The evening isn’t perfect by any means: the singing is sometimes a little coarse, and at times the pace gets just a little too much and you long for a few minutes without one of those perfectly crafted pop masterpieces. But not for long.

To say this is a score of hits is an understatement: most modern musicals get by on two or three big numbers, repeated and varied until we’re tired of them.

Every one of the 22 songs here has been a genuine, much-loved hit over the past 42 years, and almost all were written in a staggering eight years up to 1982, an output rivalling Lennon and McCartney at their peak.

Furious

THE current cast is a mix of newcomers and old timers: back once again are Richard Standing (dad number one) and Sara Poyzer as the mother of Sophie (Lucy May Barker), the soon-to-be-married girl with three potential fathers.

New to Manchester are Emma Clifford and Jacqueline Braun as Donna’s friends and former group members, both great fun in their big numbers.

The show was famously directed by former Royal Exchange associate Phyllida Lloyd, now rather rich as a result and deservedly so for turning the cute, song-trigger script into a living, breathing romantic comedy and keeping things fast and furious.

Haven’t seen the show and hated the movie? Don’t worry; no one liked the movie.

The stage show is an entirely different proposition and proves that in cases such as this, non-starry actors live on stage are vastly superior to big-name movie stars on film ­– even if the latter could sing.