Mamma Mia! is a jukebox musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson based on songs recorded by Swedish group ABBA and composed by members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. The title of the musical is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia". Ulvaeus and Andersson were involved in the development of the show from the beginning, while singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad was involved financially in the production and also appeared at many of the premieres around the world.
"Mamma Mia" is a song by the Swedish pop group ABBA, written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson, with the lead vocals shared by Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. It is the opening track on the group's third album, the self-titled ABBA (1975). The song was released in September 1975 as its sixth single. The song's name is derived from Italian, where it is an interjection used in situations of surprise, anguish, or excitement. It corresponds to the English interjection "my, my!" The song was ABBA's first number one in the UK since "Waterloo" in 1974.
Francis Xavier Aloysius James Jeremiah Keenan Wynn was an American character actor. His expressive face was his stock-in-trade; and though he rarely carried the lead role, he had prominent billing in most of his film and television roles.
Charles Van Dell Johnson was an American film, television, theatre and radio actor. He was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during and after World War II.
London School of Musical Theatre (LSMT) is a training academy of performing arts, that was founded by Glenn Lee in 1995. The school is located on Borough Road, central London.
Frank Keenan was an American stage and film actor and stage director and manager during the silent-film era. He was among the first stage actors to star in Hollywood, and he pursued work in film features for a number of years.
Mamma Mia! is a 2008 jukebox musical romantic comedy film directed by Phyllida Lloyd and written by Catherine Johnson, based on her book from the 1999 musical of the same name. The film is based on the songs of pop group ABBA, with additional music composed by ABBA member Benny Andersson. The film features an ensemble cast, including Christine Baranski, Pierce Brosnan, Dominic Cooper, Colin Firth, Amanda Seyfried, Stellan Skarsgård, Meryl Streep, and Julie Walters. The plot follows a young bride-to-be who invites three men to her upcoming wedding, with the possibility that any of them could be her father. The film was an international co-production between Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, and was co-produced by Playtone and Littlestar Productions.
"When I Kissed the Teacher" is a song by the pop band ABBA. It is the opening track on their 1976 album Arrival.
Louise Pitre is a Canadian actress in musical theatre. She performs on Broadway and in Canada. She is best known for her role as Donna Sheridan in the ABBA-themed musical Mamma Mia!, which earned her a 2002 Tony Award nomination.
Lisa Brescia is an American musical theatre actress who has performed as lead and understudy in several Broadway shows. Raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, she went on to pursue acting and graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. She taught Acting I and IV at Missouri State University and is now set to be the head of the Musical Theatre department at Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri.
American Idiot is a sung-through rock musical based on the concept album of the same name by rock band Green Day. After a run at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2009, the show moved to the St. James Theatre on Broadway. Previews began on March 24, 2010, and the musical officially opened on April 20, 2010. The show closed on April 24, 2011, after 422 performances. While Green Day did not appear in the production, vocalist/guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong performed the role of "St. Jimmy" occasionally throughout the run.
Heathers: The Musical is a musical with music, lyrics and book by Laurence O'Keefe and Kevin Murphy, based on the 1988 film of the same name written by Daniel Waters. The producers include J. Todd Harris, Amy Powers, RJ Hendricks, and Andy Cohen. After a sold-out Los Angeles tryout, the show moved Off-Broadway in 2014. After the run in 2014, the show had an Off-West End run in 2018 and then transferred to the West End in 2018 for a limited engagement.
Judith Sarah Jarman Craymer is an English creator and producer of musical theatre who has also worked in the film, television and music industries. She is the founder of Littlestar Services Ltd. Craymer worked on Mamma Mia!, which has been seen by more than 65 million people worldwide. Ten years after the film adaptation grossed more than $600 million around the world, Craymer produced an all-new original movie musical based on the songs of ABBA, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Since opening in July 2018 the film has become the most successful live musical movie sequel of all time grossing just less than $400 million. Craymer was nominated for the "Carl Foreman award for special achievement by a British director, writer or producer in their first feature film" at the 62nd British Academy Film Awards for the film version of Mamma Mia! She has been dubbed "the greatest showbiz impresario" of the first decade of the 21st century and has consequently been entered in Debrett's.
"I Wonder (Departure)" is a song by ABBA, released on their 1977 album ABBA: The Album. It was originally part of the ABBA-produced mini-musical The Girl with the Golden Hair, which they performed at the end of each of their 1977 concert tours.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is a jukebox musical with a book by Douglas McGrath that tells the story of the early life and career of Carole King, using songs that she wrote, often together with Gerry Goffin, and other contemporary songs by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Phil Spector and others.
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is a 2018 British / American production jukebox musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Ol Parker, from a story by Parker, Catherine Johnson, and Richard Curtis. It is the sequel to the 2008 film Mamma Mia!, which in turn is based on the 1999 musical of the same name using the music of ABBA. The film features an ensemble cast, including Christine Baranski, Pierce Brosnan, Dominic Cooper, Colin Firth, Andy García, Lily James, Amanda Seyfried, Stellan Skarsgård, Julie Walters, Cher, Meryl Streep, Alexa Davies, Jessica Keenan Wynn, Josh Dylan, Jeremy Irvine, and Hugh Skinner. Both a prequel and a sequel, the plot is set after the events of the previous film, and is intersected with flashbacks to Donna's youth in 1979, with some scenes from the two time periods mirroring each other.
Hilda Keenan was an American actress and vaudeville performer, part of a family of actors including her father Frank Keenan, her husband Ed Wynn, and her son Keenan Wynn.
Sarah Daniels is an American actress, singer, and Twitch streamer.
Ned Wynn was an American actor and screenwriter.
Najite Dede is a director and a Nigerian actress in the Nollywood industry. She is a sibling to Michelle Dede and a cousin to Richard Mofe Damijo who are also into the film industry.
