"MAAAAMMA MEEEAIIIIIA" - WOW - talk about swiiiingin'.. 'n singin' ..'n dancin'...!!

Yesterday Hillevi and I had a delicious Indian luncheon in a restaurant opposite the stage door of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London - a delicious meal, fully recommended if your taste buds are tickled by specialities from the orient.....yummy... We than trolled up Charing Cross Road to Foyles bookshop and had a browse around, finding interesting books successfully. Lurking around Soho in Dean Street, home of International Film Distributors, I asked Hillevi if she'd seen the new screening of "Mamma Mia". "No, why don't we go now ?" she replied. As we were only a few minutes away from Leicester Square it seemed like a good idea, and that's how we found ourselves in the Odeon cinema, unexpectedly indulging in the amazing experience of this brilliant piece of Bjorn and Benny creative genius! Their music has always been a pleasure for me, and I know so many of the scores from working over a number of years in Aland, Finland, at Medi's, and Summer Schools in Mariehamn. Such happy, joyful days with Asa Isaaksson and the Andersson sisters, Nina and Anita - and a wealth of gifted artists....The 'M.M' scenario - incredibly - works, thanks to the imaginative playwright Catherine Johnson, and especially when you consider that the songs were not written with a specific story line - such is their incredible variety of human emotion - a miracle really.... The production is well known on stage, although I've not seen that, but as a film the possibilities are endless and have been fully exploited - the dance routines are foot tappingly tempting - I was dying to join in ! The same goes for the songs - and many were singing along in the audience - wonderful. Basically I found myself grinning like a Cheshire cat most of the time - and then there's the breathtaking singing ! What a relief to hear human beings just using their natural voices to "put the songs over" , it all rang so true and sincere - it will probably rank as an all time favourite along with "The Sound of Music". No, don't shudder and be a snob about entertainment that appeals to the general public - they keep the music profession alive...!! Apart from the sheer enthusiasm oozing from everyone, there are several poignant scenes - a touching duo head to head close-up with Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried brought tears welling up - and the dazzling "Winner takes it all" rendition by Meryl - Oscar winning stuff - Hillevi passed me a large tissue as I blurbed (quietly) through it - such power of emotion......All the actors are so well cast - seeing Julie Walters, and remembering her as 'Mrs. Overall' in 'Acorn Antiques', etc., etc., - she's mind blowing ....This show must be a great boost to the artistic heritage of Sweden - my second home - I'll be there soon for the 'Delilah' of Awesome Anna --(yes, the Larsson Anna) - can't wait .... k..p b.......g...