Mamma Mia!
For the first time ever, Madách Theatre has been awarded the right to stage a non-replica version of Mamma Mia! The premiere took place in August 2014 at the Szeged Open Air Festival and in September at the Madách Theatre.
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The musical Mamma Mia! was written to the hits of the Swedish pop/dance group ABBA. The piece was the brainchild of producer Judy Craymer, who worked with the composers Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson on the 1983 London premiere of the musical Chess. The song "The Winner Takes It All" gave Judy Craymer the idea that ABBA songs could be turned into a stage work. The songwriters were not very enthusiastic, but they were not against it.
Judy Craymer commissioned Catherine Johnson to write the play in 1997. In 1998, Phyllida Lloyd joined the production as professional director, and the collaboration between the three women led to the outstanding success of the musical theatre.
Mamma Mia! premiered at the Prince Edward Theatre in London on 6 April 1999 and ran there until 2004, when it moved to the Prince of Wales Theatre, where it ran until September 2012. Since then the musical has been staged at the Novello Theatre. The original production was directed by Phyllida Lloyd and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast.
On Broadway since October 13, 2001, it has been one of the top 10 best-selling musicals of all time, surpassing the success of Miss Saigon, The Lion King and The Sound of Music.
Mamma Mia! has been translated into 14 languages. More than 54 million people worldwide have seen the production, making it the record-breaking musical that has been performed in the shortest time in the most cities.
Mamma Mia! was made into a film in 2008. The British-US co-production romantic comedy stars Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Julie Walters and Amanda Seyfried, and was executive produced by Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson.
The film had its world premiere in London on 30 June 2008 and was first shown in cinemas in Greece on 3 July 2008. It was released in Hungary on 17 July and in North America the following day. The DVD was released in Hungary at the end of November 2008.
Mamma Mia! was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, for Best Comedy/Musical and Best Actress in a Comedy (Meryl Streep).
The musical features an all ABBA score, and the title of the play is one of the hits performed. ABBA was active between 1972 and 1982 and it is no exaggeration to say that they conquered the world, with songs constantly topping the charts in Europe, North America and Australia.
Madách Theater
There is still an “era” in the Madách Theater. The era of the rise and success of musical theater. The change began in 1983 with Cats, whose decades-long series of success provided a solid foundation for the next defining step: the legendary 2003 performance of The Phantom of the Opera. Both performances were directed by Tamás Szirtes, who was elected director of the Madách Theater in 2004. Under his direction, the Madách Theater embarked on a path that has resulted in a successful musical theater of outstanding quality. World-famous musicals line up in his program, which are usually in large blocks, so-called they are staged according to the en suite playing order, and each performance remains on the show for years. The basic aim of the theater is to give the viewer the same experience even after 10 years as at the premiere.
