Brightest Young Things

Boys singing, dancing, and jump-splitting in tight Speedos as rubber flippers flail through the air—it may sound like a kinky bachelorette party, but instead it's one of the many delightful spectacles of the musical Mamma Mia!, now playing at DC's National Theater.

Mamma Mia is a story about a bride-to-be set to a best-of-Abba soundtrack. Sophie (Rose Sezniak) is the daughter of a single, strong-willed, American expat mother (Susie McMonagle) and is on a quest to figure out who her real father is. She grew up and was mysteriously conceived on a sexy greek island. After finding her mother's diary, Sophie is able to narrow down her potential father to three men mentioned in entries involving "dot…dot…dot..." She invites the three men to her wedding, in hopes of being able to immediately identify her dad.

While the younger half of the cast borders on artificial and cheesy, the older actors serve as the real meat of the show. Young Sezniak and her pals deliver painfully sweet performances. Meanwhile, McMonagle and the actresses who play her two hilarious middle-aged girlfriends add a seasoned bite to the show. The three women upstage their younger counterparts with their polyester performances and a sultry rendition of "Dancing Queen" that is sung into deodorant bars and blow dryers with wit and spunk. John Hemphill, Michael Aaron Lindner, and Nathan Alan Johnson play three charming and absolutely loveable potential papas.

Though folly and tackiness prevails, it’s still a good time to catch Mamma Mia! live before it sinks into its forthcoming cinematic shadow. Even the feature film adaptation won’t be able to reproduce the energy that comes from an audience that ends the show by singing and dancing along. What’s easier on the eyes is also much better live.

MAMMA MIA!
Starring Susie Mcmonagle, Rose Sezniak, Kittra Wynn Coomer, Michelle Eliza-Beth Dawson and more. Music and lyrics by Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus. Directed by Phyllida Lloyd. At the National Theater through July 13.

Previously in Live DC:

• 2/9: LiveDC: Theophilus London @ 930 Club
• 2/9: Best Weekend Bets
• 2/8: LiveDC: Kathleen Edwards @ 930 Club
• 2/8: LiveDC: Thurston Moore/ Kurt Vile @ Black Cat
• 2/8: LiveDC: Thurston Moore/ Kurt Vile @ Black Cat
• 2/7: LiveDC: Demetri Martin @ Warner Theatre
• 2/7: LiveDC: Augustana/ Graffiti6 @ 930 Club
• 2/6: LiveDC: All Things Go Presents: Reptar/ Casual Curious/ Fort Lean @ Gibson Guitar Showroom
• 2/6: LiveDC: TYCHO/ Beacon @ RNR Hotel
• 2/6: LiveDC: The Kills / Jeff The Brotherhood @ 9:30 Club