Review: MAMMA MIA THE PARTY, The O2 London
The second you step through the doors of Nikos’ Taverna at Mamma Mia: The Party, you are instantly transported out of the cold O2 straight to an ABBA-filled Greek adventure on the island of Skopelos where you’re welcomed to join Nikos and his family getting ready for the big show that evening. Every step from security, all the way through the taverna to your awaiting seat, is crafted to fully immerse you, begging you to leave your troubles behind and get ready for a Mediterranean extravaganza.
The four-hour immersive experience falls into three acts, bookmarked by a surprisingly yummy four course feast and filled with plenty of ABBA classics to sing-along to. For a Mamma Mia super-fan like us Besties, we had a lot of fun but couldn’t help but feel like the show ever so slightly missed the mark on capturing the camp magic of the Mamma Mia franchise. The energy noticeably dipps when ABBA’s lesser known songs are performed and we felt almost as if we were at the top of a rollercoaster only for the big exciting drop to end up being a bit of an underwhelming turn. We believe that ‘ABBA: The Party’ would’ve been a much more appropriate name for the show and would release it from the pressures of living up to the nostalgic feel good phenomenon of the movies.
The night’s entertainment, however, could not be faulted with some amazing performances from the entire cast, and some very thrilling surprises in store too! We appreciate just how difficult it must be to pull off such an extravaganza night after night as it is difficult enough in a theatre setting with a quiet passive audience, but Mamma Mia: The Party delivers a very fun and surprisingly daring show whilst in a very unpredictable atmosphere with hundreds of audience members to cater to.
Overall Besties, we thoroughly enjoyed getting whisked away to Skopelos with Nikos and the crew at Mamma Mia: The Party and recommend all ABBA fans to check out this unique experience.
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Natalie Pedro
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