Mama Mia, that’s mighty fine Hairspray

New York City, if anything, contains a wealth of things to see and do. There is no way that you can go there and complain that you’re bored. Just about any interest, avocation or proclivity can be accommodated in the town that never sleeps. From Coney Island to the far reaches of the Bronx, there’s something for everyone… some well known, some totally obscure. Interested in the history of the country of Ukraine? The Ukrainian History Museum on 5^th avenue, located in the mansion originally built by the founder of the Sinclair Oil Company, is just what you’re looking for. At the other end of the spectrum are the Broadway shows that the city is so well known for. We were able to see two shows while in town - Mama Mia and Hairspray. Both were absolutely fantastic and our toes are still tapping to the memory of the musical numbers so well performed.

First up was Hairspray, winner of 8 Tony awards. If you don’t know, it’s about a teenage girl in 1964 who wants to get on an “American Bandstand” type show in Baltimore. Intertwined with this is her desire to open up the show to blacks who are allowed to come on the show only one day a month. Naturally she accomplishes both tasks, and wins the heart of the show’s heartthrob teen idol in the process. Makes for a very feel good evening of entertainment.

Next was Mama Mia. The show was written backwards from the way shows are normally produced. The normal method has the music written last to support a previously developed storyline. Mama Mia reversed this process by writing a story to support the already existing music – in this case, by the Swedish rock group ABBA. This is a much harder method because in any show, the story is paramount with the music written to contain wording and themes to support the storyline. So, to take a bunch of otherwise unrelated songs and craft a storyline from them is much harder. But in this instance, the end result is nothing short of excellent. I doubt there is anyone who doesn’t like the songs by ABBA so anyone seeing this show is sure to come away singing Mama Mia, Waterloo, Dancing Queen, S.O.S., The Winner Takes it All, Voulez Vous, and I Do, I Do, I Do plus others for days afterwards.

Both shows have national touring companies so if you get a chance to see either of them, do so. And if you have any Ukrainian friends, take them along too.