A small piece of Greece is coming to Dunedin next year, when the city stages New Zealand’s first arena production of Mamma Mia!. Unlike the traditional theatre production, the arena production will be performed on a central 10sq m “island” stage in the middle of the Breeze Arena at the Edgar Centre, giving more than 3000 spectators a 360‑degree view of the show. Set on a sunny Greek island, a young bride-to-be secretly invites three men from her mother's past to her wedding, in the hope that one of them is her real father and will walk her down the aisle. The musical is set to classic Abba songs. Director Doug Kamo said there would be four performances, between April 22 and 24, next year. “This Dunedin‑born spectacular delivers the largest and most immersive reimagining of Mamma Mia! ever staged in New Zealand. “To our knowledge, this is the first production of its type to ever be staged globally.” Mr Kamo said the production was originally supposed to held in Dunedin in 2020, but the Covid-19 lockdowns forced its cancellation. Seven years later, the long-awaited production is a powerful piece of unfinished business for Dunedin’s musical theatre community, he said. The production has a cast of 32, a raised 10sq m central stage, a 12m-wide elevated stage connected by a sweeping runway, eight towering LED panels which will transform the arena into a living Greek village, floating terracotta rooftops, bougainvillea and festoon lighting, cast entrances via wooden jetties running through the audience, and a live nine‑piece band. “Featuring Abba’s iconic music, this arena spectacular brings the world’s most feelgood musical to life on a scale never before seen in New Zealand,” Mr Kamo said. The musical director for the show will be Michael Grant, it will be choreographed by Emma Donaldson, and auditions for the cast will be held in early October. Mr Kamo said it was the second arena spectacular held at the venue. The first was in 2016, when Grease: The Arena Spectacular was put on by a full Dunedin cast and band, which drew thousands and delivered a major economic boost to the city. He said it proved that Otago and Southland would turn out in force for large‑scale entertainment. john.lewis@odt.co.nz
