Mamma Mia! Reviews: What the Critics Say
Mamma Mia! opened at the Prince Edward Theatre on 6 April 1999 to a divided press and an audience that danced in the aisles from night one. Twenty-seven years, three theatres and more than 10 million London theatregoers later, it plays at the Novello Theatre with the argument long settled. Here is what the critics have said, then and now, in one place.
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The Critics' Verdict
The 1999 press night produced a genuine split rather than the crowning of a West End legend. Some critics loved it on day one: the Financial Times called it "one of the few good musicals on the London stage today", and Sheridan Morley wrote "After a shaky start, Mamma Mia soars". Others were unmoved, most famously the Evening Standard's Nicholas de Jongh: "Thank you for the music...shame about the musical". Modern re-reviews of the running production sit higher than that reputation suggests, most often at four stars, with Time Out's three at the bottom of the range and WhatsOnStage's five at the top. No review, in either era, has ever disputed what the audience gets out of it.
What the Reviews Praised
The songs and the fun, consistently across 27 years. The Times' Benedict Nightingale (1999) conceded the party: "the rest of us might as well indulge them." WhatsOnStage, revisiting at the Prince of Wales (5/5), called it "a musical with heart" with "real art and craft, too". Time Out (3/5), reviewing the current Novello run, admitted "it's impossible not to fall for 'Mamma Mia!'s twinkling charms". And Variety's Matt Wolf, mixed overall in 1999, granted that it "achieves its decidedly modest aim with gusto".
Where Reviews Were Mixed
The book took the knocks in 1999: the Daily Telegraph's Kate Bassett heard "a banal soap opera" in the dialogue, and Variety called the whole "a soggy mother-daughter drama" folded into "buoyant and kitschy Europop". The modern critical position is warmer but rarely ecstatic. Four stars with a smile is the usual verdict, and the reservation behind it has not changed in twenty-seven years: the show is a party first and a piece of theatre second. Audiences have never seen the problem, and twenty-seven years of full houses is the evidence.
Is Mamma Mia! Right for You?
If you want a night that sends everyone out smiling, the reviews and the run agree: book with confidence, and 27 years of full theatres are hard evidence. ABBA fans, groups and families from about age 5 are exactly who it is built for. If you need your musicals edgy, or ABBA leaves you cold, the critics who shrugged in 1999 were shrugging on your behalf. On the fence? Call us on 020 7193 9050 and a real person will talk you through it.
Book Mamma Mia! Tickets
Mamma Mia! plays at the Novello Theatre, Monday to Saturday, booking to 2 October 2027. Prices run from around £17.50 for restricted-view seats, with clear views from around £37.50 up to around £100 and premium seats up to around £195. With us the price you see is the price you pay, with nothing added at checkout. Mamma Mia! tickets are bookable online, or call us on 020 7193 9050.
Sources: Evening Standard, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, Financial Times, Variety, WhatsOnStage, Time Out, Sheridan Morley (Teletext).