You know when you are secretly a huge fan of ABBA, but are just too afraid to admit it? Well, Mamma Mia is still playing at Teatro Citi. It’s time to bring down the wall of shame people. Do not be afraid.

Every year, this grand theatre in the centre of Buenos Aires puts on a mass musical – recent spectacles have included The Sound of Music and Beauty and the Beast, while The Little Mermaid, The Lion King and Mary Poppins are rumoured to be on the way.

The musical has had an enormous impact around the world. After the production dazzled the West End stage in 1999 and Broadway in 2001, racking up more than 50 million viewers since, an additional burst of fame for the show came when Phyllida Lloyd’s film version was released in 2008. Starring the likes of Pierce Brosnan, Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Amanda Seyfried – to name a few – it became so popular at the time in the United Kingdom that it topped the charts becoming the highest-ever grossing film.

Since Mamma Mia’s arrival on Avenida Corrientes earlier this year, local media has lapped up the rendition of the Scandinavian quartet’s 20+ hit songs, taking you through the lead up to a young woman’s wedding day and her grand search for her real father – all sung in almost completely porteño Spanish.

Just a month and a half after the show premiered, it hit a record of 30,000 viewers, taking it to the top of the BA audience ranking for musicals. Dubbed, “The Magical Musical,” and “The Only Winner,” as well as being a favourite in the running for a “Hugo” award (the Argentine version of the Tonys which takes place in August) this production’s capability to capture porteño hearts was clear from the beginning.

Porteño Production

As is standard with shows brought from Broadway and beyond to the Buenos Aires stage, the musical tries to remain true to its worldwide counterparts (Mamma Mia is currently playing in London, New York and Paris as well as enjoying huge success on Japanese, Korean and International tours). Therefore, the set, costumes, lighting, staging, choreographies, etc are kept almost completely identical to the original West End show. The script and song lyrics are the only things that change, translated into Spanish.

Even so, for a story set on a Greek island, the scenery on stage really isn’t particularly that exciting, with two white walls on trucks, and a few extra props, much is left to the imagination. Luckily enough, the action taking place was, at least for the most part, interesting enough to light up the stage.

Paula Reca plays the character of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried’s part in the film version), and while she gave it her best, it was quite clear that the casting was a mismatch. Often singing off-key and really quite unconvincingly, the cheese factor that already comes with the show plus this general over-acting left me tuning out during nearly every performance she was involved in.

In contrast, the real stars were the likes of Marisol Otero as Donna, (played by Meryl Streep in the film) who I last saw in Bella y Bestia as Mrs Potts, as well as Silvana Tome who plays Rosie, (Julie Walters in the film) who I last saw as the hilarious Chow Fan in Avenida “Q”.

In fact the interaction between Rosie (Tome), Donna (Otero) and Tanya (Gabriela Bevacqua) saw some of the most entertaining moments in the musical, including on songs like “Super Trouper” where the ladies came out dressed in silver and white shiny flares.

“Voulez-vous” was another tremendous piece, full of energy and electricity. Otero’s rendition of “Hay solo un ganador” (“The Winner Takes it All”) was also breath-taking. In contrast, “The Name of the Game,” or “Como hay que jugar” as it is translated, was a little bit unconvincing and off time.

Unfortunately, the overall performance of the male cast was a little uninteresting, with their song renditions particularly lax. The leading male part out of the three possible dads is Sam, played by German Barcelo, who really failed to capture anyone’s attention at all. All three male parts were upstaged by Otero and her team, who completely stole the show. The only leading male who vaguely entertained was Luciano Bassi, who plays the character of Sky (Sophie’s hubby-to-be). The diving scene was particularly hilarious, even if for the more slap-stick elements of it.

Crucial Learning

With all of this in mind, the reality is that, ABBA fan or not, this glittery extravaganza and seventies song festival is a wonderful opportunity to practice your Spanish. Listening to all these songs translated is not as cringeworthy as you might think; in fact, at times it is very entertaining. There’s ´Dame, Dame, Dame un hombre esta noche…´ (“Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie a man after midnight…”), and ´Quiero dar las gracias´ (“Thank You for the Music”) just to name a couple.

Some of the titles were not translated (“Money, Money, Money” for example), but in these cases, the title is sung in English and the rest of the song lyrics in Spanish. I figure that was a choice made based on longer words not fitting into the musical phrases, which could have made the songs sound really odd. (“Dinero, Dinero, Dinero”, for example, might not have worked very well).

So, there you have it folks. If you are in need of a song-filled Spanish lesson, head down to Corrientes and grab yourselves a ticket. You will not be disappointed by this big, sparkly and very entertaining show. By the end of it the entire audience was up and dancing, and with the rave reviews it’s received, I do believe the night I went to see the show was definitely no fluke performance.

“Chiquitita dime porque,” there is no way you can deny it. Check it out.

Long anticipated, the musical ‘Chicago’ finally took its place at the legendary Lola Membrives Theatre towards the end of last year. After premiering in November, the musical has received many a rave review, so after its first cycle on the grand Avenida Corrientes, I made my way down to check it out.

Whether you love it or hate it, Chicago has got to be one of the world’s most popular musicals. The story is about two females who are jailed for their murderous crimes, and thus tells the story of the corrupt, competitive world of the Chicago courtroom during the Prohibition Era, but the musical version being told through jazz and dance. The original story was written by female reporter, Maurine Dallas Watkins, who covered real murder trials in the early 20s.

The powerful connection was made when the great story was tantilisingly spun into the vaudeville-style musical by geniuses Bob Fosse, Fred Ebb and John Kander back in the 1970s. A rapturous, sensual musical story was thus created.

It debuted on Broadway in 1975 at the 46th Street theatre and has since become a classic musical, with productions all over the world. Where a musical begins in Broadway, usually it quickly follows in the West End in London, and did so with Chicago making its debut in 1979 at the famous Cambridge Theatre.

In both instances the show ran for a good while, but was put on hold until it reappeared on Broadway in 1996 and 1997 in London. It is now also one of the longest running musicals to stay on the Broadway stage. It was revived slightly in 2002 when the film version starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Renee Zellweger was released.

To the BA stage

Musical makers have been trying to get this production up and running for years, but due to various complications and lack of resources, the show didn’t open until the end of 2010. As the musical scene is on the rise in BA, it seemed a natural progression for this flawless musical-great to finally slip its way onto the the Argentine theatre stage.

With the classic Lola Membrives Theatre working as its house, Chicago landed with a 20-actor cast, being directed and produced by Broadway and Argentine theatre staff, with their big band alongside them.

One of the first questions I had was if this Broadway musical could make a safe crossover for a Spanish-speaking audience. Oftentimes the script translations can sound slightly ridiculous due to the content of the story being difficult to translate across cultures. The man in charge of translation,  Gonzalo Demaría, however did a pretty sound job, and the main numbers changed into ‘Y siga el Jazz’ (‘All that Jazz’) and ‘Brillo y plumas’ (‘Razzle Dazzle’). Some of the main script didn’t quite hit the nail on the head, but it did not affect the gist of the story.

In this production, Lola Membrives opens its regal vintage curtains to welcome musical stars: Natalia Cociuffo playing ‘Roxie Hart’, Melania Lenoir as ‘Velma Kelly’, and Martín Ruíz as ‘Billy Flint’. All three of these actors have become well-established in the Argentine theatre world, so it was really a treat to see what they had to bring working as a team.

Cociuffo was a delight to watch as ‘Roxie’, as her abilities as an actress captivated throughout the show. She was cute, but still feminine and strong and really showed off her acting abilities during her monologues. Lenoir was rightly cast for the part of Velma, however even though she shows a striking resemblence to Ute Lemper, who famed as Velma on the London stage, her voice was lacking, and in certain numbers she was slightly behind her counterpart, ‘Roxie Hart’.

The ‘Y siga el jazz’ number with Lenoir didn’t impress me much, as it was all a bit flat. She also looked a lot older in this production than she did in Avenue ‘Q’, and her performance was strained at times. The choice of Ruíz for the ‘ladies man’ lawyer, ‘Billy Flint’ was an excellent one, as he shon through with his acting skills, and master voice.

The rest of the cast included Horacio Vay as ‘Amos’ and international artist, Alejandra Perlusky as ‘Mama Morton’ alongside a hugely talented chorus. Vay as ‘Amos’ at first surprised me, as he was pretty old to be playing the character as the invisible boyfriend of Roxie; however his acting was remarkable, as was his voice. Another strong performance came from musical comedy genius M. Rivero as ‘Mary Sunshine’ as his voice shrilled around the theatre.

Perlusky was an odd choice, as her body did not fit quite well with the role she was given as Mama. She has a classic tango voice, so some of the numbers didn’t quite fit the bill for me, but her strong stage presence made up for it.

The choreographies were true to the Fosse style, and it didn’t just resemble Broadway, but brought a new energy to it, along with some splendid Argentine attitude. In particular, the ‘Cell Block Tango’ was smoking and the ladies gave a tantalising performance. The dancing was well executed, and the cast over all had a great relationship with the live jazz band, who provide the music on stage.

Could the story of murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation, adultery and treachery be told convincingly, and still entertain? The answer is yes.

The terrifically talented cast, alongside a showstopping band provides the components for a thoroughly entertaining show. It is the best one I’ve seen yet, and it was, truly excellent.

‘Beauty and the Beast’ the musical comes to the last leg of its six-month run on the stage of the recently remodelled Teatro Citi in the heart of BA’s theatreland. After the success of its predeccesor, El Fantasma de la Opera, (The Phantom of the Opera) and that of its first run over a decade ago, expectations have been highly set for the second portrayal of this famous tale.

Advertised across the city walls, and after having received rave reviews from local and national press, it’s clear to see that the show has been drawing in the crowds to the impressive Teatro Citi.

I decided to go and see what the fuss was about. A self declared ‘Beauty and the Beast’ fan since the release of the Disney version in 1991, I have seen the story adapted as a play, on ice, as a dance show, pantomime, up to the London interpretation of the musical at the Dominion Theatre. I was intrigued to see how the story and characters translated into Spanish, and onto the Argentine stage.

La Bella y la Bestia in Buenos Aires

The musical version of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ first arrived on Avenida Corrientes (BA’s answer to Broadway) in 1998. After receiving mixed reviews from all types of media, the overall concensus was that, albeit slightly predictable in terms of its storyline, the show was worth seeing for its musical glory and visual extravagance.

The show commenced its new run with a new cast, but also welcomed back some original cast members who appeared in the first version in BA.

Bestia (Beast) is played by Martin Ruíz, and Bella (Beauty) is played by Magalí Sanchez Alleno. Marisol Otero, who played Bella in the original BA version 12 years ago, returns this time as La Señora Potts (Mrs Potts). With such a talent-enriched cast, all of whom are internationally acclaimed artists, I was excited to see what they had to offer.

Attending a matinee performance, the atmosphere was already set as soon as I walked into the theatre, as little feet pitter pattered in. I realised my peers in the audience could quite possibly be the shows most difficult crowd of spectators to impress: the under 12s.

Little princesses dressed in their finest attire ran amock jumping up and down with excitement to see the show, with their mums trailing behind them. Flashes of pink and yellow shiny dresses and little silky slippers ran across the floors of Teatro Citi’s grand entrance hall, as impatient little ladies waited to be guided to their seats. Seemingly convinced that this was a “girls only” event, to my surprise, some families entered with little princes too, dressed up to the max with royal blue silk costumes and golden lapels on their shoulders. It was to be a tough crowd indeed to please.

The Performance

Through an array of glitter, the costumes were spectacular, despite the cast members’ claims that the production team had to re-do many of the costumes at the last minute during pre-production, due to mishaps and last minute orders made by the international wardrobe team. The costumes which were particularly noticable were those of the enchanted kitchen objects during the famous dining scene of the song, ‘Nuestro Huesped’, (‘Be our Guest’) part of the fun being trying to guess which object was which.

The main characters gave a strong and concrete performance; Sanchez Alleno in particular was calm and sweet in her portrayal of Bella, safely nailing each song she sang. With Ruíz, it wasn’t until his solo of the song ‘Si no puedo amarla’ did I really believe in his connection with the music for his role as Bestia. He did not disappoint though, and the relationship between the two protagonists continued to grow naturally throughout the production.

When interviewed on their journey exploring their roles and their interaction, Ruíz and Sanchez Alleno mentioned that although they didn’t know one another at the time of the auditions, when they performed together there was “instant chemistry”. This certainly shined through on stage, and the magic between them was surely enthralling.

Many characters stuck out of the chorus, some for positive reasons, some not quite so positive. A few particularly captivating performances came from the likes of Tiki Lovera as the Ropero (Wardrobe), Carlos Silveyra as Lumiere, Marisol Otero as La Señora Potts (Mrs Potts), and the leaps and somersaults of Juan Moliniers as Alfombra (Carpet) had everybody out of their seats.

Others stuck out, but not quite for the talent they showed. The evidence of Gaston’s bright white bulging biceps could at times be quite disconcerting and distracting, taking the focus away from what he was actually singing.

Some of the chorus numbers were slightly rushed. Some of the scene changes overlapped and at times it felt as though the whole show was in a bit of a hurry to finish.

Despite some minor glitches and disappointments, overall the show was greatly entertaining and received a wonderful response from all of its spectators, with a standing ovation and the audience singing along and clapping at the close of the final act. The tricks were there too, and to the end I still could not figure out how Chip (the boy who played the talking cup) was rolled on and off the stage with nothing shown but his head inside a cup.The same went for Bestia’s transformation into a prince at the end, in that it was greatly executed. When asked about how these tricks were performed, the protagonists kept their lips tightly sealed, mentioning that giving the game away entirely would take away the mystery of production. I couldn’t agree more.

To conclude, it was light-hearted fun, and suitable for the whole family, creating charm and surprise. In terms of understanding the production for non-Spanish speakers, they need not worry. The translation was tailored especially so that it contained a perfect and natural balance between neutral and Argentine Spanish, without veering too far from the original English script, catering for a wider audience. If your Spanish isn’t up to par, the action and visual delight will speak for itself.

Musical lovers are in for a treat, but it is advisable to go in without pretense and just enjoy, for the talent of the cast surely shines through.

Over the last few weeks, it has been difficult to miss the huge advertisements announcing the arrival of the “phantom” to Buenos Aires. Rather aptly, Teatro Opera on Corrientes has the honour of hosting arguably the most famous Andrew Lloyd Webber musical for the first time in Argentina.

The Argentine production of ‘Phantom’ was directed by Englishman Harold Prince, who also directed the original West End version. The costumes are identical in every official production across the globe, as is the scenery, so by all means, this is an international standard production.

In London, I have seen almost every musical going, yet somehow, ‘Phantom’ has always escaped me. Therefore, when I finally took my seat in the theatre, I was almost squealing with excitement along with the rest of the audience.

As the orchestra strikes up the overture, the famous “du du du du duuuh” fills every inch of the theatre and electrifies the atmosphere. In this production, the female lead is played by Claudia Cota, who was headhunted from the Mexican production after casting in Argentina was unsuccessful. Her soft soprano voice does justice to her first solo, Piensa en Mí (Think of Me), but she tiptoes around the more forceful Fantasma de la Opera (Phantom of the Opera), and although not she’s struggling over the notes, I feel more power is needed.

Due to the physical strain, the role of the phantom is played by two alternating actors. In this production, Carlos Vittori has the honours and shows amazing stamina as he sings at full volume whilst crawling across the stage stomach during the scenes under the theatre. When the phantom is unseen, his voice comes through speakers all over the theatre and the audience to turn their heads expectantly to try to find the source.

At the famous chandelier drop, the less strict health and safety laws of Argentina do this show justice. Instead of slowly swinging into the stage as in England, it drops at full speed and stops two metres above the audience’s heads before colliding with the curtain. Genuine screams of terror are heard from the people sitting beneath it, which ripple through the theatre before the interval starts.

There is a longstanding debate amongst critics as to the classification of ‘Phantom’. Opera or musical? This helps when the production is performed in a different language than your native as the expression; scenery, direction and music all contribute to the narrative and not just dialogue, of which there is very little. Therefore, if you have a basic understanding of Spanish, or are familiar with the songs and story of the play, you will have no trouble appreciating this truly spectacular production.

Tickets range from $60 to $260 and can be purchased from www.ticketek.com.ar or from the Teatro Opera box office on Corrientes, 860. The show runs Wednesday to Sunday and is open to the public from 19th March.