Manchester City, ABBA and immersive theatre come together in Ian Cheeseman’s preview of Mamma Mia! The Party, where Sam Bailey stars as Debbie until April 2027.
When I read the news that there’s going to be a “Mamma Mia! The Party” venue built at the Etihad Campus, next to Manchester City’s stadium, I couldn’t have been happier. The synchronicity was amazing. My two passions, City and Abba, from sometime in 2027, would be located right next to each other.
I’ve been an obsessive Manchester City fan all my life, travelling home and away as a fan and then as a BBC commentator. These days, as a YouTuber, podcaster and fan again, I’m still at every game. Not only have I reported on City in the media, I’ve hosted their Junior Blues, been a stadium announcer and hosted many forums and dinners down the years. I’ve met and worked alongside all my favourite City players, writing Colin Bell’s autobiography and the diary of Vincent Kompany’s last season as a player.
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When Abba came to my attention, as they won Eurovision in 1974, my obsession with their music began. I saw them in concert at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester in 1977 and three more times around the country when they toured again in 1979. In 1980, I travelled to Stockholm and met all four members and have since interviewed Benny and Björn for BBC radio. I was at the World Premiere of Mamma Mia! the film. I’ve attended their avatar show, Abba Voyage, twelve times so far. I’ve seen Mamma Mia! The Musical at venues all around the world and I have danced at Mamma Mia! The Party in Stockholm and at The O2 in London.
As soon as Mamma Mia! The Party was announced for Manchester, I started dreaming about how I could marry my two passions together, even if I just became a cloakroom attendant at the new venue. My next big birthday celebrations will definitely be there.
I’m a huge fan of musical theatre and The Party is stage perfection. A fully immersive and original show set in the fictional Nikos Taverna on the Greek Island of Skopelos. The venue is purpose built and authentic, the four course Greek feast is delicious, but most importantly the story, written by Bjorn from Abba and comedian Sandi Toksvig, is funny and original but stars the infectious music I’m obsessed with, including songs only Abba officionardos, like me, will be instantly familiar with. The performers mingle with the guests, the spectacle is magnificent.
When the show and the food are done, the taverna becomes a disco. It’s Musical Theatre, a Restaurant and Abba Night Club all in one.
Mamma Mia! The Party has been welcoming guests for seven years and currently has a Musical Theatre Superstar, Sam Bailey, playing the part of Debbie the cook. It’s a role that allows her to combine her amazing voice, belting out Mamma Mia and Bang a Boomerang two name two, but Debbie is also a character that requires perfect comedic timing and an ability to ad lib and interact with a, sometimes unpredictable, audience.
Sam Bailey shot to fame as the winner of X Factor in 2013, having previously worked as a prison officer. She’s had big selling albums The Power of Love and Sing My Heart Out and on stage she’s played Mama Morton in Chicago and appeared in 42nd Street, Beauty and the Beast and Everybody’s Talking about Jamie, just to name a few. I recently chatted to her for my syndicated radio show, Break-a-Leg, and she agreed that the leap from Prison officer to playing the chef in Mamma Mia: The Party was something she’d never predicted.
“It’s definitely been a change. Playing Debbie is a bit of everything. I get to chat to people and break the fourth wall with this show. I think that’s what’s so unique about it. I used to chat to everyone as a prison officer too, with all sorts of ruckus going on, so I’m well equipped to deal with the Hen dos that come along to the O2. I have to admit that I wasn’t really aware of the full collection of songs which Abba has. I was in the car with my daughter when I first got the job, listening to the songs in the show and I admitted I didn’t know a couple of them. My daughter, who’s 21, was amazed and told me that these songs were in her top playlist.
“Abba really does stand the test of time. One of my favourite songs in the show is, Why did it have to be me. It’s such a vibe when you’re dancing away to it. You can see everyone’s having so much fun. To see kids mouthing along the words to these songs is mind blowing. I’m not a massive fan of the music in the charts these days. I feel like music has lost it’s way these days, but as soon as you walk through the doors at Nokos Taverna it’s an escape. Everything that goes on happens around you. It’s like when a couple on the next table, when you go out to eat, start arguing and everyone is watching and it’s right next to you, but to music!”
You can see Sam Bailey as Debbie at The O2 until April 2027. Tickets are available from mammamiatheparty.co.uk. Mamma Mia!: The Party will open next year in Manchester right next to the Etihad Stadium. I can’t wait!