Two Observatory actors have leading roles in Mamma Mia! which is on at the Artscape Opera House until Sunday April 7..
The show, which features timeless ABBA songs, including Knowing Me, Knowing You; Dancing Queen; I Have a Dream; and Voulez Vous, is written by Catherine Johnson, and is a tale of family and friendship set on a Greek island paradise.
On the evening of her wedding to Skye, bride-to-be Sophie invites three men from her mother’s past back to the island they visited 20 years ago in the hope of discovering which one is her father.
Matt Newman, plays the role of Harry Bright, a London banker who is also an ex-lover of Sophie’s mother, Donna, and possibly Sophie’s father. He’s wise and gentle but somewhat guarded.
Matt is originally from the UK and trained at the Guildford School of Acting. His local theatre roles include Robert in Betrayal; Doug in Gruesome Playground Injuries; Frazer in Sweet Phoebe and M in Cock.
He had his first taste of performing in his preschool Nativity play, where he played the role of Joseph.
“My love for performing just continued to grow from there,” he says. “I was always involved in productions throughout my school life and was also a member of a local youth theatre group, doing musicals like West Side Story and 42nd Street. Performing felt like the only thing that I was remotely any good at. I loved watching theatre, and I grew up close enough to London to make trips to the West End, which introduced me to a variety of incredible musicals and plays.”
After school, Matt received a bursary to cover his training for three years at Guildford School of Acting.
Having seen Mamma Mia! in London, Matt was thrilled to hear that it was coming to South Africa.
“I immediately asked my agent to submit me for consideration. It’s a show that I’ve seen a few times since it premiered in London in 1999, and having not done a musical on this scale in almost 20 years, I was keen to revisit the world of musical theatre.”
Bradley Smith takes on the role of Eddie, a fun-loving, energetic and confident character. He is one of Skye’s closest friends.
Bradley grew up in Randburg but moved to Cape Town in 2021 to study at the Luitingh Alexander Musical Theatre Academy (LAMTA).
As a child, Bradley took every opportunity to show he belonged on the stage, earning him the nickname, Drama Queen, from his family and friends.
He took part in the national tour of LAMTA’s Come Together and the Mowbray Ballet Academy’s production of Peter Pan and Tinkerbell at Artscape.
The arts, he says, was an obvious career choice for him, having always had a love for drama, theatre and storytelling.
“My love for the theatre began at an early age. Every school holiday, my parents took us to see a production. We saw a wide range of productions. My fascination with theatre continued in high school as I was involved in one-act plays and the annual school production.”
Playing Eddie in Mamma Mia! is a dream come true, he says.
“The audience can expect a beautiful story, high energy, brilliant music and a full-on party.”
Tickets cost from R200. Book through www.showtime.co.za or Ticketmaster. There are discounts on Tuesdays for groups of more than 20 and for school student groups. Email sales@showtime.co.za or call Jill Somers during office hours from 9am to 5pm at 079 218 1658.
