Oak Park High School’s past fall musical, “Mamma Mia,” a tale of family, love and life set to the tunes of ABBA, opened its curtains on Thursday, Oct. 24 and closed on Saturday, Oct. 26.

The storyline follows a young girl named Sophie’s quest to figure out who her biological father is a few days before her wedding to her Sky, her fiancée. Sophie invites her three possible fathers, Sam, Bill and Harry, and attempts to figure out who her father is with the help of her two best friends Ali and Lisa. Donna, Sophie’s mom, and her two friends, Rosie and Tanya, get wrapped up in the ensuing confusion and quirky love stories with the three potential fathers.

“‘Mamma Mia’ has a terrific history,” Director and film teacher Allan Hunt said. “The songs were all written by this remarkable group called ABBA. This is back in the 1970s, and these songs just keep on coming … it’s interesting for a high school, but the cast handles it with supreme dignity.”

Everyone involved seemed to be excited for the musical: the cast, Hunt and OPHS’s six-year choreographer Casey Denning included.

“What is so great about this musical is it [is] all ABBA songs,” Denning said. “[It’s] a good time [and a chance] to sit back and have a blast.”

Delaney Dauchey, a member of the cast, was also enthusiastic.

“I am especially excited for ‘Mamma Mia’ because it’s so well known, the music is amazing, and it’s super family friendly. The dancers have also been picking up the dances very easily,” Dauchey said.

“Mamma Mia” has several different versions that different directors could base his or her version off of, ranging from the 2008 movie to the Broadway stage adaptation to the option of reinventing it all together.

“To diverge is a very selfish thing to do, very foolish. Sometimes [people] put on a show and [they] go, ‘Well I know they did it that way, but we’re gonna set it in the wild west.’ You can’t take liberties with something that is already established like this [show],” Hunt said.

Hunt found one thing about “Mamma Mia” particularly appealing. Many shows he’s done in the past did not have the bonus of the kids already knowing the show, but “Mamma Mia” was different.

Hunt explained his choice to direct “Mamma Mia.”

“Part of what I do is I sense amongst our kids what interests them. Now sometimes I pick a show that they’ve never even heard of, and we just take it from there,” Hunt said. “This one everybody already knows and loves. We would do ‘Mamma Mia’ every year if we could. It’s nice to do shows that the kids know.”

Hunt found it interesting in particular that the cast already knew the show’s script and songs perfectly.

“They’re all off book, they all already know the songs, [and] they’re teaching me it. Heidi Cissell, my partner, and I have enjoyed this … in the matter that we don’t have to completely teach anything,” Hunt said. “All Cissell need[ed] to do is get them on pitch and get them to harmonize, but [“Mamma Mia” is] an exception because our kids seem to know the show so well since they saw the movie that came out [in 2008].”

Denning found this particular musical to be a simpler show because of the kid’s familiarity with it as well. She also found that the show’s carefree songs and script, plus relatively easy choreography, made everyone excited to rehearse.

“This has definitely been our smoothest running show so far, and compared to the later show ‘Chicago,’ this is the easier, fun one … This show is easier than ‘The Music Man,’ which was the show we did last year, and I would also even say it is easier than ‘Beauty and the Beast,’” Denning said.

However, a musical like “Mamma Mia” can still pose a tall task, even if the cast is familiar with it, according to Denning. Hunt, Denning and choir, ASB teacher and drama music director Heidi Cissell have been working tirelessly to get the musical ready for the stage.

“[The dancers] had to learn, I believe, five or six numbers in four weeks, so they had a lot to learn. It’s easier dancing … but they’ve had to learn so much in such a short amount of time, so that was more the struggle,” Denning said.

Cissell explained that, “If [the cast is] learning the songs in order, they then are also learning the blocking and choreography for those numbers all at the same time and already learning the transitions from one scene to another.”

In order to organize “Mamma Mia,” Denning first had to select her dance ensemble. This is different than the regular ensemble, which provides background vocals, scenery and lines. The dance ensemble is comprised of the girls who will be performing Denning’s dance numbers on the stage.

“If you can pick up choreography, you can learn the basics later. There was one girl who was in my dance ensemble and she asked me, ‘Why am I in your ensemble?’ and I said, ‘Because you pick up choreography and you give me face.’ That’s it.”

Kayla Mahoney, a dancer in the dance ensemble for the past three Oak Park musicals, described the audition process.

“All girls who auditioned to be in the musical are required to attend the dance auditions,” Mahoney said. “We get numbers taped to our shirts and are taught about a minute of choreography by Casey Denning. We learn and practice for about an hour, [and] then people are called up in groups based on the number they got when they walked in.”

After the initial process of getting into the dance ensemble, the dancers have to rehearse.

“Every Wednesday the dance ensemble has rehearsal from 3:15 until 6:00 , usually without breaks. On Saturdays we … usually rehearse from 1:30 to 4:30,” Mahoney said.

According to Dauchey, there was one number in particular that was hard to stage.

“The most challenging number I’ve done so far would have to be ‘Voulez-Vous,’” Dauchey said. “Lots of dancing and the whole cast is on stage.”

On the other hand, Mahoney found “Voulez-Vous” to have an energetic quality that she liked practicing.

“‘Voulez-Vous’ was my favorite number.The dance was very high-energy and exciting to do,” Mahoney said. “It was one of the numbers where a large part of the cast got to be on stage dancing and having fun in the background.”

Even with the intensity of rehearsing, according to Mahoney, dance ensemble still carves out time to have fun.

“We goof off, laugh until we cry and have a special bond that I’m very thankful for. Dance ensemble is an incredibly supportive and unique environment where I’ve always felt welcome and wanted,” Mahoney said.

There was one moment in particular that Mahoney relayed that got the cast laughing.

“One day during dress rehearsal the music suddenly stopped during our dance … When Casey [Denning] teaches us dance moves, she doesn’t say “5-6-7-8” like most choreographers. Instead, she comes up with noises or words that relate to the moves, … so when the music stopped, everyone else in [the] cast stood around confused as the dancers continued moving around, shouting … ‘cross-cross-chicken-chicken-scoop.’”

Besides dancing, there are other less obvious parts to the behind the scenes of the show. Another major element was costuming.

Shows have varied on what decade they’ve costumed “Mamma Mia” in, but according to members of the cast the costume are 1970s style with some modern clothes mixed in.

The costume team, which includes students in the crew and is led by OPHS parent Carla Schnurr and student Chloe Schraeder, have poured time and effort into all the different dresses and outfits, which are carefully picked and designed. Hunt believes that “the costumes are wonderfully fun.”

Besides the costume team, there is also the key behind the scenes element of hair and makeup. Lindsey DiConti, student hair and makeup lead, tried to take inspiration from the movie.

“The makeup and hair for “Mamma Mia” is … very summery, carefree and a tad ‘messy.’ I tried to emulate the feeling of being on a Greek island, where no one thinks too hard about what they look like, yet still somehow manages to look flawless, like the characters in the movie,” DiConti said.

After determining the overall theme of hair and makeup to be carefree and beachy, DiConti had to decide how each specific character’s hair should look.

“I made a slideshow of how every character’s hair should be in each scene and printed it out to put in the dressing rooms,” DiConti said. “It made things easier for me and for the cast because they did not have to try to find me when it was busy.”

As for overall casting, the regulars of the drama department are well-known by Hunt. However, as he said, there are also some new faces that lit up the stage this year.

“We have our regulars, [like] our guys and girls that’ve been doing this since grade school, but part of my job and one that I like is to introduce all of this [to kids who have never been in a musical],” Hunt said.

Even through some casting drama, however, both Hunt and Denning expressed how “Mamma Mia” was a joyful experience for the entire cast.

“This has just been a really fun, easygoing show,” Denning said. “The kids [became] so excited, and I know it’s not typical to do two musicals in a year, but what a way to start off this year.”