{"id":111663,"date":"2026-05-21T21:34:47","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T04:34:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=111663"},"modified":"2026-05-21T21:39:59","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T04:39:59","slug":"marilyn-izdebskis-choreography-shines-in-novato-theaters-upbeat-mamma-mia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/marilyn-izdebskis-choreography-shines-in-novato-theaters-upbeat-mamma-mia\/","title":{"rendered":"Marilyn Izdebski\u2019s choreography shines in Novato Theater\u2019s upbeat \u2018Mamma Mia!\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Julianne Bretan, center, and an exuberant chorus appear in Novato Theater Company\u2019s \u201cMamma Mia!\u201d at the Novato Playhouse. (Jere Torkelsen\/Novato Theater Company via Bay City News)<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

by\u00a0Woody Weingarten, Bay City News<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Novato Theater Company\u2019s Marilyn Izdebski\u2019s choreography and lighting design increase in excellence with each musical she works on. She\u2019s been at it for 50 years, and critics are simply running out of words for \u201cincomparable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her light-hearted choreography\u00a0in \u201cMamma\u00a0Mia!\u201d\u00a0onstage in\u00a0the\u00a0Novato Playhouse through June\u00a07\u00a0guarantees\u00a0smiles.\u00a0She once again\u00a0has turned\u00a0community theater\u00a0thespians of all\u00a0shapes and sizes into a cohesive\u00a0chorus.\u00a0Her\u00a0choreography\u00a0is\u00a0the star of the show;\u00a0she\u2019s\u00a0nicely\u00a0assisted\u00a0by conductor-keyboardist Nick Brown.<\/p>\n

Izdebski \u2014 president of Novato Theater Company and a recent winner of the San Francisco Bay Area Critics Circle\u2019s Gene Price Award \u201cfor embodying superlative professionalism and passion for Bay Area theater\u201d \u2014 dares patrons not to tap their toes to ABBA\u2019s 1970s hits.<\/p>\n

In addition, her smooth lighting design nicely parallels the range of moods in playwright Catherine Johnson\u2019s flimsy and illogical storyline.<\/p>\n

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Marilyn Izdebski, choreographer extraordinaire, works her magic in Novato Theater Company\u2019s \u201cMamma Mia!\u201d onstage through June 7. (San Francisco Bay Area Theater Critics Circle via Bay City News)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/p><\/div>\n

Gia Mirra\u00a0is excellent as\u00a0Sophie, who switches\u00a0emotions on a dime from joyous to confused; as are\u00a0Lauren Sutton-Beattie and Jane Harrington\u00a0as\u00a0Rosie and Tanya, Donna\u2019s oldest and best friends.\u00a0The same goes for the\u00a0dads:\u00a0Lorenzo Alviso\u00a0as\u00a0Sam,\u00a0Cordell Wesselink\u00a0as\u00a0Bill and David Cole\u00a0as Harry.<\/p>\n

The minimal set and props provide plenty of room for the large cast, who\u00a0seem to be\u00a0having as much fun as the audience.\u00a0All members of the\u00a0company\u00a0are wearing\u00a0mikes,\u00a0so the song\u00a0lyrics\u00a0are clear,\u00a0even when the chorus is dancing; that\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0be said of many\u00a0local\u00a0theaters.<\/p>\n

Huda al Jamal\u2019s\u00a0terrific\u00a0costumes range from\u00a0sparkly for\u00a0chorus lines to pure black for a nightmarish fantasy.\u00a0And\u00a0director\u00a0Lisa Morse\u00a0does\u00a0a great job\u00a0making the show\u2019s\u00a0bizarre\u00a0action\u00a0feel natural\u00a0(except when the hoofing is appropriately extra-silly).<\/p>\n

Notable numbers range from the\u00a0flirting\u00a0in\u00a0\u201cTake a Chance on Me\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0bouncy \u201cKnowing Me, Knowing You\u201d and the especially poignant \u201cOur Last Summer.\u201d<\/p>\n

The crowd, however, saved up its noisiest enthusiasm for chartbusters like \u201cI Have a Dream,\u201d \u201cS.O.S.,\u201d and \u201cThe Winner Takes All,\u201d and kept up the spirit after the bows\u00a0to sway and\u00a0clap along to\u00a0\u201cDancing Queen\u201d\u00a0and \u201cMamma Mia.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the lobby after, one elderly man\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0wait to tell a friend,\u00a0\u201cThis show could\u00a0pull you out of a depression.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMamma Mia!\u201d runs through June 7 at Novato Theater Company, 5420 Nave Drive, Novato. Tickets are $25 to $37 at\u00a0novatotheatercompany.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Reach Sherwood \u201cWoody\u201d Weingarten at\u00a0voodee@sbcglobal.net,<\/a>\u00a0https:\/\/woodyweingarten.com<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0https:\/\/vitalitypress.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Woody Weingarten, Bay City News Novato Theater Company\u2019s Marilyn Izdebski\u2019s choreography and lighting design increase in excellence with each musical she works on. She\u2019s been at it for 50 years,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":4.5,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[837,26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-111663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-joe-cillo","category-woody-weingarten"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"