Mamma Mia!
The crowd in Pitkin Plaza.
Several dozen people gathered in Pitkin Plaza on Wednesday night for Movies in the Plaza, a weekly summer movie night organized by the Town Green District.
The night’s screening was the beloved and absurd ABBA-based jukebox musical, Mamma Mia!
A strong wind kept the audience cool and provided the perfect backdrop for dramatic hair-flips and other musical staples as the crowd gathered on fold-up chairs and picnic blankets to answer the age-old question: who’s the father?
Mamma Mia! is set during a wedding on an idyllic Greek island. Twenty-year-old Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) prepares for marriage, while trying to conceal from her mother Donna (Meryl Streep) that she has invited three of her mother’s ex-flings (Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, and Stellan Skarsgård) in the hopes of determining which one is her father. Music, merriment, and loads of mischief ensue.
Vesta Bortey-Fio and Stephanie Felix.
Movies in the Plaza has been running for about five years, said event coordinator Vesta Bortey-Fio and events and communications assistant Stephanie Felix. “It’s a great way to bring the community together,” said Bortey-Fio. “I’ve seen people make friends, share meals. It’s really beautiful to see.”
Felix found out about the movie night in 2020, when she attended one as an audience member and saw School of Rock. “It was on a date that didn’t really pan out, but it made me want to come back with friends or family,” she said. “And eventually work here.”
As movie selections go, Mamma Mia! was a no-brainer. “Generally it’s a crowd pleaser,” said Felix. “It’s super family friendly.”
“Who doesn’t love a musical?” asked Bortey-Fio.
“Who doesn’t love Meryl Streep?” countered Felix.
Kate Donahue and Alex Simiola.
Kate Donahue and Alex Simiola certainly did. It was their first time at Movies in the Plaza, after Simiola found out about it via Instagram. It wasn’t their first time watching Mamma Mia! although it was their first time since its initial run in 2008, and they didn’t remember much besides enjoying it.
“It’s kinda a cult classic, so many people know about this movie from different generations,” said Donahue.
“It’s going to be like watching for the first time!” enthused Simiola.
Jessica Helton and Allison Gallaspy.
Jessica Helton and Allison Gallaspy were at the movie night for the second and first time, respectively. They were both fans of Mamma Mia! and of Movies in the Plaza.
“There’s nothing really great in movie theaters right now, so coming out to see a movie I know I love with people, outdoors, seemed like a great idea,” said Helton. “It’s nice to escape to Greece for a few hours.”
“I’m always a big fan of bringing the community together,” she added. “New Haven does a pretty good job of doing that.”
“I like all the opportunities there are to come and meet people,” added Gallaspy. “They really get a whole cross-section of people … families, young professionals.”
Eileen O'Donnell, Devlin Grunloh, and Christine Smith.
Eileen O’Donnell, Devlin Grunloh, and Christine Smith were all regulars at Movies in the Plaza. Grunloh had been to almost every event.
“They show good movies and it’s nice to come when the weather’s nice,” he said. “It’s always fun watching people walk their dogs.”
“There’s a lot of times the movie is the whole atmosphere,” said Smith. “Even if I’ve seen it before, it’s nice to see it in this setting.”
One movie she hadn’t seen before had been The Sixth Sense, even though most of the audience had. “At the end I was getting all freaked out and the guy behind me said ‘Oh, she hasn’t seen it before,’” Smith said. “So there’s a nice communal aspect.”
The communal aspect was most of the appeal for O’Donnell. “I don’t usually stay for the movie, I just come to hang out. It gets too cold,” she said. “I did stay for one or two.”
Grunloh and Smith were both excited to watch Mamma Mia! “It’s a getaway movie,” said Grunloh.
“It’s kinda silly,” added Smith.
The movie was “kinda silly,” but in the best way possible, and it offered an airy dose of escapism. The audience laughed at flashback shots of Colin Firth as a punk teenager, applauded Meryl Streep jumping off a deck at the end of “Dancing Queen,” and sang along to “Lay All Your Love on Me.” During the particularly absurd wedding climax, audible yet delighted exclamations of “this is ridiculous!” could be heard.
Sometimes, it’s nice to have a little frivolity, and it’s even nicer to be able to enjoy it in the fresh air surrounded by your community. As the credits rolled to the sound of “Waterloo,” the audience packed up their things and walked away into the night. They were all singing as they went.