Celebrating 40-Something Women With Song

Left: Donna and the Dynamos, from the Sydney musical Mamma Mia!



There is a scene in the movie Mamma Mia! that answers the question asked of me by my best friend: which is better - the musical or the movie?

A swarm of 40-something women running along cobblestone streets and dancing on a pier to the tunes of my all-time favourite ABBA song Dancing Queen, is one of the most uplifting movie scenes in years. The Greek Island setting is a visual bonus. There are very few films devoted to the journey of our generation of women. Women coming together to lend a shoulder, and a dance move. As a baby of the sixties, it's difficult not to be moved.

My friend saw the musical first. For me it was the movie. I finally caught up with the musical last night and it was captivating. The lyric Theatre at Star City, where the musical is currently playing until February 7 2010, was filled with the delighted cheering, clapping, singing and dancing of 40-something mothers and their daughters. As a mother of sons, I went along with my mother, sister and her two young daughters. It was a total girl-fest. A completely foreign experience for me.

The clearly timeless songs provided familiar territory. I owned every ABBA album and merchandise available in the seventies when I was a tween and ABBA was at its peak. To be taken back there 30 years later by a musical turned movie phenomenon is truly a gift.

I would love to see it again with the group of girlfriends who shared my memories. Just like Donna and her Dynamos - for one night only.