Stars You May Not Have Known Were in MAMMA MIA!

After a ten-year hiatus, the hit musical Mamma Mia! is back on Broadway! Performances began on August 2 at the show's home, the Winter Garden Theatre. Since its inception, Mamma Mia! has been performed on stages, big and small, across the world, with notable names taking the stage in all of your favorite roles.

As we celebrate the homecoming of this iconic Broadway staple, we're taking a look back on some of the notable stars who have appeared in various productions of Mamma Mia! around the world!

Carolee Carmello - Donna

Carolee Carmello joined the Broadway production of the show as Donna initially in October 2004. She again joined the cast as Donna in September 2006, taking a leave from March 14, 2007, to May 13, 2007, to appear in an early version of Saving Aimee.

Carmello is a three-time Tony Award nominee and a five-time Drama Desk nominee, winning the 1999 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical for her role in Parade. Her extensive theatrical career includes Kimberly Akimbo, Hello, Dolly!, 1776, Bad Cinderella, Tuck Everlasting, Finding Neverland, The Addams Family, Sweeney Todd, and more.

Jennifer Nettles - Donna

Mamma Mia! had a star-studded production at the Hollywood Bowl in the summer of 2017. In addition to Nettles as Donna, the cast also included Corbin Bleu, Dove Cameron, Lea DeLaria, and more.

Nettles is the lead vocalist of the duo Sugarland alongside Kristian Bush, and prior to this she fronted the Atlanta-based bands Soul Miner's Daughter and Jennifer Nettles Band. On Broadway, she appeared in Chicago and Waitress.

Willemijn Verkaik - Donna

Best known for playing Elphaba in several productions of Wicked, Willemijn Verkaik appeared as Donna in Germany in the Stuttgart’s Palladium Theater in 2013 for a short three month run.

Verkaik is the only person to have played the role of Elphaba in the musical Wicked in three languages and more than 2,000 times – more than any other actress. She also provided the voice of Elsa in the German version and the Dutch version of Disney's Frozen.

Julia Murney - Donna

Another Elphaba was also a Donna! Julia Murney, who is known for playing Elphaba in Wicked on tour and on Broadway, appeared alongside Ann Harada, Justin Guarini, and more in The Muny's 2016 production of Mamma Mia! 

In addition to Wicked and Mamma Mia, Murney is also a two-time Drama Desk Award nominee, for The Wild Party (2000) and Falling (2013).

Lea DeLaria - Rosie

Lea DeLaria is another star who took the stage in the 2017 production of Mamma Mia! at the Hollywood Bowl. She played the role of Rosie, alongside Jennifer Nettles, Corbin Bleu, Dove Cameron, and more.

DeLaria is known for playing Carrie "Big Boo" Black on the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black, from 2013–2019. She also starred in the Broadway productions POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive in 2022 and the 2000 revival of The Rocky Horror Show. 

Ann Harada - Rosie

Ann Harada is yet another star who appeared in The Muny's production of Mamma Mia! in 2016. She played the role of Rosie, alongside Justin Guarini, Julia Murney, and more.

Harada is best known for her roles in Avenue Q, Emojiland, Into The Woods, Cinderella, 9 to 5, Les Miserables, and more.

Olga Merediz - Rosie

Olga Merediz appeared as a replacement in the role of Rosie in the original Broadway production of Mamma Mia!, joining the company in 2005.

In 2015, Merediz shared a favorite memory from being in the show with BroadwayWorld: "My most favorite memory ( there are MANY!) of being in the show is when the actress playing Donna... I can't remember her name. She took over Michelle Pawk and she did the role like a sex kitten. Well, she missed an entrance one night. She was super late for the entrance to the scene before the song Chiquitita and Dancing Queen. Well, Judy McLane (who was playing the role of Tanya at the time) and I just started improvising for a good minute and a half! Judy and I were very in sync in those 2 roles. We just played off each other."

Judy Kaye - Rosie

Judy Kaye appeared as Rosie in the original Broadway cast of Mamma Mia! from 2001–2003, and received a Tony Award nomination as Best Featured Actress in a Musical.

Kaye has enjoyed an extensive Broadway career, including long runs on Broadway in the musicals The Phantom of the Opera (earning her first Tony Award), Ragtime, Mamma Mia!, and (in a second Tony award-winning role) Nice Work If You Can Get It. Her many other credits include Wicked, Sweeney Todd, Gypsy, Cinderella, Anastasia, Diana, and more.

Christy Altomare - Sophie

On June 4, 2012, Altomare made her Broadway debut in Mamma Mia! at the Winter Garden Theater, where she replaced Liana Hunt in the role of Sophie Sheridan. She stayed with the Broadway company for a year, ending her contract on June 1, 2013, and was replaced by Laurie Veldheer.

Among other roles, Altomare went on to get the starring role in Anastasia, in both the pre-Broadway and Broadway runs, earning a Drama Desk Award for her performance.

Dove Cameron - Sophie

Yet another star who appeared in the 2017 Hollywood Bowl production of Mamma Mia! is stage and screen star Dove Cameron, who got her start on the Disney Channel and has appeared in many films and televsion shows since.

Recent stage credits include Clueless: The Musical and The Light in the Piazza.

Erika Henningsen - Sophie

Prior to her breakout run in Mean Girls on Broadway, Erika Henningsen returned to the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera (PCLO) in the summer of 2017, starring as Sophie in the company's regional production of Mamma Mia!

During her run at PCLO, it was announced that she was cast as Cady Heron in the upcoming Washington, D.C., production of Mean Girls.

Corbin Bleu - Sky

Stage and screen star Corbin Bleu is another star who appeared in the 2017 Hollywood Bowl production of Mamma Mia! Bleu got his big break appearing in the Disney Channel movie series High School Musical, before going on to act on Broadway and beyond.

Jason Gotay - Sky

Jason Gotay appeared as Sky in The Muny's 2016 production of Mamma Mia!, alongside Ann Harada, Justin Guarini, Julia Murney, and more. The star is now known for his extensive stage career with many Broadway and Off-Broadway credits, including Floyd Collins, Teeth, Bring It On, and more.

Aaron Lazar - Sam

From 2012-2015, Lazar appeared as a replacement in the Broadway cast of Mamma Mia! in the role of Sam.

Lazar now has eleven Broadway and national tour credits to his name, including include The Phantom of the Opera, Oklahoma!, The Last Ship, Dear Evan Hansen, Les Misérables, The Light in the Piazza, and more.

Justin Guarini - Sam

Justin Guarini, known for getting his big break on American Idol before going on to have a music and acting career, appeared in The Muny's production of Mamma Mia! alongside Ann Harada, Julia Murney, and more.

Guarini has had a successful solo music career, and has also appeared on stage in several productions, including Once Upon a One More Time, Wicked, American Idiot, Rent, and many more.

Michael James Scott - Eddie

Michael James Scott joined the first National U.S. tour of Mamma Mia! from 2004 to 2005.  In 2006, he reprised his Mamma Mia! role of Eddie in the Broadway production.

Scott went on to have a successful and extension stage career, most notably starring in Aladdin, as well as Something Rotten!, Elf the Musical, Hair, The Book of Mormon, and more.

Frankie Grande - Ensemble and Eddie

In 2007, Grande joined the Broadway cast of the musical Mamma Mia!, in the ensemble and as understudy for Eddie, in which he performed for three years.

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