Interview: Blake Price Calls MAMMA MIA! at Wharton Center the Perfect Release When the World is Heavy

How could you ever resist going to Mamma Mia! at Wharton Center next week? From January 16th to 21st only, the iconic jukebox musical Mamma Mia! will be making its return to Michigan on its 25th Anniversary Tour. Using the music of Swedish band ABBA, Mamma Mia! premiered in London in 1999 (where the production is still running to this day) and on Broadway in 2001. It was then adapted into a beloved movie musical in 2008 starring Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried. 

BroadwayWorld Michigan had the pleasure of speaking with Blake Price, who is not only a member of the ensemble while understudying Sam and Harry, but is also a Grand Rapids native. Read our interview below! 

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BWW Michigan: Can you tell me a bit about yourself and your career in theatre?

Blake Price: I was born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, specifically Kentwood. I started doing theatre when I was in middle school. Near the end of high school, I started taking theatre seriously while also trying to do sports. After high school, I decided to go to Western Michigan and study musical theatre specifically.

Since graduating, I moved to New York, started the audition grind and have been lucky enough to work all over the country. I’ve worked in Utah regionally, Texas, Florida, Missouri – all over the place. Probably one of my biggest credits, I had the chance to play Monty in the national tour of the Broadway company of A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, which won the Tony in 2014.

What is the plot of Mamma Mia!?

It basically starts with Sophie, who’s 20. We find out that she doesn’t know who her father is. She knows just based on information she’s gathered from her mother’s diary that there are three men over the summer that her mom, Donna, was seeing who could potentially be her dad. She sends letters to each of the three dads inviting them to her upcoming wedding in Greece, but does not tell her mom. Obviously from there, there’s a big mystery of who’s the dad and also how Donna is going to react to all of this drama.

You’re in the ensemble and you understudy Sam and Harry. What are your characters’ roles in the story?

In the ensemble, I bop around in the background, filling out the scene and giving as much as I possibly can to our leads as they’re pushing forward the story. I also play Father Alexandrios when we’re at the wedding. 

Sam ends up being the most primary of the three dads. We start seeing that he and Donna have a very strong connection. It involves a lot of emotion and pain and anguish, as anyone who’s been through a lot of love and loss would feel when presented with someone who they used to love. 

Then you have Harry, who was this joyous memory for Donna. I love stepping in as Harry because he has such a joy for life. You learn that he used to be this incredibly fun-loving, loosey-goosey kind of guy, whereas when he first arrives on the island, you see that he is this tight-laced banker who very much wouldn’t give off the impression that he’s this fun-loving human being.

What is the process of preparing to be an understudy for multiple roles, and is it difficult to switch from one role to another in a short time?

With any understudy, it greatly varies depending on the role that you’re understudying, the role you have while preparing to understudy and even the show itself. The good news about Mamma Mia, and I don’t think this is any secret, is that because it is such a female-empowered show, the women carry the weight of the show itself. Obviously [the men are] still crucial to the plot, but the benefit of whether you’re covering Bill or Sam or Harry, is that you don’t have the same level of material that a Donna would or a Tanya or Rosie would. They have to have a lot more things ready to go at the drop of a hat. 

I’m actually in the rehearsal process as Sam right now. I started off learning Harry first. There’s three understudies for the dads, we all share two of [the three characters]. With Harry, I did not have any rehearsal. Rob Marnell, who plays Harry wonderfully every single night, got sick when we were in L.A. and had to call out. The stage manager called me and said I was on [that day]. I showed up and there were a handful of things [I needed to ask about]. Other than that, I knew what my lines were, I knew what my song was. So that’s one way of going on as an understudy, where you’re just thrown into it. 

You have other folks who have plenty of rehearsal, which I’m likely to get with Sam, where you sit down with all your other understudies, dance captain and stage manager and figure out what you’re supposed to do well before you’re in front of an audience. It can vary depending on whatever situation your tour is in. 

As a show with so many iconic moments and ABBA songs, what are your favorites to perform and/or watch?

I’m only onstage in the ensemble for 20 minutes total of this 2.5 hour musical, but I’m singing offstage for 2 hours of the show. So we’re always watching, we have a monitor with the conductor who gives us our cues. What is so awesome is watching the response to different songs. I have seen people bawling their eyes out during “The Winner Takes It All,” which is one of the most incredible songs in musical theatre in general, but specifically the emotional weight it carries, the relatability of going through heartbreak and having to face the person who broke your heart. 

“Does Your Mother Know?” is just a riot, such a party to sing along to. You can see in the audience the same kind of reaction – everyone is dancing along and having such a wonderful time. The dancing is just next level.

I [also] really love “Money, Money, Money.” I think you would hear that from other castmates too. It is such a fun number and it kicks off the show in such a fun way. It gives you the exact sense of what you’re going to get for the next 2.5 hours watching the show. That one would probably be my favorite to perform.

What do you think keeps bringing audiences back to Mamma Mia! more than 25 years since its debut?

I grew up on ABBA music, [but] we have some folks who this is their first time being exposed to Mamma Mia!. The beauty of [the show] is that we are all so connected to the stories being told in this music. I [also] think just the vast variety of how the songs play, it’s almost as if they’re their own genre of music. One song (“I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do”) is like a doo-wop song with so much joy and beauty, “The Winner Takes It All” is a heart-wrenching, emotionally-driven power ballad, then you have “Does Your Mother Know?,” which is an incredible rock, funky number that really drives the energy, and “Voulez Vous” is a riotous party disco number. [Mamma Mia!] just covers the gambit of musical genres. There’s something for everyone. 

As a Grand Rapids native, how does it feel to be bringing this beloved musical back to your home state?

I’m so excited because I’ve spent a good amount of time in East Lansing. It’s actually my mom and aunt’s birthday that Friday, the 19th, so they’re all coming to see the show. It’s going to be so incredible. Even though it’s going to be January in Michigan, it’s still going to have that nostalgia, that warm, cozy feeling I’m so used to as someone who was born and raised in that area. 

Do you have any social media accounts that people should follow?

@blakewprice on Instagram

Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about yourself or Mamma Mia?

The beauty of this show is that, I think with everything going on in the world, there’s a lot of release that people are looking for. People are already sensing this, but Mamma Mia! is the perfect release. You are going to come and unplug for 2.5 hours and be transported to Greece, see us all up there having a blast. When everything feels so tapped-in and heavy, we give you a chance to feel some lightness and joy for at least the time you’re with us.

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Tickets for Mamma Mia! are on sale now at Wharton Center's official ticketing outlets: online at whartoncenter.com, at the official Wharton Center Ticket
Office or by calling 1-800-WHARTON.

To keep updated with Mamma Mia! as they travel around the country on their national tour, visit their website at mammamiathetour.com, and follow them on TikTok at @mammamiathetour, on Instagram at @mammamiathetour and on Facebook at facebook.com/MammaMiaTheTour.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

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