The final cut of the short listing of the candidates who have auditioned for the musical theatre production named ‘MeMe Mia’ will have to battle it out on Saturday in order to be one of the cast members of the production that will be staged from 11 to 20 April at the National Theatre of Namibia (NTN) in Windhoek.

The musical is produced and directed by well-known dramatist, Sandy Rudd. She says that more than 150 candidates showed up for auditions. “We hosted a two-day audition session and from the 150 who auditioned 70 actors, actresses, singers and dancers will be selected,” she says.
Rudd refers to the musical as the most popular show in the world that comes from the famous theatre play ‘Mama Mia’. So, how will the local version of the play differ from ‘Mama Mia’?
According to Rudd the basic theme and structure of the play and movie are going to be rigidly adhered to, but the given circumstances of the main will be adapted to the Namibian theme of the production. “Themes will be considered to make the show entertaining, informative and educational. Once we have established the cast we will rewrite the script with a Namibian twist,“ she points out.
So why should the public attend the show? The director who has been in the theatre industry for more than a decade says that the production is the most exciting event linedv up on the Namibian arts calendar.
“The ‘Mama Mia’ film is very popular and most people love it. Not only has the movie smashed many records, but it has been staged all over the world. It is hard to point out anyone who does not know about the film. However, ‘MeMe Mia’ is a feel-good addiction that people will just love,” she says.
Some well-known theatre personalities have already been picked to perform in the musical. They include well-known dancer, Tuli Shityuwete, who will play the role of the daughter, Ester Fellner plays the role of the mother, while Lize Ehlers and Sharon van Rooi are tipped to play supporting roles.
The NBC is also expected to broadcast the show.