Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream

Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream is a British television talent competition that that began airing on 22 October 2023 on ITV. The show documents the search for two new, unknown musical theatre performers to play the roles of Sophie Sheridan and Sky Ramand in the West End production of the musical Mamma Mia!. The series is presented by Zoe Ball, and features Samantha Barks, Alan Carr, Amber Riley and Jessie Ware as judges.

Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream
GenreReality competition
Presented byZoe Ball
Judges
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producerAshley Whitehouse
ProducerThames
Production companyThames
Release
Original networkITV
Original release22 October 2023 (2023-10-22) –
present

Format

The series documents the search to find two unknown musical theatre stars to play the integral roles of Sophie Sheridan and Sky Ramand in the 2024 West End production of the musical Mamma Mia!, based on the film of the same name as it celebrates the musical's 25th anniversary.[1][2] The format is similar to that of the BBC competitions How Do You Solve a Problem like Maria?, Any Dream Will Do, I'd Do Anything and Over the Rainbow which aired on BBC One in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010 respectively.[3] ITV later aired a similar programme in 2012, Superstar documented the search to find a performer to play the lead role in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, which was ultimately won by Ben Forster.[4] The series features fourteen contestants, seven men and seven women, who take part in masterclasses, challenges and workshops which focus on singing and dancing to on-stage chemistry which leads to a finale set to take place live in a West End theatre in which the public will decide the winners.[5][6]

Production

In September 2022, it was reported that ITV were planning to revive the musical theatre talent search format with a new series based on Mamma Mia.[7] In December 2022, ITV confirmed the commissioning of Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream. The series is produced by Thames, the production company behind the reality television formats Britain's Got Talent and I Can See Your Voice. The series is filmed in Corfu, Greece and is presented by Zoe Ball.[8] The judges include Samantha Barks, who was a finalist on I'd Do Anything in 2008, comedian Alan Carr, Glee actress Amber Riley and singer Jessie Ware.[9][10]

Contestants

The fourteen contestants competing for the roles of Sophie and Sky were announced on the day of the show's broadcast.[11]

Sophie
Name Age Hometown Result
Desmonda Cathabel 27 London
Esme Bowdler 22 Chester
Leah Rutherford 20 Redcar
Maddy Erzan-Essien 20 Bolton
Maisie Waller 22 Margate
Stephanie Costi 22 St Albans
Stevie Doc 22 Glasgow

Sky
Name Age Hometown Result
Callum Ravden 22 Oxfordshire
Craig Watson 26 Perthshire
Darcy James 23 Hampshire
Marcellus Whyte 36 High Wycombe
Owen Bagnall 25 Belfast
Tobias Turley 22 Somerset
Zackhiel Smith 22 London

Weekly summary

Results summary
Colour key
  –Contestant was eliminated
  –Contestant who received the most public votes
Weekly results per contestant
Contestant Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Final
Callum Ravden Safe
Craig Watson Safe
Darcy James Safe
Desmonda Cathabel Safe
Esme Bowdler Safe
Leah Rutherford Safe
Maddy Erzan-Essien Safe
Maisie Waller Safe
Marcellus Whyte Safe
Owen Bagnall Safe
Stephanie Costi Safe
Stevie Doc Safe
Tobias Turley Safe
Zachkiel Smith Safe

Week 1 (22 October)

For the show's the first episode, the fourteen contestants were placed in either duos or trios and performed a song by ABBA.[12]

Contestants' performances on the first episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Maddy Erzan-Essien "Money, Money, Money" Safe
Stephanie Costi
2 Craig Watson "SOS" Safe
Marcellus Whyte
Tobias Turley
3 Callum Ravden "Knowing Me, Knowing You" Safe
Darcy James
4 Esme Bowdler "Fernando" Safe
Leah Rutherford
5 Owen Bagnall "Waterloo" Safe
Zachkiel Smith
6 Desmonda Cathabel "Chiquitita" Safe
Maisie Waller
Stevie Doc

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Daily Telegraph[13]
The Independent[14]
The Guardian[3]

The series was described by Lucy Mangan of The Guardian as a "wildly rushed, tension-free series that is never less than shrill". She ranked the series 2 out of 5 stars and noted that [the programme] showed "virtually nothing of the workshops and even less of the rehearsals" [...] adding that although the show featured full-length renditions of ABBA's greatest hits and great fun, there was "no tension, no investment, no context for any of [the programme]."[3]

Anita Singh of The Daily Telegraph was more positive in her review of the show's format, describing it as a "talent show with actual talent" and an "all-singing, all-dancing delight, perfect to distract from Britain's gloomy skies".[13] The Independent ranked the series 4 stars, a noted that the show "wonderfully captured [Mamma Mia's] unhinged party atmosphere, whilst Digital Spy observed that viewers had compared the series' contestants to that of Love Island.[14][15]

References
  1. "Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream". ITV Press Centre. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  2. "Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream". ITV Press Centre. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  3. "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream review – no reality show has ever featured this much screaming". 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  4. "Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream contestants won't just sing ABBA songs". Radio Times. 16 October 2023. Archived from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  5. "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream: an Abba-themed musical TV contest? The prospect is horrific". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  6. "Here's Everything You Need To Know About ITV's New Mamma Mia Reality Show". HuffPost. 21 October 2023. Archived from the original on 21 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  7. "ITV to reboot musical theatre talent search with Mamma Mia! series". The Stage. 8 September 2022. Archived from the original on 21 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  8. "Where is Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream filmed?". Radio Times. 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  9. "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream on ITV - How it works, who is hosting and who are the judges". Manchester Evening News. 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  10. "Mamma Mia! It's Alan Carr and Judy Craymer". ITV. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  11. "Meet the Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream contestants". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  12. "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream – Episode 1". ITVX. 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  13. "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream, review: shock – a talent show with actual talent". The Daily Telegraph. 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  14. "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream review: ITV talent show wonderfully captures musical's unhinged party atmosphere". The Independent. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  15. "Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream viewers compare the reality show to Love Island". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
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