Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream

Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream is a British television talent competition that began airing on 22 October 2023 on ITV. The show documented 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 was presented by Zoe Ball, and features Samantha Barks, Alan Carr, Amber Riley and Jessie Ware as judges. The series was won by Stevie Doc and Tobias Turley to play Sophie and Sky respectively.

Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream
GenreReality competition
Presented byZoe Ball
Judges
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producerAshley Whitehouse
Production companyThames
Original release
NetworkITV
Release22 October (2023-10-22) –
10 December 2023 (2023-12-10)

Format

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The series documented the search to find two unknown musical theatre stars to play the central 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 for the musical's 25th anniversary.[1][2] The format was 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.[4] The series featured fourteen contestants, seven men and seven women, who took part in masterclasses, challenges and workshops focused on singing, dancing and acting which led to a finale set which took place in a West End theatre where a public vote decided the winners.[5][6]

Production

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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 was 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 included 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

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

Sophie

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Name Age Hometown Result
Maddy Erzan-Essien 20 Bolton Eliminated 1st
on 29 October 2023
Maisie Waller 22 Margate Eliminated 3rd
on 12 November 2023
Leah Rutherford 20 Redcar Eliminated 5th
on 19 November 2023
Desmonda Cathabel 27 Jakarta Eliminated 7th
on 26 November 2023
Stephanie Costi 22 St Albans Third/Eliminated 9th
on 3 December 2023
Esme Bowdler 22 Chester Runner-Up
on 10 December 2023
Stevie Doc 22 Glasgow Winner
on 10 December 2023
Name Age Hometown Result
Darcy James 23 Hampshire Eliminated 2nd
on 5 November 2023
Callum Ravden 22 Oxfordshire Eliminated 4th
on 12 November 2023
Zackhiel Smith 22 London Eliminated 6th
on 19 November 2023
Marcellus Whyte 36 High Wycombe Eliminated 8th
on 26 November 2023
Craig Watson 26 Perthshire Third/Eliminated 10th
on 3 December 2023
Owen Johnston 25 Belfast Runner-Up
on 10 December 2023
Tobias Turley 23 Somerset Winner
on 10 December 2023

Weekly summary

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Results summary

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Colour key
  – Contestant was eliminated
  – Contestant was in the bottom two
  – the Sophie who received the most public votes
  – the Sky 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
Stevie Doc SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SOPHIE
Tobias Turley SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SKY
Esme Bowdler SAFE SAFE BTM 2 SAFE SAFE SAFE RUNNER UP
Owen Johnston SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE RUNNER UP
Craig Watson SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE ELIM
Stephanie Costi SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE SAFE ELIM
Marcellus Whyte SAFE SAFE SAFE BTM 2 ELIM
Desmonda Cathabel SAFE SAFE SAFE BTM 2 ELIM
Zachkiel Smith SAFE SAFE BTM 2 ELIM
Leah Rutherford SAFE SAFE SAFE ELIM
Callum Ravden SAFE SAFE ELIM
Maisie Waller SAFE SAFE ELIM
Darcy James SAFE ELIM
Maddy Erzan-Essien SAFE ELIM

Week 1 (22 October)

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

Group performances:

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 Johnston "Waterloo" Safe
Zachkiel Smith
6 Desmonda Cathabel "Chiquitita" Safe
Maisie Waller
Stevie Doc

Week 2 (29 October)

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In the show's second episode, the Sophies had to demonstrate their acting skills by recreating a scene from the film, before having to perform solo for the first time.[12]

Group performance: "Dancing Queen"

Contestants' performances on the second episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Desmonda Cathabel "I'll Never Love Again" Safe
2 Stephanie Costi "Flashdance... What a Feeling" Safe
3 Leah Rutherford "Somebody to Love" Safe
4 Esme Bowdler "Just a Girl" Safe
5 Stevie Doc "Trustfall" Safe
6 Maddy Erzan-Essien "I Say a Little Prayer" Eliminated
7 Maisie Waller "I Dreamed a Dream" Safe

Week 3 (5 November)

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In the show's third episode, the Skys had to demonstrate their acting skills by recreating a scene from the film, before having to perform solo for the first time.[13]

Group performance: "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)"

Contestants' performances on the third episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Owen Johnston "Luck Be a Lady" Safe
2 Darcy James "Kiss Me" Eliminated
3 Zachkiel Smith "Footloose" Safe
4 Craig Watson "Your Song" Safe
5 Callum Ravden "Shivers" Safe
6 Marcellus Whyte "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" Safe
7 Tobias Turley "Pointless" Safe

Week 4 (12 November)

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For the show's the fourth episode, the Sophies and Skys were paired up and had to recreate a scene between the characters and sing "Lay All Your Love on Me, before performing a duet together.[14]

Group performance:

Contestants' performances on the first episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Esme Bowdler "The Power of Love" Bottom two
Marcellus Whyte Safe
2 Craig Watson "You're the One That I Want" Safe
Maisie Waller Eliminated
3 Desmonda Cathabel "Love Is an Open Door" Safe
Tobias Turley Safe
4 Leah Rutherford "All for You" Safe
Zachkiel Smith Bottom two
5 Callum Ravden "Rewrite the Stars" Eliminated
Stephanie Costi Safe
6 Owen Johnston "Shallow" Safe
Stevie Doc Safe

Week 5 (19 November)

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For the show's the fifth episode, the Sophies and Skys were sorted into new pairs and had take part in a choreography work shop before performing a dance style in a duet together.[15]

Group performance:

Contestants' performances on the first episode
Order Act Song Dance Result
1 Stevie Doc "All That Jazz" Fosse Safe
Tobias Turley Safe
2 Owen Johnston "Made You Look" Commercial Safe
Stephanie Costi Safe
3 Desmonda Cathabel "You Are the Reason" Waltz Bottom two
Zachkiel Smith Eliminated
4 Leah Rutherford "Night Fever" Disco Eliminated
Marcellus Whyte Bottom two
5 Craig Watson "True Colors" Contemporary Safe
Esme Bowdler Safe

Week 6 (26 November)

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For the show's sixth episode, the Sophies had to embark on an acting workshop in which they had to recreate a scene from the film between Sophie and her mother Donna Sheridan, played Mazz Murray, who played the role of Donna in West End production of Mamma Mia!. The Sophies and Skys were again sorted into new pairings and had to perform a new duet.[16]

Contestants' performances on the sixth episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Desmonda Cathabel "Say Something" Eliminated
Owen Johnston Safe
2 Stevie Doc "The Best" Safe
Craig Watson Safe
3 Stephanie Costi "Falling" Safe
Marcellus Whyte Eliminated
4 Esme Bowdler "Who Wants to Live Forever" Safe
Tobias Turley Safe

Week 7: Semi-final (3 December)

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In the semi-finals episode, the Sophies and Skys were sorted into new pairings; (Esme & Owen, Craig & Stephanie and Stevie & Tobias) for their final acting workshop in which each pair had to recreate the wedding scene between Sophie and Sky. Each contestant then performed an ABBA song solo, before the finalists were announced.[17]

Group performance: "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"

Contestants' performances on the seventh episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Craig Watson "Take a Chance on Me" Eliminated
2 Owen Johnston "When All Is Said and Done" Safe
3 Tobias Turley "Does Your Mother Know" Safe
4 Stephanie Costi "Angeleyes" Eliminated
5 Stevie Doc "The Name of the Game" Safe
6 Esme Bowdler "Dancing Queen" Safe

Week 8: Final (10 December)

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For the final episode, the show was broadcast live from the Novello Theatre (home of Mamma Mia in the West End) and the Sophies and Skys had to perform one last time in a bid to impress the public, who would vote for who they wanted to win and ultimately play the roles of Sophie and Sky in the West End production of Mamma Mia!.[18]

Contestants' performances on the eighth and final episode
Order Act Song Result
1 Stevie Doc "Thank You for the Music" Sophie
2 Esme Bowdler "My Love, My Life" Runner-up
3 Owen Johnston "Our Last Summer" Runner-up
4 Tobias Turley "I've Been Waiting for You" Sky
5 Stevie, Esme, Owen, and Tobias "The Winner Takes it All" N/A
  • The Final Vote
    • The final vote was then announced and it was revealed that the winners were Stevie and Tobias with Judy Craymer saying "It's a joyous result and I'm delighted to welcome Stevie and Tobias to join the West End cast in this very special year celebrating Mamma Mia!'s 25th anniversary. All our contestants are so talented and worked so hard, they went through the most intensive musical theatre boot camp with such energy, flair and commitment. They were all such a joy to work with and are all winners in my eyes." Stevie and Tobias then concluded the series with a performance of "Mamma Mia".

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Daily Telegraph     [19]
The Independent     [20]
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".[19] 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.[20][21]

References

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  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. ^ a b c Mangan, Lucy (22 October 2023). "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream review – no reality show has ever featured this much screaming". The Guardian. 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. ^ Golby, Joel (21 October 2023). "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. ^ a b "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 – Episode 2". ITVX. 4 November 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  14. ^ "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream - Episode 4". ITVX. 12 November 2023. Archived from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  15. ^ "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream - Episode 5". ITVX. 19 November 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  16. ^ "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream - Episode 6". ITVX. 19 November 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  17. ^ "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream - Episode 7". ITVX. 3 December 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  18. ^ "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream - Episode 8". ITVX. 19 November 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  19. ^ a b "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.
  20. ^ a b "Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream review: ITV talent show wonderfully captures musical's unhinged party atmosphere". The Independent. 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream viewers compare the reality show to Love Island". Digital Spy. 22 October 2023. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
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