MAMMA MIA! Breaks Blackpool Box Office History

International smash hit musical MAMMA MIA! has broken box office history with more than £2million in ticket sales in just six weeks.

The figure, released today, makes MAMMA MIA! Blackpool's highest ever grossing show.

It is more than 10 years since Blackpool hosted a full Summer Season but with the MAMMA MIA! International Tour in the town for a 12-week run, theatre bosses at the Winter Gardens are confident this is a bright new start for the resort.

Michael Williams, Managing Director of the Winter Gardens, said he is delighted with ticket sales so far and is looking forward to seeing the continued success of the Summer Season.

He said, "When we announced last year that MAMMA MIA! was coming to Blackpool for a whole Summer Season we were quietly confident that it would be a success but you never know what is going to happen. We are now thrilled to announce that ticket sales have reached more than £2million in the first six weeks of the run. This is absolute proof that MAMMA MIA! is right for Blackpool and that Blackpool is more than capable of attracting such a show and the audiences to support it.

"We also hope this is just the start. We already have great shows lined up for after MAMMA MIA! and this should act as the catalyst to welcoming more full Summer Season West End productions to Blackpool."

Councillor Graham Cain, Blackpool Council Cabinet Member for Tourism and Leisure, said: "Blackpool is enjoying a fantastic season and we are especially thrilled that MAMMA MIA! is doing so well. When we first talked about the show coming to Blackpool we did not anticipate being able to make such bold statements about breaking Box Office records so it is fantastic that the Opera House is in a position to do that.

"MAMMA MIA! is the perfect musical for Blackpool as it appeals to such a wide audience and I look forward to seeing this show and all our many other shows enjoy continued and amazing success because the whole resort benefits."

Nick Grace, Associate Producer of the MAMMA MIA! International Tour, said, "We are delighted that the people of Blackpool have embraced MAMMA MIA! and been so welcoming, and we hope that all the summer visitors to the resort will take the opportunity to see the show while they are here. It's wonderful that MAMMA MIA! continues to break records wherever it plays. It just confirms how loved this show is!"

MAMMA MIA! can be seen at the Blackpool Opera House until 14 September.

MAMMA MIA! is Judy Craymer's ingenious vision of staging the story-telling magic of ABBA's timeless songs with an enchanting tale of family and friendship unfolding on a Greek island paradise. To date, it has been seen by more than 54 million people in 39 productions in 14 different languages. MAMMA MIA! The Movie is the highest worldwide grossing live-action musical film of all time and one in four households in the UK has the DVD, which is now Amazon UK's biggest selling DVD ever.

From West End to global phenomenon, the London production of MAMMA MIA! has now been seen by more than 10% of the entire UK population. It is one of only five musicals to have run for more than 10 years both on Broadway and in the West End, and in 2011, it became the first Western musical ever to be staged in Mandarin in the People's Republic of China.

With music & lyrics by Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus, MAMMA MIA! is written by Catherine Johnson, directed by Phyllida Lloyd and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast. The production is designed by Mark Thompson, with lighting design by Howard Harrison, sound design by Andrew Bruce & Bobby Aitken, and musical supervision, additional material & arrangements by Martin Koch.

The MAMMA MIA! International Tour is produced by Judy Craymer, Richard East & Björn Ulvaeus for Littlestar in association with Universal, Stage Entertainment and NGM.

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