Belfry’s latest production of “Mamma Mia” has been nominated for seven Philadelphia Independence awards. Leading actresses Gianna Mooney ‘25 and Lauren Sass ‘26 put hard work into the musical along with the rest of Belfry leading to these nominations.
“It’s really exciting that our company is getting honored in that way,” Sass said. It’s just that extra excitement for our show.”
Mooney has been nominated for female vocalist, her performance of “The Winner Takes It All,” as well as lead actress. Mooney prepared for her role and performance of “The Winner Takes it All” with Belfry Theatre Director Mr. Sean Gibbons.
“It took a lot of time and effort and energy, and also knowing when to be like, ‘let’s back away from this, let’s give it a few days just to ponder about what we want these moments to be’ and then create honest and truthful moments that feel right to both the character and the actor.” Mr. Gibbons said.
“Her last version of ‘Winner Takes It All’ was totally different than her Friday night version of “Winner Takes It All” because she was open to the idea of finding new things and playing in the moment, which for such a young person to do is is quite a feat. It’s the ultimate goal: to live truthfully and honestly moment to moment and still allow for surprise,” Mr. Gibbons said.
As the lead character “Sophie”, Sass worked hard to understand her character by meeting with the Belfry faculty.
“Mr Gibbons helped a lot with the character study aspect…Mrs. Esposito was great with the physical movement of things and with Mr. Timmons was the vocals of the musical,” Sass said. “I worked with Mr. Gibbons in January up until opening night, just blocking and character study, trying to figure out how best to interpret the role”
Mooney and Sass have worked together in Belfry for years. Both of them serving as leading actresses made this production special for them.
“I liked performing ‘Slipping Through My Fingers’ with Gianna Mooney, that was really exciting for us because she has been my mentor since freshman year,” Sass said.
The cast members and tech theatre as a whole brought the musical together. All of their determination ultimately led to the seven nominations.
“I think anybody who walks out on stage, whether you’re a lead, whether you’re ensemble, whether you are working behind the scenes as a stage manager or the lighting designer, it’s incredibly vulnerable,” Mr. Gibbons said.
“I think that that’s such a brave thing to do in your high school years, to stand center stage and sing at the top of your lungs with your arms wide open, and or to design a set or lights with your own creative intentions, it’s an act of bravery.”