For many of us, seeing Mamma Mia! is like revisiting a favorite childhood dessert, such as instant pudding. It's uncomplicated and unsophisticated, but conjures up nostalgic, smile-producing memories. The songs of ABBA are ingrained in the minds of most people over a certain age (and many younger ones too), and they're dressed up nicely in a fun and solid story via this musical. The national tour of the show currently playing in Cincinnati boasts a talented cast as well, and remains an audience favorite.

Mamma Mia! is a fairly simple and straightforward story. Twenty-year-old Sophie is set to marry boyfriend Sky in her Greek Island hometown. The bride-to-be has been raised by her mother Donna without knowing who her father is. Donna is an independent spirit who gave up a career as the lead singer in a female pop trio to settle down and run the island hotel. Sophie, after reading entries in her mother's diary, sends wedding invitations to the three men who could possibly be her dad. As the wedding day approaches, the three potential fathers arrive on the island, as well as Donna's ex-bandmates, Tanya and Rosie. While Donna deals with the stress of seeing these men from her past, Sophie attempts to determine which one is her dad, so he can walk her down the aisle.

The book for Mamma Mia! is merely a framework to show off the famous ABBA songs. The story by Catherine Johnson succeeds greatly in providing almost non-stop humor via numerous sight gags, high camp, decent one-liners and comical predicaments. The show never takes itself too seriously, so not a lot is expected and most of the very funny moments land. Dialogue is cleverly mixed into the songs to help clarify and ground many of the lyrics. However, some lines sound like sitcom rejects and several plot holes exist. The overall storytelling is harmed further by the lack of plot advancement by the songs, especially in the somewhat laborious first half of act two.

It would be unfair to judge the tunes by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus by musical theater standards since they weren't written for this purpose. But the lyrics do make many songs seem pigeonholed into the story and there is a heavy reliance on accompanying dialogue to show the significance of the material within the book. Luckily, the songs by Andersson and Ulvaeus (with additional songs credited to Stig Anderson) come quickly one after another, and their catchy melodies are a delight to the vast majority of those in attendance. "Dancing Queen," "Our Last Summer," "The Winner Takes It All," "The Name of the Game" and "Take A Chance On Me" are just some of the twenty-two well known hits from the ABBA catalogue heard in the show. Bill Congdon leads a reduced six-piece band in pumping out the appropriate and festive orchestrations provided by Martin Koch.

As Donna, Australian Kaye Tuckerman skillfully captures the spirited, tough-as-nails independence of the stressed out mother-of-the-bride, and demonstrates an impressive vocal range and power. Chloe Tucker is excellent as Sophie. She is a first-rate singer and gives the bride-to-be an earthy, yet frantic quality well—suited to the role. Alison Ewing (Tonya) and Mary Callanan (Rosie) are hilarious as Donna's former all-girl band mates. While the male characters here are less developed, Happy Mahaney (Sky), Paul Deboy (Harry), John-Michael Zuerlein (Bill) and Christian Whelan (Sam) make the most out of the material they have, especially in the comedic moments. The remaining members of the ensemble bring dynamic energy to their performances.

Director Phyllida Lloyd deserves credit for keeping an appropriately light tone and quick pace while also emphasizing the music and silliness of the show. The choreography by Anthony Van Laast is suitable and enjoyable.

This touring production is designed surprisingly simplistically. Mark Thompson provides a small yet serviceable two-piece set and other smaller props and modular pieces are altered slightly to change the location of the island settings. The lighting by Howard Harrison sometimes evokes the maritime locale and is bold and splashy during the performance numbers. Thompson also supplies the festively campy costumes.

Mamma Mia! succeeds in showcasing the lively and catchy songs by ABBA wrapped in a funny story, in large part due to its talented and energetic cast. Instead of its normal two-week run as part of the subscription package, the show is only playing one week here in Cincinnati. The second week is the national tour of Les Miserables, and subscribers got to pick which to see. As a result, these two popular shows have sold well and only a limited number of tickets remain.

Mamma Mia! continues at the Aronoff Center in Cincinnati through May 6, 2012. To order tickets, please call (800) 294-1816. For more information on the tour, visit www.mammamianorthamerica.com.

Also see the current Cincinnati Area Theatre Schedule