Mary Callanan :: having the time of her life

It was last Friday night at Boston's Club Caf� and Mary Callanan was performing in the Napoleon Room. Now if this were a year ago, this wouldn't be any thing out of the ordinary - Mary's been a regular on the city's cabaret and theater scene for some time, which would make an appearance in a room such as this one something you'd expect to see. What made this one different is that it was the first time Callanan was performing in Boston in five months and Mary and her long-time partner Brian Patton were, as she described it, "doing a hootenanny."

But where has she been? Canada, Alaska and various venues in the States, it turns out, as part of the national company of the mega-hit musical Mamma Mia! in which she plays Rosie, the single, uber-feminist who comes to a Greek island for the wedding of a close friend's daughter only to fall in love with something close to her male counterpart - a writer and adventurer.

Everything is Rosie

If there ever was a role for Callanan to play it was that of the brassy and funny Rosie in the ABBA-song filled jukebox musical that comes to the Providence Performing Arts Center from December 28, 2010 - January 2, 2011. Doesn't brassy and funny describe Mary? In fact often people would see her perform either in Boston or Provincetown and ask if she had played Rosie, and if she hadn't, why not?

Mary saw the possibilities the first time she saw the show and went after it. That was six years ago when there was an open call for the show. "I'm a practical person," she said from her home in Weymouth where she was taking some time off before rejoining the company next week. "I know what I'm right for. I'm no Glinda (from Wicked) or Dot (from Sunday in the Park with George). But Rosie was totally right. I am really that person."

Still it took numerous auditions for Mary to convince those casting the show that she was right. "I would audition and I'd get on the short list, but never got cast. Then last Spring I was sitting on the steps of the Museum of Fine Arts and I got this call from this young man telling me of another audition I needed to prepare for. Like I didn't know it what I'd be doing. 'Save your breath,' I told him. 'I'm good.' And I started to laugh, much to the young man's bewilderment," she recalled.

"I went to the audition in cowboy boots and jeans, like it was a social thing," she went on. "I loved the casting director and knew the musical director, so it was fun just to see them again. And this time - it was my sixth - I wasn't breathing as hard. I was relaxed and laughing. And I got it. So being persistent finally worked in my favor. Other people might give up after the first, second or third try, but me - I would go every time they called because, you know what, that time could be the right one. And this time it was. I guess I wanted it bad enough. And I've been over the moon since. On the tour it may be snowing in Rochester or wherever we may be, or there's no backstage or whatever; but do you know what? I'm doing what I love to do."

"An amazing time"

Not that Mary wasn't doing what she liked to do. At the time she was cast in Mamma Mia, Mary had a featured role in one musical - SpeakEasy Stage Company's The Great American Trailer Park Musical -- and was preparing for a starring role in another - Sophie Tucker: The Last of the Red Hot Mamas.

"This has been an amazing time for me," she said. "It started with Kiss Me, Kate (where she played Hattie at the Lyric Stage Company of Boston in September 2009) and hasn't stopped since."

But what does she like about Rosie?

"Well, She's a writer with a feminist slant, so no man is going to tie her down. She's practical. I like that. Plus Rosie has the majority of the funny lines and she gets to sing one of the best songs in the show. So I get to belt a great song and be funny and sexy?"

One of the down sides, she admitted, was appearing in Spandex along with her co-stars as they recreate the girl group they were part of in the 1980s - Donna and the Dynamos. "When we come out, they (Kaye Tuckerman who plays Donna and Alison Ewing who plays Tanya) look terrific. Me, I'm the other one - the big red one. I have to admit I go to the gym more often these days. But I make the scene work so that everyone - including myself - enjoys the moment."

She also has great affection for the show, which remains one of the biggest hits of recent times since it opened in London in 1999. Today one any given day there are seven performances of Mamma Mia going on somewhere in the world. Its Broadway run recently passed 3,500 performances with no signs of slowing down; and its 200x film version is the highest-grossing musical of all time.

"I think one reason it is so successful is that it a musical that everyone can go to - parents, grandparents, children. It's harmless fun with great pop songs that everyone knows and loves. There's also a nice message about a strong woman making strong choices and her friends who back her up. You would think by now, people would be tired of the show, but we still play to near capacity houses, even here in the States."

While she may be in far-off locales such as Calgary and Anchorage, Callanan keeps on top of what's going on in Boston. "The last time I toured was before technology made it easier to keep on top of things. But Facebook is like a daily newspaper for me. I make a point of going to it to find out what's going on in my friends' lives.

"You know," she continued, "Coming home made me realize that being here is real. Doing this tour is make believe. I know I am in a fairy tale right now. I have a dream job in a fun show. We stay in nice hotels, management is nice and audiences are on their feet. But it's not real. You're life is real. Working in Boston with people I respect is real. Last year things started to click and I was amazed, thrilled and grateful. Taking the show was a hard decision for me to make, but I totally feel I made the right one.

"Of course I was going to take this and see where this will go. But for now there's no Ptown next summer - maybe in September. Who knows. But I'm thrilled that my friends and family are all planning on coming down to Providence to see me in the show. I think we're planning a high school reunion at one performance. Everyone's been so happy for me and that's been great. This just caps an amazing year, but I don't want to say that too loudly. I'm afraid I might jinx it."

Mamma Mia runs December 28, 2010 to January 2, 2011 at the Providence Performing Arts Center, 220 Weybosset Street, Providence, RI. For more information visit the Providence Performing Arts Center website.

For more on Mary Callanan, visit her website.