Fathers' day : Men of 'Mamma Mia!' say spandex and silly songs are flashback fun

Actor Paul DeBoy admits he had never seen the hit stage musical "Mamma Mia!" before he was cast to join the national tour two years ago.

"I hadn't even seen the 2008 movie version," said DeBoy, during a telephone interview last week.

"But once I was hired and had a year contract, I made sure to see it on stage as I was getting ready for the role and I was pretty surprised."

DeBoy had originally been hired to play the character of Bill, the architect and possible father of bride-to-be Sophie.

But by the time he began the tour, his role changed to Sophie's "Plan B father possibility," banker Harry Bright, whose younger "wild and crazy days" earned him the tag "Harry the Headbanger."

However, while watching "Mamma Mia!" that first time, it wasn't the roles and character personalities that captured Deboy's attention — it was the wardrobe.

"Even though this is a musical dedicated to the songs of ABBA, I didn't realize I'd also be wearing Spandex at some point," he said.

"But when I was with my girlfriend watching it for the first time, I knew that this would a show that would be just as fun to be in as it is to watch. And two years later, I'm still having a great time."

DeBoy will be packing up his Spandex this weekend to head to Chicago with the the "Mamma Mia!" tour for a string of performances next week, Jan. 24 to Jan. 29, at the Oriental Theatre.

Seen by more than 50 million people around the world, Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus' global smash hit musical "Mamma Mia" is now celebrating more than 4,000 performances in its 10th smash hit year at Broadway's Winter Garden Theatre, where it remains among Broadway's top-selling musicals.

As for this current North American Tour, it has played more than 3,700 performances in 150 cities with 145 repeat visits.

Even the blockbuster feature film adaptation of "Mamma Mia!," which had critics poking fun at the singing and dancing of stars Meryl Streep and Pierce Bronsan, rank's as the most successful movie musical of all time, having grossed $600 million worldwide.

While much of the character emphasis is usually given to the female personalities, DeBoy reminds us that it's the men who have the key plot point.

An independent, single mother named Donna, who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island, is helping daughter Sophie prepare for her wedding, along with Mom's two lifelong best girlfriends — practical and no-nonsense Rosie and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya.

Secretly, Sophie has also invited three guests of her own to the island in hopes of discovering which one of her mother's boyfriends from 20 years ago is her dad, so she can ask him to walk her down the aisle.

ABBA's songs like "Dancing Queen," "S.O.S.," "Money, Money, Money" and "Take a Chance on Me" provide the scene dialogue and set the tone for the 24-hour race to the altar.

DeBoy laughs when asked if his contract includes clauses that "must allow prominent chest hair to be seen with costuming" and "weight must remain with a safe range for Spandex."

"There are no over-the-top contract clauses, but I will say this is a musical that is certainly infectious to the audience," he said.

"People come and see it over and over and love it every time."