After more than six months in the pipeline, China Arts and Entertainment Group (CAEG) has signed a licensing agreement with UK's Littlestar to produce a Chinese version of smash-hit musical MAMMA MIA!, marking a significant milestone for the development of musicals in China.

Performers on stage in MAMMA MIA! [Photo: Global Times]

"After almost 100 years, the musical industry in the West has grown into maturity with professional production and management. The license agreement of MAMMA MIA! will enable us to learn from international experience, avoid unnecessary difficulties and it's a new path for cultivating domestic musical talents for the musical theater industry in China," said Li Xiaolei, vice director of the Department of Cultural Industries with the Ministry of Culture.

Behind the project is CAEG's dream of promoting the musical theater industry in China and in the long run, eventually creating original Chinese musicals.

As one of the most successful musicals in the world, MAMMA MIA! has been seen by more than 42 million people in over 240 cities. Based on ABBA's timeless songs, in 1999 British producer Judy Craymer collaborated with writer Catherine Johnson to create a story of family and friendship unfolding on a Greek island.

"For the past years, I have been very lucky to work in many different countries with MAMMA MIA!. In every case, I was always amazed and pleased by the simple story which is able to transcend cultural boundaries, speaks to peoples' hearts, whatever nationality," said Paul Garrington, director of the UK's MAMMA MIA!. "After all, the theme of MAMMA MIA! is universal: family conflicts, friendship and the idea of healing the wounds of the past. All of these things make MAMMA MIA! a very human, very successful story."

"We do have a great start with MAMMA MIA! for our own musical industry dream. Why we chose it, to be frank, is because of its success," commented Zhang Yu, general manager of CAEG.

Executive producer Andrew Treagus said that the musical stays close to the original version, even after translation. "In little details, it has to be changed, when the translation has been done, you know something may not work. Something like a joke, which in China, wouldn't work, it has to put into something that Chinese think is funny."

All of the songs and script will be translated into Chinese, with Treagus, Garrington and their UK team assisting CAEG in building and training a crew and selecting the cast. A three-round audition process will be held in August, November and January.

Co-producer of the Chinese version, Tian Yuan, said that casting is crucial to the show's success.

"It comes down to the people who you work with," added Garrington. "Finding the right cast is fundamental, if you get a group of talented and creative people they will teach me what the production will be."

"These people need to be triple talented, they need to be able to act, sing and dance, more importantly you need to add a special ingredient, what we call the 'MAMMA MIA! factor,' a great sense of humor and the ability of communicating the joy of life, that's the heart of our musical."

Tian said that cooperating with the UK team will enable the industry to build strong foundations and allow her team to learn how to make first class productions step by step.

"We would like to continue our efforts for the musical industry by firstly bringing international productions, then introducing Chinese language versions of Western works and then create original works," Zhang said.

"It is an interesting time to develop commercial entertainment here in China and the cultural industry is changing here, I think developing the musical industry, the timing is right," commented David Lightbody, executive producer of MAMMA MIA! in China.

"It is a very exciting thing that the Chinese musical industry will not be copy of London or New York, or of any other country, it will be very interesting to see how its characteristics develop over the next 10 years, a very unique, Chinese industry."

CAEG's production is MAMMA MIA!'s 13th foreign language version and is expected to open in June next year. The licensing agreement runs for five years and covers the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, as well as Singapore. Nationwide tours are scheduled to start in the second half of 2011.

The first tour, which could last up to a year, will cover first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The second tour, scheduled for second-tier cities on the mainland and in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and Singapore, may last for as long as three to five years, according to the organizers.