The full cast has been announced for the West End run of Sting's musical The Last Ship. The cast will include Declan Bennett (Gideon), Frances McNamee (Meg), Jackie Morrison (Peggy White), Lejaun Sheppard (The Wallsend Ferryman - 24 September - 3 October), Cassiopeia Berkeley-Agyepong (Baroness Tynesdale), Matt Beveridge (Freddy Newlands), Joe Caffrey (Billy Thompson), Duane Gooden (Adrian), Hannah Richardson (Ellen) and Adam Strong (Davey). Lydia Bolton (Swing) is Dance Captain and Llandyll Gove (Swing) is Resident Director. The Ensemble and understudy cast features Olivia-Mae Baker, Matthew Gent, Helen Hill, Ediz Mahmut, Matthew McDonald, Grant Neal and Emma Thornett.
Declan Bennett, Joe Caffrey, Cassiopeia Berkeley-Agyepong, Matt Beveridge, Hannah Richardson, Lejaun Sheppard, Emma Thornett, Helen Hill, Grant Neal, Matthew Gent and Llandyll Gove are all returning to the company, having performed this year in Amsterdam, Paris, Brisbane and New York. Frances McNamee and Jackie Morrison were in the original UK and USA tour cast; and Adam Strong, Duane Gooden, Olivia-Mae Baker, Lydia Boulton, Matthew McDonald and Ediz Mahmut are all new to the company. This cast will also perform at the Royal Theater Carré in Amsterdam when The Last Ship returns there from 29 August - 13 September. Today's full cast announcement follows news that Global reggae icon Shaggy is set to co-star, as The Wallsend Ferryman, with Sting for just two nights on 22 & 23 September.
The production has toured globally this year, including stops in Amsterdam, Paris, and Brisbane, as well as a limited nine-show run at the famed Metropolitan Opera House in New York. Due to prior commitments, Shaggy will perform in the first London performance on 22 September and at the Gala / press night the following evening on 23rd.
Sting says, 'What a great mix of returning and new performers we have for the London run! With just 6 weeks to go until our West End premiere, I'm really looking forward to working with everyone and finally sharing The Last Ship with audiences at Theatre Royal Drury Lane.'
17-time Grammy Award winning artist Sting will perform throughout the run of this newly reimagined production of his musical from 22 September - 3 October. Featuring a new book by Barney Norris, this revised production of the Last Ship, produced by Karl Sydow, is directed by Leo Warner with set and video design by 59, a Journey studio.
While continuing the STING 3.0 World Tour, Sting has also dedicated time this year to taking The Last Ship production to cities across the globe, with hugely successful runs in Amsterdam, Brisbane, Paris, and the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City, performing in every show.. The show returns to Amsterdam prior to the London premiere.
Sting plays a leading role in The Last Ship, the acclaimed musical he first developed in 2011, initially inspired by his 1991 album The Soul Cages, which earned a TONY nomination for Best Original Score.
Rooted in his own childhood in the British shipbuilding town of Wallsend, The Last Ship tells the moving story of a community of shipbuilders in the North East of England, faced with the closure of their shipyard – the heart of their existence.
Sting takes on the role of Jackie White, the shipyard's foreman whose health is failing just as his leadership is needed most. In this very personal show, the artist immerses the audience in the hometown he was desperate to escape, a world where love, loss, and hope intertwine.
"I grew up in the shadow of the shipyard,” says Sting. "I'd watch thousands of men walk to work each morning, but I dreamed of something else… I dreamed of escaping, and I did everything in my power to get away from that life. But the farther I got, the more I realized I needed to understand where I came from and felt I had to give something back. The Last Ship is my tribute to the people and the place that shaped me.”
Sting's beloved songs such as Island of Souls, All This Time, and When We Dance are woven into the performance in this fully staged, large-scale production featuring a company of over 50.
The Creative Team also includes Set and Props Designer Jenny Melville; Costume Designer Loren Elstein; Lighting Designer Adam Bassett; Sound Designer Tom Gibbons; Animation Director Matt Taylor; Choreographer Rebecca Howell; Video Designer Benjamin Pearcy; Musical Supervisor & Orchestrator Rob Mathes and Musical Director & Co-Music Supervisor Richard John. The Casting Director is Jill Green Casting.
(c) Broadway World by Stephi Wild
