Sting serves as inspiration for new Kate Prince show at Sadler's Wells...

Dancers at Sadler’s Wells will be swapping Swan Lake for Sting after the singer gave the green light to a stage show inspired by his music.

Choreographer Kate Prince, whose CV includes West End hits such as ­Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and Into The Hoods as well as Strictly Come Dancing, approached the star with the idea last year.

She said: “I’ve been a fan of Sting and The Police all my life and have seen him play live four times. 

“As a choreographer, when I listen to any music, I am always inspired to ­create dance, and Sting’s music, which has been playing in my headphones for over 30 years, kept bringing me to the same thought, ‘I want to choreograph to this’.” Message In A Bottle, about the “extraordinary adventures” of three siblings in a village that comes under attack, will feature hits including Every Breath You Take, Roxanne, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, Walking On The Moon, Englishman In New York and Fields Of Gold.

Sting said: “It’s an intriguing idea to align my songs and music with the work of a successful and highly esteemed choreographer of Kate’s standing. I witnessed one of the first workshops and was very excited by the potential.” 

Ms Prince said she was not sure if the show would feature a live band or pre-recorded music, but Sting’s vocals would be left intact.

She said: “His voice is very distinctive and as a fan I would be gutted if I went to see a Sting show and he was not ­singing. It is not Mamma Mia! It is very much a dance show but a dance show with a story.”

Ms Prince, who is an associate artist at Sadler’s Wells, admitted it was “weird” spending time with the former The Police frontman during the workshop, adding: “But he said a really interesting thing about how his whole career has been about the music and what it sounds like and he said that it was like someone had presented his music back to him in 3D physical form.”

The star, from Wallsend near Newcastle, has sold more than 100 million albums with The Police and as a solo artist. He has won 16 Grammy awards and three Brits, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

His own stage experience includes the musical The Last Ship, inspired by his memories of shipbuilding in north-east England, which ran on Broadway to mixed reviews.

Rehearsals for Message In A Bottle start in November, with previews in February next year.

(c) Evening Standard by Robert Dex