New musical with original score by Sting, book by John Logan and Brian Yorkey
Choreography by Steven Hoggett, Directed by Joe Mantello
Now Playing at the Neil Simon Theatre on Broadway
"A seductive, haunting beauty of a score that ranks among the best composed by a rock or pop figure for Broadway" - The New York Times
"Sting’s songs are lovely and theatrical - vivid barnburners, dramatic anthems and vigorous ensemble numbers" - New York Magazine
"Thrilling with powerful performances, outstanding songs and real heart… simply beautiful" - Associated Press
THE LAST SHIP - the new musical with music and lyrics by 16-time Grammy Award-winner Sting and book by Tony Award-winner John Logan and Pulitzer Prize-winner Brian Yorkey opened on Broadway on October 26 with overwhelming praise for its emotionally powerful score. On December 16, Universal Music Classics will release the Original Broadway Cast Album for THE LAST SHIP, produced by the Emmy-Award winning and multi-Grammy-nominated producer Rob Mathes. The play is directed by Tony Award-winner Joe Mantello and choreographed by Olivier Award-winner Steven Hoggett, with musical direction, orchestrations and arrangements also by Rob Mathes.
In the fall of 2013, Sting introduced some of the selections heard in the musical on his own album of the same name, The Last Ship, released on Cherrytree/Interscope/A&M Records. The new Broadway Cast Album will include some of those original compositions performed by the acclaimed Broadway cast, as well as selections exclusively written and recorded for the stage production. Highlights include the title track "The Last Ship," show favorites "We’ve Got Now’t Else" and "If You Ever See Me Talking to a Sailor" plus "When We Dance," a beloved song from Sting’s catalog. The Original Broadway Cast Recording will also include two versions of the stirring ballad "What Say You, Meg?"- one sung by the character Arthur Millburn and one recorded by Sting which will appear as a bonus track, available exclusively on the cast album for the first time anywhere.
THE LAST SHIP - which marks Sting's debut as a Broadway composer - is set in the English seaside town of Wallsend, a close-knit community where life has always revolved around the local shipyard and the hardworking men construct magnificent vessels with tremendous pride. But Gideon Fletcher dreams of a different future. He sets out to travel the world, leaving his life and his love behind. When Gideon returns home many years later, he finds the shipyard's future in grave danger and his childhood sweetheart engaged to someone else. This love triangle ignites just as the men and women of Wallsend take their future into their own hands and build a towering representation of the shared dream that defines their existence. And in the end Gideon comes to understand that he had indeed left behind more than he could have ever imagined.
THE LAST SHIP is inspired by the Wallsend community where Sting was born and raised and people's homes were often houses that existed in the shadows of the massive vessels in the shipyards. THE LAST SHIP also reflects real-life incidents, including a history-making 'work-in' at a Scottish shipyard in the 70's, and a recent project in Poland for which a priest commandeered supplies and financial support so a group of laymen could not only have work, but also reclaim their pride and dignity by assembling a ship meant to sail the world.
The principal cast of THE LAST SHIP includes Michael Esper, Rachel Tucker, Jimmy Nail, Fred Applegate, Aaron Lazar, Sally Ann Triplett and Collin Kelly-Sordelet.
THE LAST SHIP ensemble includes: Eric Anderson, Ethan Applegate, Craig Bennett, Dawn Cantwell, Jeremy Davis, Bradley Dean, Alyssa DiPalma, Colby Foytik, David Michael Garry, Timothy Gulan, Shawna M. Hamic, Rich Hebert, Leah Hocking, Todd A. Horman, Sarah Hunt, Jamie Jackson, Sean Jenness, Drew McVety, Johnny Newcomb, Matthew Stocke, Cullen R. Titmus and Jeremy Woodard.
THE LAST SHIP is produced on Broadway by Jeffrey Seller, Kathryn Schenker, Kevin McCollum, Sander Jacobs, James L. Nederlander, Roy Furman, Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss.
www.TheLastShip.com
To view a video of Sting discussing the origins of THE LAST SHIP, visit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vCuwE7kg1w
For a preview of THE LAST SHIP, please click here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh8lw-DJuu8
Amazon Pre-order:
http://smarturl.it/TheLastShip_Amz
THE LAST SHIP ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST ALBUM TRACKLISTING:
Island Of Souls
All This Time
August Winds
Shipyard
If You Ever See Me Talking To A Sailor
Dead Man's Boots
The Last Ship (Part One)
The Last Ship (Part Two)
What Say You, Meg?
We've Got Now’t Else
When We Dance
The Night The Pugilist Learned How To Dance
So To Speak
Show Some Respect
It's Not The Same Moon
Underground River
Ghost Story
The Last Ship (Finale)
Bonus track: What Say You, Meg? (performed by Sting)
