Titanic The Musical

Thank you very much for inviting me to your production of ‘Titanic the Musical’. 

This 1997 musical set aboard the historic Titanic expedition premiered on Broadway before James Cameron's movie was released – albeit in the same Despite winning the Tony Award for Best Musical, the presence of Titanic (the Musical) has been relatively understated and rarely performed. The tale of the Titanic is one that still fascinates people the world over and draws people in to find out more. Even after more than 100 years, the Titanic is still making headlines.

This show is structured as a collection of vignettes as we see snippets into the characters on board the ship of dreams. The individuals we know of who were on board the voyage (Cpt E J Smith, Thomas Andrews and Mr Murdoch) are reflected according to actual accounts but whether complete fiction, documented stories or a mix of the two - we are also introduced to a collection of characters amongst the passengers on board. 

Set

The set for this production was fairly simple consisting of a large raised platform standing tall at the back of the stage that was predominantly used as the bridge of the RMS titanic. The remaining stage area was left mostly open with various touches of detail to suggest the location aboard an ocean liner. A number of pieces were flown in such as the entrance to the boiler room to help move us from the upper decks into the boiler room of the ship. Additionally, railings were wheeled in from the wings to help create the top deck of the ship. Various other scenic items were moved around the stage by the cast to create other spaces such as the first-class dining area. Complete with crockery and champagne. A lovely board in memoriam to all those that lost their lives in the tragic sinking was flown in at the end and this was a nice touch. Act two required the audience to fill in a lot of the image for themselves as the set didn’t particularly change whilst the ship was sinking. It would have been nice to see some additional detail here of the ship gradually becoming more dishevelled as the tragedy unfolded. 

Sound

At the forefront of the theatre was a fantastic ten-piece live band expertly led by conductor Rob Young. The music was beautiful and well-rehearsed. It must be said however there were moments where the band were so loud that it was very challenging to hear the soloist on stage. I wonder if this was limited to those of us sat in the circle or if those in thee stalls had a similar experience? I was most impressed to see a violinist taking on the role of the ships musician and playing live on-stage whilst wireless amplified. This was a fantastic touch and was greatly received by all. 

The vocals were just sublime with fantastic harmonies that were well balanced. Wow! What an incredible opening number. From the moment the vocals started it was a feast for the ears. 

For the most part the vocals and band were well balanced. This was certainly aided by a larger number of radio mics used. Microphone levels were carefully monitored to ensure duets were balanced as well as ensuring harmonies were not over powering. The was one duet however where it appeared as though one of the cast members did not have a microphone which led to him being quite overpowered in this song. 

This production was expertly directed and it is clear every single member of the cast knew exactly where they needed to be and where they fitted within the context of their class on board the RMS Titanic. The scene changes were slick and happened seamlessly, often aided by members of the cast. 

There were some nice ideas to bring a real sense of realism to the production that drew the audience in and really made them connect on a highly personal level with the characters. As the audience entered the auditorium at the start of the evening spirits of those who had passed could be seen moving around causing a sense of intrigue before the performance had even started. The setting of scenes in the auditorium was nice however it did lead to a large disconnect for those sat in the circle. There were at least two scenes like this that left the audience upstairs feeling somewhat left out. 

The choreography for Doing the latest rag was effective and the choreography was well suited to the style and to the ability off those on stage.

Overall, this was an exceptional production and one that every single person involved with should feel proud to have been a part of. The ‘Three Kates’ were excellent and had very strong, believable Irish accents. The costumes were excellent and very carefully considered for every single class or role on board. 

This whole production was such a large ensemble-based show that provided an opportunity for so many members of the company to showcase their talent. I can’t think of many other shows that would be quite so well suited to you as a company as this. 

 

Thank you once again for an enjoyable evening.

Kind regards

   Ryan Procter

   District 3 Representative

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