Michael Esper and Rachel Tucker (Photo: Joan Marcus)
Pop-rock star Sting (of The Police and solo fame) is making
a splashy debut on Broadway. It is not with a personal appearance, but rather
as the composer of an impressive and rather traditionally conceived musical. Not
be entirely autobiographical, it has been culled from Sting's memories of his early
life growing up in an English coastal town that was once renowned for its
ship-building industry. A grand and
eclectically constructed score that is stunningly removed from anything
resembling the rock musical style, it resonates fervently with the influences of
Kurt Weill, as well as the folk cannon, sea chanties and the jazz genre. At its
best, it is the rock (in the original sense of the word) upon which the
musical's weakly structured book co-written by John Logan and Brian Yorkey has
been tethered.
Even beyond the lush melodic textures that carry the show,
Sting's gritty and stirring lyrics do more to inform the characters' feelings
than the feeble, minimally involving story. This is a shame as there is a
thread running through this musical of an impassioned community fighting for
its life after losing its sustaining industry. But the thread is weakest at its
center as it plods through the story of a man, Gideon Fletcher, who returns to
the town he left as a restless youth to escape the life of a ship-builder. Upon
his return and just as shiftless as ever, he not only finds that his former
girl friend has born and raised the son he never knew he had but also has found
love and support from another man. This plot line is anchored to the
incredulous decision by the unemployed workers to build one last ship. Total
hokum, but we get on board in order to believe.
Notable for its lusty, tough-as- nails performances from
both the men and the women, but with a particularly riveting one by Michael
Esper, as Gideon, this musical is also graced with terrific choreography by
Steven Hoggett. The exhilarating foot-stomping dances as well as the melancholy
waltzes and beautifully sung ballads define the hard-scrabble life of the
community. A distinctly dark show in its dramatic content and in its grimly
effective scenic design by David Zinn, "The Last Ship," will most
likely see Broadway as it last port of call.
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