Hold onto your life jackets, Titanic The Musical has sailed into The Orchard Theatre this week. Based on the real life events of the Titanic's almighty sinking in 1912, this musical transports the audience on board the vessel, to experience the decadence of the first-class, the aspirations of second-class and the raw hopes of third-class passengers on board. Settle in, as the show boasts an incredible 1 hour and 20 minute first half and 52 minute second half, possibly one of the longest musicals I have seen in a while.
A truely ensemble cast, we are treated to various snippets of the passengers lives, discovering what brought them onto the Titanic's maiden voyage, and their hopes and dreams of life once they reach New York. The true masterpiece of this music is the ensemble vocals, with harmonies that ebb and flow like the ocean itself, and create the atmosphere of life on board The Titanic in 1912.
The cast use their voices to depict the naive hope and dreams of the passengers as they board and set sail, and the more gritty aspirations of what New York will mean to them, to the fear, panic and ultimately resolution of the distruction of the ship.
This musical is almost entirely through-sung, with a lot of detail within the lyrics. The cast do well with the wordy songs, although I must confess, at times I couldn't quite make out the words. It is definitely a more classic musical style of vocal, which would please fans of the more traditional Rogers and Hammerstein.
The set is vast and does a clever job of providing a backdrop for both on and off the ship, while the costumes are subtle and an accurate depiction of the fashion of 1912. I was intrigued to see how they interpreted the hitting of the iceberg on stage, and of course the ultimate sinking, I would be interested to know other audience members thoughts on those aspects. I did feel that the embarking of the lifeboats was an unusual choice, after seeing such a well-constructed set for the rest of the show, it seemed a little "improvised" to start using mime at that point, however it got the job done.
All in all, it is an interesting look at the events surrounding the Titanic, with equisite vocals and harmonies from the ensemble cast, and although perhaps not a favourite of mine, the standing ovation from the Dartford audience would suggest I am in the minority, so definitely experience it for yourself, if you are intrigued.