The Last Ship sails on Broadway

Rumor confirmed, now news: Sting will join the cast of The Last Ship as shipyard foreman, Jackie White from December 9th through January 10th

Breaking rumors: Sting may join the cast of The Last Ship, which should give a welcome boost to this musical inspired by his childhood in a seafaring town in England. (November 13, 2014.)

But possibly not for long. Ticket sales have reportedly been weak.  Nonetheless, The Last Ship, under Joe Mantello’s direction and with book by Brian Yorkey and John Logan, is at the Neil Simon Theatre in an open run.

Jimmy Nail as Jackie White and Sally Ann Triplett as his wife Peggy in a scene from the musical. Photo by Joan Marcus.

It’s got music and lyrics by Sting which would seem to be a good selling point -especially for his fans.  (See additional commentary at T and B On The Aisle.)

The Last Ship is part of the recent spate of (mostly very good) “working man’s musicals and dramas.”

Among the latter, there was the tale of miners turned artists in The Pitman Painters, which played at MTC in 2010.

Tackling a similar subject as The Last Ship, Dan Gordon’s drama The Boat Factory celebrated the great ocean going ships built in the Belfast yards from the late 1800s until they closed in an entertaining if info-heavy way.

Unlike Gordon’s play, The Last Ship delivers its exposition in songs and lyrics that are sometimes simplistic rather than informative.

For more information about The Last Ship, or to purchase tickets, please visit The Last Ship,