The Last Ship 5 star review by Natalie Anglesey

The Last Ship Review by Natalie Anglesey 5 stars!

Tonight , July 3^rd,  the audience at The Lowry, who had come to see The Last Ship, were delighted to spot iconic music legend Sting, who had flown in with his wife from their home in New York. The composer and lyricist of this, his debut musical, which originally premiered on Broadway winning two Tony nominations, joined the cast on stage, at the curtain call-  although he refrained from making a speech. Beaming at the well-deserved standing ovation, it was a poignant moment as his musical ends its UK tour here this week.  

I first met Sting at the launch in Salford Quays and was impressed when, in spite of being awarded a CBE by the Queen and accepted into both the Rock and Roll and Songwriters Halls of Fame, he told me he still felt a debt of gratitude towards his old community.   He explained that this musical was loosely based on his own personal story, reflective of his childhood in Wallsend. It was also a tribute to his father and the community who worked in the Swan Hunter shipyard.  Like so many shipyards at the time, its closure proved devastating to the community who made a last, admirable although futile, stand.  

The UK premiere of The Last Ship was held in Newcastle and the revised book and direction is by Lorne Campbell who is Artistic Director of the Northern Stage. I first saw this production on tour at the Liverpool Playhouse where I was knocked out by the story and the strong performances of a talented cast. Led by our own Richard Fleeshman, who was superb as Gideon, he has starred in London and on Broadway in Ghost, and several other musicals since, In this truly ensemble work, Liverpool’s Joe Mc Gann, also stood out. Unfortunately several members of the cast had fallen ill to a bug that's going around- but their replacements rallied round.

Once again, it’s only on the stage of The Lowry that the full height of the set punches home the overpowering  shadow cast by the shipyards of old. This 5 star production impressed as the ever- present sea pounded at the gates in a magnificent finale, The Last Ship is only docked at The Lowry until the end of this week  - so don’t leave it too late to book.

Tel 0843  208 6005 @thelowry.com