Bill Hanney’s North Shore Music Theatre presents ‘Titanic the Musical’. Story & Book by Peter Stone. Music & Lyrics by Maury Yeston. Directed and choreographed by Kevin P. Hill. Music Direction by Milton Granger. Scenic & Lighting Design by Jack Mahler. Original Costume Design by Jeffrey Meek. Sound Design by Alex Berg. Hair & Wig Design by Rachel Padilla-Shufelt. At North Shore Music Theatre, Beverly, MA through November 10, 2024.
by Linda Chin
Putting away the deck chairs for the winter or rearranging the metaphorical deck chairs at work getting you down? Wondering how a single sociopathic businessman’s desire for power and fame can drive a decision that trumps others’ safety and happiness? Hungry for the power of live musical performance to unite, create, and heal communities?
An exquisitely staged and sung ‘Titanic the Musical’ at Beverly’s North Shore Music Theatre depicts the disastrous days preceding April 15, 1912, a day that has gone down in world history as one of the deadliest peacetime sinkings of a single ship. Approximately 1300 passengers and crew aboard the British ocean liner, RMS Titanic, died when the British ocean liner was making its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City and hit an iceberg.
With masterful direction and choreography by Kevin P. Hill (also North Shore Music Theatre’s Producing Artistic Director), the dramatic moments are poignantly portrayed by the actors, and the pacing flows at a steady clip throughout the production’s 2.5-hour run time. Notably, the chief naval architect Thomas Andrews (Trevor Martin) and Captain Edward John Smith (Tom Galantich) died in the disaster, but J. Bruce Ismay (Bronson Norris Murphy), the chairman and managing director of the White Star Line (and the company’s highest-ranking White Star businessman on board) survived the sinking. The scene in Act One when Ismay is pressuring the captain to increase the boat’s speed to 22 knots in order to get to NYC in record time – in order to get attention from the press – and the trio’s musical number “The Largest Floating Object in the World” is one of the production’s most chilling. The mixed mood and dark tone of this scene is beautifully supported by the work of music director Milton Granger, scenic and lighting designer Jack Mahler and sound designer Alex Berg.
Veteran Boston actresses Jennifer Ellis (making her NSMT debut as Caroline Neville) and Mary Callahan (who appeared as Grandma Tzeitel in last season’s Fiddler on the Roof and portrays first class passenger Ida Straus) light up the stage with their stage presence and stellar voices. Caroline and Charles’ (Benjamin Lurye) duet “I Give You My Hand” is a harmonic pairing, as is the duet “Still” by Ida and Isidor Straus (Kevin B. McGlynn).
The ensemble of passengers is diverse in ethnicity and age, depicting the first, second, and third-class passengers who round out the company. The passengers included prominent members of the upper class, including multimillionaire John Jacob Astor IV and his wife, industrialist Guggenheim, and former US House of Representatives member Isidor Straus. The third-class passengers represented a diverse group of ethnic groups – British, Irish, and Scandinavian immigrants and passengers from Central and Eastern Europe, Syria, and Hong Kong. Their differences in dress were supported by Jeffrey Meek’s original costume design and wig and hair design by Rachel Padilla-Schufelt.
Overall, Titanic the Musical reminds us that there have been socioeconomic inequities and powerful leaders in the world forever and that musical theatre can be a lifeboat during tumultuous times. Titanic is definitely a production worth hightailing to Beverly for. At a reasonable speed, of course. For tickets and information, go to: https://www.nsmt.org/
