Last Chance for The Last Ship

I have a lot of respect for Sting, and not Grammy-winning career as the front-man for The Police and solo act (though that is impressive). I have a lot of respect for Sting as a Broadway creator and producer. The Last Ship, which opened in October, is a semi-biographical show created by Sting about his life growing up in a ship-building town in England. In the show, the shipyard is closing, sending the town into a panic since it is where many of the residents make their living. The show is also a love story between the main character, Gideon, who returns to the town after years away, and Meg, who has moved on with someone else. 

It is already impressive enough that Sting conceived of and wrote all of the music for a Broadway show. This is not to say that he is the first rocker to do so. A few years ago Bono and The Edge wrote the music for the failed Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark. And a few years before them, David Bryan, who plays the keyboard for Bon Jovi, wrote the music for Memphis.

 Sting at the Neil Simon Theater - Source: Nypost.com

What has been impressive is Sting's undying commitment to the show. Sting was present at all of the show's rehearsals, ready to give guidance and tweak the music wherever it was needed. Many in the cast have said that he has become like a father figure to them. He also joined the promotional tour, accompanying the cast on shows such as Jimmy Fallon and Today. He has been happy to use his star power wherever it is needed to help the show. This is in stark contrast to Bono and the Edge a few years ago with Spiderman. The duo wrote most of the music out on the road, and decided to tour rather than attend rehearsals and even opening night.

The Cast of The Last Ship - Source: Nypost.com

Unfortunately, Sting hasn't been able to keep the show from doing dismally at the box office. Since it started previews, the show has been losing money each week. This led to Sting's most impressive move yet - a few weeks ago, he announce that he will be joining the cast from Dec. 9 through Jan. 10.  This comes after much speculation that he would do so, since he has been performing at the curtain call almost every night, hoping to lure audiences to the show for the chance of getting to see him. This will really be the last chance for The Last Ship. They couldn't succeed with just his name attached to the music, and if they can't succeed with him in the cast, there really is not much more to be done. But certainly if the the show fails, not one person will be able to pin it on Sting's lack of trying.