Marriott’s ‘Titanic’ – A Stunning Musical Odyssey!
It will be 40 years this September that Dr. Robert Ballard’s expedition team discovered the solemn remains of the RMS Titanic resting on the ocean floor 2 1/2 miles below the surface. To anyone over 50 years old, the exact details of the tragedy was up to that point one of the great mysteries of our time.
James Cameron’s 1997 blockbuster film incorporated the haunting images of the underwater tomb for the 1,517 victims of the tragedy. New theories emerged, testing firsthand accounts of survivors captured at the time and questioning the catastrophic collision with the iceberg that led to the sinking of the ship in the early hours of April 15, 1912.
The Broadway production that would receive five 1997 Tony Awards—Best Musical, Book, Original Score, Scenic Design and Orchestrations—was a ship of dreams all by itself. When “Titanic The Musical” arrived on Broadway, I had two memorable opportunities to see the fascinating multi-level set design and ingenious hydraulic system to replicate the inevitable outcome. But it was the impassioned personal stories in Peter Stone’s superb book and the resounding lyrics and melodic score by Maury Yeston that I recall most of all. These are true-to-life representations of the crew and passengers—a reflection of the class structure of the era —woven together with fictionalized composite accounts of the disaster as it unfolded.
The size and scope of the show posed major challenges for touring and regional productions. Over the years that followed, “Titanic The Musical” spawned concert and chamber performances around the world. A 2012 critically-acclaimed ensemble version—produced in Chicago by Griffin Theatre with orchestrations for six musicians by Ian Weinberger, a Northwestern alum—emerged with a cast of twenty playing multiple roles.
It is this version of “Titanic The Musical” that opened at Marriott Theatre on Wednesday, expertly directed and choreographed by Connor Gallagher with a matchless Chicago-based ensemble featuring top stage veterans and exceptionally talented newcomers to the Lincolnshire venue.
At the center of the story is the contentious relationship between Titanic’s Captain E.J. Smith (David Girolmo) and White Star’s owner J. Bruce Ismay (Adam Pelty), who is constantly pressuring Smith and Titanic designer and builder Thomas Andrews (Christopher Kale Jones) on the ship’s performance. Their confrontation in “The Blame” is a highlight, and Jones gives one of the most powerful performances of the night in “Mr. Andrews’ Vision.”
Individual stories that illuminate the class distinctions on the Titanic are 1st Class passengers Ida (Heidi Kettenring) and Isidor Straus (Mark David Kaplan), Madeline (Victoria Okafor) and John Jacob Astor (Joel Gelman); 2nd Class passengers Kate Murphey (Laura Guley), Kate Mullins (Victoria Okafor), and Kate McGowan (Erica Stephan) whose relationship with Jim Farrell (Garrett Lutz) is a tender storyline richly told. Lillian Castello’s delightful Alice Beane, who aspires to be included among the 1st Class passengers, is matched in earnest by her husband, Edgar played by James Earl Jones II. Darian Goulding is terrific in the role of Frederick Barrett.
Among other stellar featured performances are Second Officer Lightoller (Gelman), Harold Bride (a spirited turn for Matthew Hommel), Third Officer Herbert Pittman/Etches (Kevin Webb), First Officer Murdoch (George Keating), Frederick Fleet (Lucas Thompson), Charlotte Cardoza (Kelli Harrington), Charles Clarke (Will Lidke), Caroline Neville (Francesca Mehrotra) and the Bellboy (Eric Amundson).
Music Director Ryan T. Nelson and conductor/keyboardist Brad Haak with musicians Heather Boehm, Loretta Gillespie, Lewis Rawlinson, Trevor Jones and Andy Wilmouth are on the mark with the exceptional score. The show plays out on an exquisitely detailed, multi-tiered Collette Pollard set that shifts effortlessly from forward to aft, 1st Class to 3rd, and all points in between with a minimum of embellishments, an extraordinary feat within the confines of Marriott’s in-the-round configuration. Add Sully Ratke’s sensational costumes, the evocative lighting by Jesse Klug, and, sound design by Michael Daly, and Marriott’s “Titanic The Musical” becomes a stunning musical odyssey.
