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re: Last Ship last night

Posted by: Delvino 07:25 pm EST 01/17/15
In reply to: re: Last Ship last night - Shutterbug 06:46 pm EST 01/17/15

I saw it Tuesday, and share all posted enthusiasm. The score is just superb, the production exemplary in every way.

My feeling on the book: in some ways it's a situation and not a story, though admittedly a rich one. The turns - an "occupy the shipyard," a death in act two, present opportunities for more impact on the throughline than are mined. Most of the plot per se is in the backstory, and then the final 10 minutes. But every scene holds emotional power presented in the songs, and they are glorious. I'm quibbling about post-performance ruminations. I stood and cheered in the theater, wet-eyed.


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re: Last Ship last night

Posted by: WaymanWong 08:59 pm EST 01/17/15
In reply to: re: Last Ship last night - Delvino 07:25 pm EST 01/17/15

Here's my take on Brian Yorkey and John Logan's book: It's a fable. In October, Rob Weinert-Kendt wrote a story about ''The Last Ship'' and acknowledged that it's ''more allegory than autobiography'' for Sting:

''His initial inspiration, he said, was a 2009 article in The New York Times about unemployed and homeless former shipbuilders in Poland who, encouraged by the priest who ran their shelter, are building a ship on their own in an abandoned tractor factory.

''He also cited as a precedent the seminal “work-in” led by Jimmy Reid in Glasgow in 1971 and ’72, in which shipbuilders resisted the government’s plan to shut down their shipyard by occupying it and continuing work at full steam for nine months.''

Yorkey and Logan have taken a lotta knocks, but that was the framework they were given for Sting's soaring songs. And I love how the father-son conflict, the romance and shipyard workers' plight intertwine and all play out.

Link Sting introduces ''When We Dance'' with Esper, Tucker and Lazar

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re: Last Ship last night

Posted by: 15minutecall 01:53 am EST 01/18/15
In reply to: re: Last Ship last night - WaymanWong 08:59 pm EST 01/17/15

For me the framework isn't the problem; it's Logan and Yorkey's follow thru. If I'd been Mantello, I'd have pared it down (cut the opening prison scene of act2 for instance) and made it a one act extended sea shanty. It was bloat that prevented it from staying afloat. But the love Sting and the performers have for the show made watching this a heartbreaker to me.


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re: Last Ship last night

Posted by: WaymanWong 02:48 am EST 01/18/15
In reply to: re: Last Ship last night - 15minutecall 01:53 am EST 01/18/15

If I'd been directing, I might've made a minor trim here or there (and cut ''Mrs. Dees' Rant''). But I sure wouldn't have touched the opening Act II waltz: ''The Night the Pugilist Learned How to Dance.'' Michael Esper and Collin Kelly-Sordelet have such great chemistry, and you get to see Gideon show his more sensitive side and bond with his son.

To me, it's not the ''bloat'' that kept it from staying afloat. Audiences just weren't interested in the subject matter.

I'll agree with you on this, though: Sting and the cast really pour their heart and soul into every song.

Link From ''Last Ship'' cast album: ''The Night the Pugilist Learned How to Dance''

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re: Last Ship last night

Posted by: gad90210 11:29 am EST 01/18/15
In reply to: re: Last Ship last night - WaymanWong 02:48 am EST 01/18/15

I agree the prison scene is an important one and strengthens the father-son bond. Cutting it is a bad idea. The song, however, when I listen to it on my phone, seems to go on forever, so maybe that could have been trimmed somewhat. But the scene itself is funny and charming.


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as much as I'm glad I saw The Last Ship

Posted by: jero 12:30 pm EST 01/18/15
In reply to: re: Last Ship last night - gad90210 11:29 am EST 01/18/15

the reason only the two of them were in prison was a bit wonky in the writing for my tastes. Not nearly enough to ruin the show but a bump along the way for me.


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