TITANIC THE MUSICAL at New York City Center
In 1997, a small film was released that took home 11 Academy Awards and took the world by storm. Some people may not be aware that in that same year, a new broadway musical was released about the same topic and went by the same name, Titanic.
Having never been remounted, most likely in part to the expenses that it would cost to mount a full production in this current economy, New York City Center announced that they would be mounting a production in June of 2024.
For those unfamiliar with New York City Center’s Encores shows, a brief explanation: Encores! takes shows that are sometimes buried in the archives of musical theater and instead of creating a full production, they use it to center around their orchestra. Casting a wide range of talent, they rehearse for just shy of two weeks and then mount the show in a concert setting. Placing the focus on the music and vocal talent and less on the spectacle of the shows.
In the case of Titanic, NYC Center formed a cast of 32 broadway actors, including broadway royalty such as Tony winner Chuck Cooper (Trouble in Mind), Eddie Cooper (Parade), Andrew Durand (Shucked), Drew Gehling (Waitress), Ramin Karimloo (Funny Girl, Les Miserables), Judy Kuhn (Fun Home), Jose Llana (Here Lies Love), Tony winner Bonnie Milligan (Kimberly Akimbo), Tony winner Brandon Uranowitz (Leopoldstadt), and Chip Zien (Harmony, Into the Woods) and an orchestra of 30 musicians. That is right, 62 artists are onstage at one time to provide the most spellbinding sound that can only be described as transcendent,
There is no denying that this wasn’t just a concert staging of this sweeping score, this was a once in a lifetime experience to be swept away, that will probably not happen again for another 30 years, if at all.
Titanic has always been known for it’s unbelievably lush score but when it is performed by a full 30 piece orchestra of New York’s finest musicians, it takes on a new life. It not only fills the auditorium with some of the most glorious sounds that have ever graced the ear but it creates a series of visceral emotions that are personal to every individual person witnessing it.
Although it is staged as a concert and the cast have their scripts in hand for a good amount of the show, director Anne Kaufman has staged it in a way that also feel like it could be transferred to a broadway stage. She has given the audience the full experience of the show in a significantly paired down way that doesn’t feel as if it cheapens the material.
Her greatest directorial choice comes at the end of the production. As the ship is sinking, each cast member left on board removes a piece of clothing and leaves it on the stage as they depart. As the lights dim from above, lights from the side begin to grow and the reflective stage takes on a new form, it appears as if it is water and the clothing is floating on the sea. It is an utterly chilling moment but it’s effect on the audience cannot overstated. It is simply perfection.
Many theater fans have been lucky enough to see filmed versions of musicals that were presented in a concert setting, Les Miserables and Phantom of the Opera being the two most well known. To enjoy one of these events in person is an entirely different experience because you are part of history being made. You can say, “I was there when” and you can share that experience with those in your life.
To say there are no words for the emotion that swept the theater the entire production, would be the biggest understatement. There were tears shed, laughs heard, and rapturous applause that shook the foundation of the theater (and perhaps all of Manhattan at that).
Having never been to a production at City Center, I can only say that it was well worth the trip across half of the country to be in the room and be a part of the historical event that Titanic is and will be remembered for.
