NOTE: “Today” and “tonight” refer to Friday, July 22.
PORT ANGELES — History remembers the Titanic as a failure of epic proportions, but it is actually the human struggle — the dreams, aspirations and lives of its passengers cut short — that is most important, said Mark Lorentzen, director of “Titanic: The Musical.”
The play — produced by Ghostlight Productions of Sequim — opens today at the Port Angeles Community Playhouse, 1235 E. Lauridsen Blvd., and runs through Aug. 6.
“Obviously, Titanic strikes some chord with people,” said Lorentzen, 30, of Port Angeles, who also acts in the play.
“It is a very powerful story and one of the things that drew me to the musical is that it tells the story of the acts of heroism and selflessness that you don’t hear about.”
The sinking of the Titanic on April 15, 1912, during her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City is “a perfect subject for a musical because the music itself celebrates the Gilded Age,” Lorentzen said.
“It is a time when man was experimenting with things they had never done before — building ships that were the size of four city blocks. And — for the first time in the history of the world — some of these people were [traveling] faster than they had ever gone before in their life on this ship at 23 knots, which is [about] 27 miles an hour.”
The musical — with music and lyrics by Maury Yeston and a story line written by the late Peter Stone — is not related to the 1997 film, “Titanic,” but instead is based on actual people present at the time, Lorentzen said.
It revolves around three couples — one each from the working class, middle class and upper class, he said.
Kate Long, 34, of Port Angeles, portrays Kate Murphy, a working-class Irish woman who was coming to America with her lover to pursue the American Dream.
Murphy was “a real person,” Long said.
“All the characters are based on real-life people. These are real individuals who had real stories, real families, real dreams and aspirations about getting on the ship and going to America to start a new life. For some, they just didn’t make it, so it is heartbreaking.”
At times, “it is a very serious show,” said Ron Graham, 59, of Sequim.
Graham has been cast in the role of Isidor Straus, a real-life German-born multi-millionaire who co-owned Macy’s department store with his brother Nathan. He was traveling with his wife to America when the disaster struck.
“Obviously it has a tragic ending, but it is also about hope,” Graham said.
The beginning of the musical “is very celebratory, even [among] the third-class passengers,” Long said.
“We have this sequence in their compartments where they are talking about all the dreams they have, what they want to become and what jobs they want to have when they get to America.”
There is “a lot of fun in the show,” Graham said.
“There is a lot of humor. It is like any good musical drama. There are lighthearted moments . . . and touching moments. It is a love story, it is a comedy, it is a tragedy. It is a great show.”
Finishing touches
The 27 member cast began full dress rehearsals Monday, ironing out the kinks for tonight’s performance, Lorentzen said.
“I think everyone is really revving up this week, getting all their parts down and making sure everything is under finite control so we know what we are doing on stage,” Long said.
Because it is a small stage, Lorentzen has incorporated the use of a digital projector to change the backdrop between scenes, he said.
“We are using digital projections to get the scope of the ship,” Lorentzen said.
“You can switch out the backdrops, and during the sinking sequence, you can see the ship sink.”
The musical features live musicians, choreography by Anna Pedersen, and unfolds on a backdrop designed by Lorentzen, he said.
Long has a leading dance role, and sings too, she said.
As a professional dancer “the dancing comes natural to me,” she said.
But, “I had to really brush up on my singing — it is a different muscle,” she said.
Long also had to refine her Irish accent to portray Murphy, she said.
“My Irish always becomes Scottish randomly, so I have to tone it down,” she said.
“I have to reign it in, but there are some people whose accents are amazing in the show.”
Long said the cast “is just so outstanding.”
“I think people will be floored to see the talent in this town,” she said.
“It is a knockout vocal ensemble. The voices in this show are beautiful.”
And the small venue offers an intimate experience not found in larger venues, Long said.
“I think the way [Lorentzen] has staged it really gives people the sense like it is tactile,” she said.
“They are in the boat [and] are really there experiencing it.”
The Titanic “sinks every night,” Graham joked, inviting the public to witness the historical event for themselves.
Tickets
The musical will be performed at 7:30 tonight and Saturday night as well as July 28, 29 and 30; and Aug. 4, 5 and 6. Matinee performances will be at 2:30 p.m. Sunday and July 31.
All performances will be at the Port Angeles Community Playhouse.
Tickets for this evening are $12. Seating is not reserved, so event organizers encourage the public to arrive a half hour before the show begins to choose a seat.
For the remainder of the performances, tickets are $10 for a side view, $15 for general seating and $18 for premium seating.
For tickets or more information, visit http://ghostlight-productions.com/.
