I was intrigued by this show since I first saw the small clip on the Rosie O’Donnell show in May of 1997. It won the Tony for Best Musical that year, and I was really excited to get to see it with the original cast. (See my experiences).
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When I first heard the recording, one of my complaints was that there were too many characters. I felt that you didn’t get to know any of them enough to care for them. But once I got into a little more, and found out about some of the stuff that happens between the songs on the recording, I discovered that, despite the large cast, by the end you really do feel close to all of them, and that each of their tragedies becomes personal to you. Also, I’ve heard some people complain that the sets aren’t that great…personally, I didn’t mind them. Obviously it’s not going to be as realistic as a movie, but they did really well with what they had. And the ship sinking on stage is a really amazing effect! |
The show closed on Broadway on March 28, 1999 after 804 performances. There was a national tour that went across the U.S., and now that the rights have been released, there are regional productions being put on as well! A touring company was seen in the Netherlands in 2001. The show opened at the Neue Flora Theatre in Hamburg, Germany on December 8, 2002 and closed there on October 4, 2003. A new song was added to this production, entitled “3 Days”, a duet between Kate McGowan and Jim Farrell as they face possible separation.