BWW Interviews: THE LAST SHIP Cast Opens Up About Their Newest Castmate- Sting!

A once-in-a-lifetime Broadway event took place yesterday, December 21, following the matinee performance of The Last Ship when patrons were invited to meet Sting and members of the cast on stage at the Neil Simon Theatre (250 W. 52 St.) as they signed copies of the recently released Original Broadway Cast Recording. 16-time Grammy Award winning musician Sting, who now stars in The Last Ship (for which he also composed the score), was joined by cast mates Michael Esper, Rachel Tucker,Jimmy Nail,Fred Applegate, Aaron Lazar, Sally Ann Triplett and Collin Kelly-Sordelet.

BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge was on hand to chat with the company at the special event and you can check out the exclusive interviews below!

What has it been like being back on Broadway performing?

Sting: Every day I get a little more comfortable with the role, and the cast is a little more comfortable with me. It gets better and better. It's like a wine- it matures. You have little details and nuances that you hadn't discovered before. Every night there are more and more. I'm having the best time. I love the cast and I am having the time of my life.

And now you're celebrating the release of the CD!

Sting: We are very proud of this show and this CD, and to hear the cast sing it... it's a dream. We had this whim that perhaps one day we could be on Broadway, but to actually have it here is something very special. I don't take it for granted. I am incredibly grateful.

What has it been like sharing the stage with Sting?

Michael Esper: It is extraordinary to be performing with Sting. He is as supportive as he is gifted. And he's an extraordinary person and company member on top of everything else. And because the show is so personal to him, it makes you really want to give all that much more, and commit that much more to the show and communicate it that much more. Because of what it means to him and having him there, being a part of us, it's a real motivation for us to dig deeper and be freer.

Rachel Tucker: Listen, we are going to look back on this job and think, "What happened there?" To be playing opposite Sting... he has just stepped into the role and done it with such aplomb and is such a fierce person to know and so supportive of us all. It's amazing. I will never forget it.

Sally Ann Triplett: Honestly, we have been working with Sting from day one. It didn't feel that different when he stepped into the show. Of course it's a different energy onstage and we are all there to support him and got right behind him, but he is one of us. And he has so beautifully melded into the company.

Fred Applegate: It's wonderful. He is such a kind man and a good man. We love him as a company for all the support he has given us. It is such a great pleasure to have him on stage. And signing the CDs is amazing! To watch Sting crack jokes and laugh, and to watch the fans go down the line and as they get closer and closer to Sting -they get more excited!! It's thrilling.

Collin Kelly-Sordelet: What I find so amazing about him is he is so generous with the role that was crafted by Jimmy Nail. It's seamless. He is so generous and he doesn't steal the stage. He works in tandem with everyone else. He is such a huge rock star and he just melds so perfectly with the cast. It's such a pleasure to have him and to be onstage with him! There's nothing quite like it.

Jimmy Nail: Well it's a proud moment for me to be sitting here signing CDs because it is the first time for me to be involved with something like this- being a part of a Broadway musical.

Did you help Sting to step into the role?

No. I just give him as much encouragement as I can give him.

What this whole experience has meant to you?

The best part of this journey for me is that our friendship has become beyond brotherly. It's a fantastic thing and has become stronger.

THE LAST SHIP Original Broadway Cast Recording was released December 15 on Universal Music Classics and features the bonus track, "What Say You, Meg?" recorded by Sting, which he recently performed on "The Late Show with David Letterman."

Named Best Musical of 2014 by USA Today, The Last Ship marks Sting's Broadway debut as a composer. Sting currently appears in the musical as Jackie White, the foreman of a shipyard who rallies his community in Wallsend to build one last ship meant to sail the world. A celebration of passion and hope, The Last Ship tells the story of a community determined to preserve the only way of life it has ever known, and a woman who must choose between the two men she loves.

The Last Ship is a new musical with music and lyrics by Sting and book by Tony Award-winner John Logan and Pulitzer Prize winner Brian Yorkey. The musical is directed by Tony Award winner Joe Mantello and is choreographed by Olivier Award winner Steven Hoggett. Musical direction, orchestrations and arrangements are by Emmy Award-winner Rob Mathes.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride