The Last Ship at the Met

I went last night and really loved it. I never got to see this during its short time on Broadway, so I can’t comment on changes (which I was told were many) but based on footage and photos I’ve seen this is a MUCH more elaborate spectacle. One thing The Met will always do is make sure you see your money on that stage. Sting and the rest of the cast sound beautiful and I’m sad that I can’t afford to go see this again this week. But really thrilled I got to go, even once. 

I went tonight.  I saw the Broadway production twice back in 2014 (during Sting's run in the show), and I really enjoyed it back then and listened to the cast recording many times.  Perhaps my familiarity with the material makes me more of a purist for the ordering of the original.

*Some spoilers below*

Parts of this iteration felt choppy and poorly ordered.  It was interesting to see Jackie be the one to get sick and pass away (and the priest to be completely omitted from the show), but the greater focus on the Whites was a nice change, and Annette McLaughlin was amazing as Peggy with a role that has been deservedly expanded.  It was also interesting to see the surprise son from the original swapped out for a daughter, but this definitely aligned with the clear objective Sting obviously had in giving women more of a role in the show.  The main love triangle fell a little flat for me in this iteration.  The character of Freddy did nothing for me, and each time he left the stage, I hoped he wouldn't come back and we could focus on something a tad more interesting.  The larger role of the Whites also made me care less about the "main" love story.

Updated On: 6/12/26 at 01:25 AM

I probably won’t get to it at the Met but I enjoyed the original production but felt the show could have worked better on a much smaller scale. But now we have an even bigger production.

I loved the original but decided against going to the Met once I saw the price and learned of the story changes.
 

So “If You Ever Hear me Talking to a Sailor” is out, correct? That was my favorite number done by Rachel Tucker in the original.

Is this the production where his frequent collaborator Shaggy joined him as well, or was that a one-off thing?

Does anyone know if this is significant from the 2019/2020 Canada/US tour that went around with Sting?

For what it’s worth, i like most critics, felt the original Broadway production was a complete bore, despite a few good songs.  I was thinking of giving it another chance at the Met, but a friend of mine just saw it and said it was a complete waist of his time.   I’m skipping it. 

Heads up everyone since someone asked about tickets: for tomorrow (Sunday) night (last show) they just slashed the price for the amazing parterre seats by half and so a top seat is now 200$ with fees (was $385). I grabbed one right away. 

Andre4 said: "Heads up everyone since someone asked about tickets: for tomorrow (Sunday) night (last show) they just slashed the price for the amazing parterre seats by half and so a top seat is now 200$ with fees (was $385). I grabbed one right away."


If you grab a discounted not-so-good ticket, you can probably move to a much better seat during intermission.  I bought a ticket for about $115 in the balcony, and during intermission, moved down to 6th row center of the orchestra, because that row was almost entirely empty.  It was nice to be able to see faces for Act 2!


Shaggy added nothing for me.  I get that he's supposed to be the ferryman, like Charon from mythology, but it was totally unnecessary. 
 

To the point made above about "So To Speak," despite Father O'Brien's absence, the song is still very much in the show, but sung by Jackie White (Sting).

Updated On: 6/13/26 at 04:15 PM

Yes! I got a signed poster. I was disappointed there were no coffee mugs. I got one at the original production in January 2015. This show is phenomenal. I love the spiritual depth of the show. 

To each their own I guess! I loved it. I loved the priest as well. But I wish you would have stayed because stings “so to speak” and it was phenomenal. I’m amazed at how good his voice sounds. He’s 74 after all. The show really means a lot to me. I have seen it in its original run in Chicago before it hit Broadway and then once on Broadway and several times in different cities. It is too bad. Covid killed the big tour that it was doing in the US at that time

I absolutely loved it. I was surprised by a comment below that said that it was a waste of time. I just don’t understand some people. This show is very spiritual and deep and it does make you think about your own mortality. I think some people really don’t want that out of a Broadway show. They want to be amused. I would recommend this show to anyone who loves great music and who wants to be challenged to think about what matters in life. It’s so well done. 
 

Did anyone else who has seen Either this iteration of the musical or any of the others, find it surprising that thing is so overly spiritual? I don’t know whether it is conscious on his part. The love story and the story of the closing of the shipyard are both compelling, but it’s the spiritual themes that give this musical great  depth.