Sting Will Preview Upcoming Broadway Musical at 2014 Tony Awards
The 2014 Tony Awards has added a music icon to its list of high-profile guests. Sting will grace the stage at the event to preview the upcoming musical The Last Ship, his debut as a Broadway composer. The awards, hosted by Hugh Jackman, will air live on CBS on Sunday, June 8th from New York’s Radio City Music Hall.
Sting Offers Ships and Surprises on First Solo Album In a Decade
The Last Ship was previously released in album format last year as Sting‘s 11th solo LP, his first in over a decade. Across 12 tracks, he utilized orchestral arrangements, unconventional instrumentation (melodeon, Northumbrian pipes) and a wide variety of guest appearances, including AC/DC frontman Brian Johnson. The lyrical concept was inspired by Sting’s childhood in Wallsend, England, during the collpase of the town’s shipbuilding industry – though it also explored themes of mortality and fatherhood.
The team behind the musical adaptation includes book writers John Logan and Brian Yorkey, director Joe Mantello, choreographer Steven Hoggett and producers Jeffrey Seller and Kathryn Schenker. The musical will premiere on June 10th at Chicago’s Bank of America Theatre, with Broadway previews set to begin September 29th at the Neil Simon Theatre.
This year’s Tony Awards will include appearances by Bradley Cooper, Bryan Cranston, Will Ferrell, Idina Menzel, Vera Famiga, Zachary Quinto, Kate Mara, Matt Bomer, Chris O’Dowd, Sutton Foster, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Emily Rossum and Leighton Meester, among others.
Back in the world of pop music, Sting recently teamed up with singer-songwriter Paul Simon for an expansive joint tour, which featured both artists’ bands and material from each of their respective catalogs.