The Police star Sting has announced that he will be the 5-week star of his Broadway show, “The Last Ship.” This show has always been Sting’s baby, but this is the first time that he will be acting in it himself, taking over the lead role from friend Jimmy Nail.
Sting is not only personally invested in this show, but he has watched its every performance, so he’ll be ready to take over the role. “I do it every day,” he said. “I’m right in the back, I’m like The Phantom of the Opera—I’m just sneaking there in the dark.” This isn’t the first time he’s been in a show, either. He played Macheath in “Threepenny Opera” back in 1989.
This wasn’t part of the show’s original plan, and this decision is definitely a publicity move for the show, which cost $15 million and has lost around $75,000 each week since its opening in September, according to the New York Times. The hope is that Sting will be as big a Broadway draw as he is in concert, and fans will jump at the chance to pay up to $200 per ticket to see him perform.
“I didn’t think I would do this,” he admitted. But, he added, “Having been to every performance, every rehearsal, I feel I’ve earned my place in the cast. I’ve done it.”
Sting will take to the stage December 9th.