How to sink the Titanic

By Cindy Landrum  

MARCH 1, 2012 11:53 a.m. (0)

During the Spartanburg Little Theatre’s production of “Titanic: The Musical,” the ship will “sink” without a single drop of water.

Mechanical designer Tim Reed has designed a 40-foot long suspended mechanical deck that will create the illusion of the ship sinking, a big part of the drama of the musical’s second act.

“You’re kidding. You want to sink a ship on stage?” Reed said was his reaction when Spartanburg Little Theatre Artistic Director Jay Coffman told him the theater was doing “Titanic: The Musical” this season.

Yes – but artistically, not realistically, Coffman said.

“It all goes back to the skills of the actors and actresses in the Upstate,” Reed said. “It’s all about conveying the passion, panic and fear.”

So Reed designed a 40-foot long suspended mechanical deck that will rise on one end to give the illusion that part of the three-tiered, 24-foot tall ship set is sinking. The musical takes place in many locations on the ship, from the Captain’s bridge and the crow’s nest to the first class dining salon and the boat deck.

At the peak of “sinking,” the deck will have a 17-degree incline.

The ship’s deck is being built with an industrial framing system, Reed said.

“It’s like an industrial erector set,” Reed said. “It’s a big boy toy.”

Reed spent about 100 hours designing the deck that he describes as an “upside down suspension frame.” The suspension cables underneath the 4-foot wide deck are what will support the weight of 20 actors and actresses, totaling 4,950 pounds.

Reed did stress calculations and computer simulations, but said he’ll sleep a lot better after this weekend when the deck will be constructed and he can test everything.

“Safety of the actors is the most important thing,” he said.

“Sinking” a ship is only one of the challenges of presenting “Titanic: The Musical,” Coffman said.

“It’s an artistic challenge and a design challenge,” he said. “You have to try to make it as large and grand as the Titanic itself.”

That means a cast of 52 playing more than 100 different roles. It means 150 to 200 period costumes, from the third class passengers traveling to America for a chance at a better life, to the second class passengers who bought a ticket to hob-knob and rub elbows with the world’s richest, and the first class passengers who had to have a seat on the ship’s maiden voyage because it was the largest ship and the largest event of the time.

That means the cast has to  include 30 men who can sing.

And it all means a $40,000 budget that is $10,000 more than a typical musical would cost.

Coffman said he thinks the Little Theatre’s production is the first time a theater in the Upstate has done “Titanic.”

“Most people don’t want to tackle this show because of its size,” he said. “But our motto is to take some big risks and it has paid off for us.”

Coffman said this season is the perfect time to stage the musical.

“It’s an absolutely magnificent and beautiful musical, and the 100th anniversary of the sinking is in April,” he said.

“Titanic: The Musical” does not follow the same love story of Jack and Rose that was told in the 1997 movie.

The musical tells the story of the ill-fated voyage beginning at the boarding of the Titanic and ending on board the rescue ship. The musical uses the stories of dozens of real life figures, from the Astors and Guggenheims, to Murdoch, the ship’s second in command, and Bruce Ismay, the owner of the White Star Lines.

“The show is really about the classes, how separate they are. But the tragedy brings them together in one final class going down together.”

For the cast, the challenge has been playing real people, many of who did not survive.

“In rehearsals, everybody ends up in tears because it’s a real tragedy that happened to real people,” Coffman said.

What: “Titanic: The Musical”

Who: Spartanburg Little Theatre

Where: David W. Reid Theatre, Chapman Cultural Center

When: March 9, 10, 16 and 17 at 8 p.m. and March 11, 17 and 18 at 3 p.m.

Tickets: $25 adults, $24 for seniors and $17 for students

Information: 542-2787 or chapmanculturalcenter.org

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