Sting Chats Plans for 'Evolving' Musical THE LAST SHIP

As BWW reported yesterday, Sting's musical The Last Ship will be heading to Broadway in 2014, with an out of town trial run in Chicago beginning in June. The show features music by Sting and a book by John Logan & Brian Yorkey. Joe Mantello who has directed previous readings, is on board for the Broadway and pre-Broadway productions.

In an interview with Billboard.com today, the legendary musican spoke about his plans for the much-anticipated show. "We're still working on it, but it's pretty much done," he explains. "It's an evolving thing; you find that you need a different kid of song or a character suddenly doing something different, so you have to change tact. And I've learned that even a good song doesn't guarantee that it will be included because unless it's moving the narrative forward they can't use the song. There's no time to hang fire while a song happens; the story has to be moved forward. It's fun, even though it's painful at times."

The musician revealed that his upcoming album, "The Last Ship," set for release on Sept. 24, will feature songs from the final production as well as songs which were taken out of the show. "There's too much material, and I thought (the album) was a nice way of keeping the other songs that won't be used," he explains. "It's kind of the raw material from which the musical is being cut. I think it tells the same story but it's a much bigger kind of umbrella. I wouldn't have finished the musical without having done all this work."

Read the interview in full here!

THE LAST SHIP tells the story of a group of shipyard workers who are inspired by a local Priest to build their own ship once their own ship yard has been shut down. The workers then decide to set sail on a voyage around the world. The story was inspired by Sting's own childhood memories growing up in the Newcastle area before he rose to fame as the frontman of the band The Police. The script was also inspired by the singer's solo album 'The Soul Cages' which was released in 1990 following the death of his father.

A recent reading featured such Broadway veterans as: Michael Esper, Stephanie J. Block, Colin Donnell and Laura Michelle Kelly, Fred Applegate, Bradley Dean, Jack Falahee, Lyle Mackston, Phoebe Strole and more.

Sting has received sixteen Grammy Awards for his work, receiving his first Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance in 1981, and an Oscar nomination for the best song. He is a member of both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Prior to starting his solo career, he was the principal songwriter, lead singer and bassist of the rock band The Police.