The Kings Theatre Portsmouth have announced initial casting for its in-house production of Titanic The Musical, featuring over 40 talented performers from across the region.

The show opens on 11 April 2022, the week that marks the 110th anniversary of Titanic’s ill-fated maiden voyage and is set to be the biggest ever community production at the venue, with further auditions for those under 18 taking place next month.

The cast of the emotionally charged musical includes Paul Clements as Thomas Andrews, Peter Colley as Captain Smith, Robert Day as Bruce Ismay, Kim Seagrove as Alice Beane, Lizzie Rose as Kate McGowan, Jo Alldridge as Ida Straus, Graeme Clements as Isidor Straus and Milo Welch playing Jim Farrell.

On the 12 April 1912, the RMS Titanic, then the greatest ship in the world and thought to be unsinkable, set sail on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York There were 2,208 people on board, all of them unaware that they were about to become part of the most tragic shipping disaster of the 20th century when it sank on the 15 April 1912. Over 1,500 lives were lost.

In 1997, Maury Yeston (Nine, Grand Hotel) and Peter Stone memorialised the event which focuses on the lives and hopes of the passengers and crew

Bringing the production to the Theatre’s stage is a creative team consisting of Kings CEO Paul Woolf, Artistic Director Jack Edwards with Charlotte Alldridge and John Paul McCrohon directing, musical direction by Andrew Woodford, and choreography by Jacqueline Willis.

Director John Paul McCrohon said: “We are so thrilled to have assembled a truly wonderful cast from across the south who are already bringing a remarkable energy to the rehearsal room.

“Our open auditions attracted some of the finest talents from our area’s abundance of top companies but also allowed us to discover a large number of exciting talents never before seen on the Kings stage, from those in the midst of or fresh from performing arts training to those making their theatrical debuts in this very special production.

“This extraordinary adult cast of all ages and levels of experience feels truly representative of the wide variety of those who boarded the RMS Titanic in 1912 - and we consider it our privilege to tell their story in this epic, emotive musical.

“We now await with great anticipation our final audition session at which we will be casting two teams of children to make our onboard community complete.”

Tickets for Titanic the Musical, on stage from 11-24 April are available here.