-Brenda Hillegas
photo by Lynn Theisen
“We live in a world where one person is forcibly displaced every two seconds as a result of conflict or persecution. In 2022, statistics show that over 100 million people around the globe had been forced from their homes. More than thirty-two million people are refugees, and half of them are under eighteen years old…”
Inside the Playbill for Message in a Bottle, you’ll find these words and more from the show’s dramaturg Lolita Chakrabarti. This one-of-a-kind dance/theatre performance features high energy styles like breakdancing and hip-hop, to name a few, set to the music of 17-time Grammy Award-winning artist Sting. But it also tells the story of one family’s community and what happens when they’re torn apart and separated. Through two acts and 28 of Sting’s songs, audiences are taken on a journey through loss, fear and ultimately hope. What appears on stage is fictional, but there’s no denying that everything you see during the show isn’t real. It’s all happening, across the world, right now.
Sting’s catalogue might seem like an odd choice for such a heavy plot, but the lack of scripted dialogue in the show allows the song lyrics to stand out and tell the story. Listen and watch, it all comes together and makes perfect sense. I especially loved “Shape of My Heart”, “Brand New Day”, and the act one closing number, “Message in a Bottle”. Of course.
Message in a Bottle was created by choreographer and director Kate Prince, MBE, a five-time Olivier Award nominee. This experience is unlike the rest of Ensemble Arts’ 2023-2024 Broadway series and Philadelphia is one of only 10 cities in North America presenting the tour. It’s also one of the most powerful productions in this season’s line up. Message in a Bottle is a fresh look on songs we’ve loved for decades and a reminder of how quickly everything and everyone we love can be taken away. If you haven’t been to a show at the Ensemble Arts campus yet this season, now is the time. Message in a Bottle runs through May 19th only.
Tickets and info here. Note that some scenes in Message In A Bottle contain sexual violence and drug use.
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