Seamen! The Sea Shanty Spectacular OR The Sea Shanty Spectacular
- About the Work
- Touring & Tech
- Marketing & Engagement
An evening of seafaring songs with a modern pop spin.
Synopsis
Inspired by the #1 viral trend on TikTok, which saw sea shanties catapulted back into popular culture and rocketing up the charts, this choral ensemble are putting a modern pop spin on these folk classics.
This live tribute to ‘ShantyTok’ features original a cappella versions and pop remixes of tunes such as the chart-topping Wellerman, familiar favourites like Drunken Sailor and a diverse range of traditional seafaring songs from Europe, North America, New Zealand and Australia.
For touring purposes, Seamen! The Sea Shanty Spectacular offers two unique configurations of the work to meet the needs of diverse presenters. This comes in the form of both a five-piece and a ten-piece touring ensemble.
Additionally, both options can be enhanced through our ‘The Shanties Choir featuring (Insert Your Local Community Choir Here)” partnership offering. Whereby we connect with a local vocal ensemble in your area, who then learn our set list in the lead up to the performance date and perform alongside our core cast on the night. This program is overseen by our music director, Alex Morris (Shania Choir, ShOUT Youth Choir & Geelong Harmony Chorus) who provides all rehearsal materials, ongoing guidance to the local choir master and leads a one-day vocal masterclass to fine tune the group prior to the big night.
This show is a tongue in cheek offering with unique community engagement options, ideally placed to reach under 40s audiences. Most importantly though it’s a rollicking good time which will delight attendees and have them humming sea shanties for weeks to come afterwards.
Short Reviews
Stage Whispers
Chuck Moore Reviews
Time Out Melbourne
Video
Additional Videos
Technical Information
Lighting
Flexible to existing venue lighting rig.
Audio
5 Piece Ensemble:
1x mixing console- min 8 channels
5x Wired hand held microphones
2x Wireless hand held microphones
5x Microphone Stand
2 x Foldback wedge
Appropriate FOH PA system for the
size of the venue and adequate cabling
10 Piece Ensemble:
1x mixing console- min 13 channels
10x Wired hand held microphones
2x Wireless hand held microphones
10x Microphone Stand
4x Foldback wedge
Appropriate FOH PA system for the
size of the venue and adequate cabling
Note: Additional resources may be required for add on offerings.
Staging
Minimum Stage Dimensions: 6m wide x 5m deep
Preference for use of haze machine pending venue approval.
Backstage area suitable for the number of performers with seating, iron, ironing
board, and fresh water.
Crew Notes
Touring Stage Manager/Sound Tech to operate audio.
Venue Technician to operate lighting.
Transport Notes
5 Piece Ensemble: 2x Cars or 8 seater people mover
10 piece ensemble: 3x Cars or small bus
Production can travel by plane with 1x additional baggage allowance.
Audience & Marketing Notes
Audiences 15 and over with strong resonance in the 20s-40s age bracket due to the shows origins as a viral TikTok trend. We encourage presenters to utilise our extensive library of high quality video, audio and photography to run social media campaigns in order to attract this age demographic. We will also run a simultaneous social media campaign across our social media platforms in the lead up to the presentation.
• Folk Fanciers and Choir Connoisseurs, particularly audiences who have previously enjoyed cult choral favourites such as Spooky Men’s Chorale or Shania Choir. We encourage presenters to connect with local community choirs in their area and past attendees of choral and live music events at their venue with targeted EDM mailouts.
• (S)hipsters on the lookout for some ironic enjoyment. We encourage presenters to strategically run print campaigns with poster distribution to local cafes, bars and social venues. We are able to provide a Canva template of our poster for easy customisation for your season or alternatively we can provide customised print collateral to you at cost.
• Family members and (Ship)mates of participants, with relevance to our ‘The Shanties Choir featuring (Insert Your Local Community Choir Here)” partnership offering. We will actively encourage local participants to share the event with their personal networks in the lead up to the presentation.
Selling Points
- Inspired by one of the biggest viral trends of 2021, making it ideal for social media campaigns. The shanty ‘Wellerman’ reached #1 in 11 countries and ‘ShantyTok’ is the #1 viral trend on TikTok to date.
- Alex Morris was Music Director of the award-winning Vocal Evolution, cult choir sensation Shania Choir, Geelong Harmony Chorus, and shOUT Youth Chorus (MGLC). He has a strong profile in the choral community providing an opportunity to engage these groups through targeted invites.
- Cheeky attention-grabbing title, strong visuals and excellent video content, making it ideal for engaging younger audiences via online marketing campaigns.
- In a similar stylistic vein to Spooky Mens Chorale and other offbeat touring choirs, providing opportunity to re-engage audiences who have attended these shows before.
- Winner of the Hybrid Tour Ready Award (supported by Regional Arts Victoria) and the SA Tour Ready Award (Supported by Adelaide Fringe) at the Melbourne Fringe Festival 2021.
- Culturally diverse and predominatley LGBTIQA+ cast with First Nations representation. The show also includes a tribute number to First Nation seafarers sung in Yanyuwa language with the blessing of Yanyuwa elders.
Community Engagement
Content Warning
Details
Contact
Cameron
Stewart
0434 981 787
Genre
Audience
Aged 15+
Venue Format
Proscenium Arch, Black Box, Thrust, Hall
Duration
55 mins Minutes
Available Until (from - to)
31/12/2023
Budget & Fees
What are these? Find out more.In Development - work which will be produced and premiered in time for touring during 2022/2023. Please contact the Producer directly for Budgets and Fees.
Remount: $0
Weekly Sell Off: $9,500 (5-piece ensemble) | $16,500 (10-piece ensemble) | + $2,000 (local choir partnership)
Per Performance: $3,000 (5-piece ensemble) | $5,500 (10-piece ensemble) | +$2,000 (Local choir partnership)
