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New York’s cult-hit, Céline Dion-fuelled ‘Titanic’ parody is cruising into Sydney

You are in for laughs of “Titanique” proportions with this Australian premiere

Alannah Le Cross
Written by
Alannah Le Cross
Arts and Culture Editor, Time Out Sydney
Michael Williams, Nicole Parker and Lindsay Heather Pearce in Titanique
Photograph: Michael Cassel Group/Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade
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Near, far, wherever you are… you will not want to miss this irresistibly funny parody of the biggest romantic disaster film of all time. New York’s award-winning splash-hit Titanique will have its Australian premiere in Sydney this September. An irreverent send-up of the ’90s blockbuster Titanic, driven by the songs of pop icon Céline Dion, Titanique has become one of the Big Apple’s most sought after tickets, and has extended its run multiple times since it opened in 2022. The show is set to make its maiden voyage to international waters, cruising into Surry Hills’ world-class cabaret venue The Grand Electric this September, creating a cool new space for the world's hottest new musical. 

Bright and early the morning after celebrations for the inaugural Time Out Sydney Arts & Culture Awards, producers Michael Cassel and Eva Price today confirmed the "kooky krazy" cast of Titanique's Aussie voyage. Breaking the ice (ahem) by inserting herself directly in the narrative as the Queen of Power Ballads herself, Céline Dion, is music theatre and cabaret legend Marney McQueen (Hairspray, The Dismissal). She is joined by Drew Weston as the dreamer Jack Dawson opposite Georgina Hopson (Phantom of the Opera on the Harbour) as the sweet ingenue Rose Dewitt Bukater, while Australian stage and screen darling Matt Lee plays Victor Garber. Stephen Anderson (Mary Poppins) also joins the company as Rose’s overbearing mother Ruth, along with Keane Sheppard-Fletcher as Rose’s lover Cal, and Abigail Dixon making her professional debut as The ‘Unsinkable’ Molly Brown. Fresh from Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, Abu Kebe will play The Iceberg. Joining them on The Ship of Dreams for this unforgettable camp fantasia are Artemis AlfonzettiJo-Anne JacksonJenni LittleTrent OwersMatthew Predny and Tyran Stig

Titanique The Musical Cast - Sydney
Photograph: Alannah Le Cross | Announcement of the Australian cast of 'Titanique'

When the music of Céline Dion makes sweet Canadian love with James Cameron’s eleven-time Oscar Award-winning hit, you get Titanique – off-Broadway’s most award-winning splash hit, which turns one of the greatest love stories of all time into a hysterical musical fantasia. Want to find out what really happened to Jack and Rose on that fateful night? Just leave it to Céline Dion to enchant the audience with her totally wild take, recharting the course of Titanic’s beloved moments and characters with her iconic song catalogue. Sailing on fierce powerhouse voices in show-stopping performances of such hits as ‘My Heart Will Go On’, ‘All By Myself’, and ‘To Love You More’ – backed by the unparalleled energy of a full live band – Titanique is a one-of-a-kind theatrical voyage bursting with nostalgia, heart, and campy chaos.

This cult-followed show’s storied history includes a smash hit live-streamed concert – Titanique: The Maiden Voyage Concert – in 2021 on the premium streaming service Stellar, which followed sold-out pop-up concert engagements in Los Angeles and New York. It has gone on (and on) to earn a slew of major awards. After several sold-out extensions, the musical transferred to the Daryl Roth Theatre in November, 2022. Titanique became such a hit with audiences that new productions will soon play Toronto, Montreal and London.

This voyage is reminding us of a flashier, large-scale version of that interactive Sydney Fringe fave, Titanic: The Movie, The Play, or when that pub in Chippendale started making those unhinged parodies during lockdown. (Who else remembers?) 

The cast of TITANIQUE  - US 2023 cast
Photograph: Michael Cassel Group/Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade

Australian Producer Michael Cassel and original Producer Eva Price are stoked to bring this unsinkable production Down Under, with Cassel saying: “We know how much Sydney loves a great night out and unabashed escapism, and Titanique is the perfect show for both of those things. We can’t wait to share this side-splittingly funny show with audiences here in an exciting new venue and give you the most incredible take on Céline Dion and Titanic you have ever seen.”

Tickets for the exclusive Sydney season are on sale now at titaniquemusical.com.au.

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