Offering a refreshingly female-oriented take on seafaring, Southwark Playhouse’s new musical Maiden Voyage tells a fascinating true story. Directed by Tara Overfield Wilkinson, with book and lyrics by Mindi Dickstein and music by Carmel Dean, this feel-good show is a women-led story both on and off the stage.
Set in the late 80s, Maiden Voyage introduces us to plucky young sailor Tracy Edwards. Inspired by the love of sailing she inherited from her dad, she has a unique vision: to head the first all-female crew to sail in the challenging and prestigious Whitbread Round the World Race. With a golden investor in the form of King Hussein of Jordan (her former employer), Tracy puts together a ragtag international gang to crew the ship she christens Maiden. Along the road to the finish line she faces not only crises in her own confidence but the mocking tone of a chauvinistic press sceptical that the lasses are up to the task.
True stories always hold intrigue, and Edwards’ expedition is a tale worth telling. Laura Burman’s appealing set design, with towering mast, dangling ropes and sweeping sails, acts as a metaphor for the sheer scale of the task the crew has ahead. Driving them to their limits is the ever-determined Tracy. Her sheer bravado, established in an early scene through her exaggerated fibs to a journalist, endears her to the audience. She’s played well by Chelsea Halfpenny, who has a sweet voice that nicely carries the best of composer Dean’s melodies.
In fact, the cast as a whole have decent singing chops, and the all-female harmonies come together well (excellently supported by the world-class pianist, presumably musical director Simona Budd). There are certainly some stand-out numbers, like the rousing ‘Women Like Us’. On the whole though, the songs strike too many of the same notes, and with as many inclusions as a much longer musical (Maiden Voyage is a tight 90 minutes) a few feel repetitive.
The dialogue in Dickstein’s book doesn’t always have enough time to breathe, and some exchanges are awkwardly weighed down by excessive backstory. Tracy doesn’t feel as well-rounded a character as she has the potential to be; her arc is inconsistent and her crises of confidence are dealt with too quickly.
It’s an easy story to get behind, though, and the audience were certainly rooting for Maiden by the end of the show (eagerly waving the miniature flags handed out by the cast). The tenacity and resilience of Edwards’ all-female crew put them in the history books, and Maiden Voyage does credit to their legacy.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
