Seafarer
About the Production
‘No man will be a sailor who has contrivance enough to get himself into a jail; for being in a ship is being in jail, with the chance of being drowned…’
Samuel Johnson 1789
Liverpool, Bristol and Southampton, now sprawling, decaying cities, were once the proudest and busiest ports in the world. From their docks and wharves, the vast imperial trade of Victoria’s Britain was plied. Immeasurably powerful fleets put out from the ports of Plymouth and Portsmouth to protect and extend this trade; for Britain’s position of world supremacy was built on the cornerstone of her imperial wealth.
The responsibility for maintaining and defending this commerce rested squarely on the shoulders of Britain’s seamen, of the Merchant and Royal Navies. And yet the British seafarer suffered appalling hardship and danger. He worked a gruelling sixteen hour day for a pittance, lived in foul, cramped conditions, and was ill-nourished. He was the victim of disease and brutal discipline on board ship, and of parasites and charlatans in port.
The sailor, however, was a great favourite with the public, generally perceived as courageous, industrious and good-humoured. His tales of the sea and far distant outreaches of the Empire were enthralling, and his songs were brave and merry.
It is this contrast between the popular perception of the ‘Jolly’ Jack Tar, and the harsh reality of his existence, which we have attempted to highlight in ‘Seafarer’.
‘Seafarer’ is a completely original work based on a series of improvisations, carried out after weeks of research. The following books were particularly useful, and essential reading for anyone wishing to investigate the subject further.
Richard Garratt – ‘The British Sailor’
Paul Kennedy – ‘The Rise and Fall of British Naval Mastery’
John Winton – ‘Hurrah for the Life of a Sailor!’
All songs sung during the show are traditional, and arranged by Theatre Workshop Coulsdon.
The Cast
Behind the Scenes
Image Gallery
The Reviews
Hello sailor!
Theatre Workshop Coulsdon last week set out to celebrate the maritime life in “Seafarer,” an entertainment devised and directed by Richard Lloyd.
Centred on the Admiral Nelson Inn, with Tim Young as mine host Davy Saltmarsh, it told the naval story of these islands in song and story. A company of 16 appeared variously as officers, seamen, press-gangers, sweethearts, port doxies and hangers-on, as we ourselves hung on to the rigging and sailed to distant parts.
The format of the show worked well, and I’m sure we all learned a lot, though some of the bookish prose “(faster, cheaper and infinitely more reliable for the transportation of cargo)” belonged more to hard covers than the open stage. The show painted a grim but broadly accurate picture of life in the Royal Navy when mariners were on board in overcrowded conditions for months at a time on a diet of mouldy biscuits, rotten pork and stale water, and the most nourishing part was the maggots. But the reference to shanties as part of the tradition was wrong. Shanties belong to the merchant fleet, and have never been permitted in the Royal Navy.
We saw the pressing of Davy’s father Jamie, who served on the Bellerophon, no less, that same “Billy Ruffian” on which the great Emperor was transported to St Helena. A pity no mention was made of its great claim to fame. And we learned of the precarious security, the desertions, and the delicate art of the shanghai. The songs were jolly and bright, and accompanied by an instrumental trio of Wendy Cole (fiddle), Simeon Dawes (guitar and mandolin) and Mark Taylor (accordion and keyboard). Well-chosen too, though I would much like to have had included that finest tribute of all to the British tar, Haydn’s Sailor’s Song.
Donald Madgwick for The Croydon Advertiser
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