Culture Watch: Titanique
This is the way that history should be taught.
I'm late to the party on Titanique but I finally got around to seeing it in London on a Thursday night.
I loved it.
This is a juke-box musical featuring the songs of Celine Dion using a parody of the film Titanic as it's framework - centring
Having been first performed back in 2017, this is a hugely successful show - it's been performed across the US, as well as productions in Australia, Canada, and France. It's been running at the Criterion Theatre in London's West End since 2024 and is releasing tickets through into 2026.
The London cast currently features Luke Bayer, Darren Bennett, Richard Carson, Astrid Harris, Adrianne Langley, Carl Mullaney, Jenny O'Leary, Freddie King, Madison Swan, and Caitlin Tipping.
What makes Titanique such a success is that it is throwing everything it's got at the audience, determined to entertain them. As well as including locally relevant material in the script, it's also been evolving so that it feels topical and relevant.
Some of the jokes don't land but most of them do.
The singing is great - everyone giving it a lot of enthusiasm - and you can't deny that a soundtrack of Celine Dion songs gives you some really great tunes.
Above all, Titanique doesn't take itself too seriously. As well as parodying the film, and Celine Dion, this is a show that is shamelessly looking for laughs and will take them any way that it can get them.
It's unbridled queer joy in the form of musical theatre, or perhaps musical theatre in the form of unbridled queer joy.
Either way, if you're looking for a fun night out in London, this will do the trick.
