“IT’S the story of Southampton.”

Those were the words of director Thom Sutherland as he officially launched Titanic the Musical in the city from which the ship set sail more than 100 years ago.

The UK tour of the production, based on real people aboard the most legendary ship in the world, will premiere at Mayflower Theatre in April 2018.

Historians, theatre-goers and journalists gathered at Sea City Museum yesterday to hear how the show had come about, see clips from the Broadway production, a video message from composer and lyricist Maury Yeston in the US and enjoy a poignant scene from the show, which sees one of the crew attempt to send a telegram asking his girlfriend at home to marry him ahead of the disaster.

Thom, who was educated at Ringwood School and says childhood visits to the Mayflower inspired his career choice, continued: “Audiences will be able to hear the human stories in the city that gave her (Titanic) so much humanity.

“I’ve never been more excited about a show, but never more nervous as it means so much to me. As strange as it may seem, this is the perfect subject for a musical as it’s so inspiring. Everyone who boarded that ship was dreaming of a new life. We wanted to pay homage to those people. I think seeing it here is going to be very moving.”

Co-producer Danielle Tarento added: “It couldn’t be more fitting and special that we start the tour in Southampton. Just to be here and see how much it means to this city is really humbling.”

Titanic the Musical will tell dozens of real-life stories of the crew and passengers from all classes onboard.

A two-week run of the production will chart RMS Titanic’s maiden voyage from Southampton to New York – which became one of the most infamous disasters of the 20th century when more than 1,500 lost their lives as the ship hit an iceberg – is scheduled for April 12 to 21.

The dates will include a special real time gala performance on Saturday, April 14, 2018, the 106th anniversary of the sinking of the ship. With relatives of the crew and passengers among the audience, the 2hr 40min show will get under way at 11.40pm, the time Titanic hit the iceberg, and the closing notes of the score will play out at the exact time the ‘unsinkable ship’ would have disappeared beneath the Atlantic Ocean.

Mayflower chief executive Michael Ockwell told the Daily Echo he had enjoyed previous versions of the show.

“It’s the most emotional show I’ve ever seen. It’s not a stage version of the James Cameron film, the people are real and we see what happened to them in the aftermath of a tragedy. It’s an important story with real relavance to Southampton.”

Nearly 5,000 tickets for the run, which is expected to sell out, have already been snapped up.

Tickets: 023 8071 1811 or mayflower.org.uk