“Swept Away,” now in its New England premiere at SpeakEasy Stage Company through May 23, is the epic tale of a storm, a shipwreck and four crew members facing harrowing choices of morality and the grim cost of survival.  The production is directed by Jeremy Johnson with choreography by Ilyse Robbins.

With a book by John Logan and a score by The Avett Brothers, the story is inspired by the 1884 wreck of the English ship Mignonette that sank off the Cape of Good Hope on its long voyage from Southhampton to Sydney, Australia.

For the musical, the story has been “Americanized” to take place off the shores of New Bedford in 1888.  Stranded on a lifeboat with no supplies, a crew of whalers is forced to confront their pasts, moral choices, and the limits of human endurance.

In praising the original 2024 Broadway production of “Swept Away,” Entertainment Weekly called the show “riveting,” with The Washington Post adding that the musical was “spellbinding.”

At SpeakEasy, the show’s director, Jeremy Johnson, believes that the Avetts’ folk-Americana style of music contains deep Irish influences, offering a similar style of dramatic storytelling.  He also points out there’s an Irish gig in one of the dance breaks in the show and that Irish workers would definitely have been part of New Bedford whaling crews at the time.  In addition, the character "Mate” in the show speaks of the Irish Gangs in New York and the Five Points Riots. 

The critically acclaimed actor-singer-dancer Kevin Patrick Martin is both Dance Captain and a member of the ensemble for the production. This marks his SpeakEasy debut.

Having grown up in Cumberland, Rhode Island, Martin appeared in the national tour of “Jersey Boys,” delivering more than 800 performances.  He also has more than 60 regional theater credits on his resume ranging from “The Sound of Music” and “Assassins” to “1776,” “Sweeney Todd,” “42nd Street” and “Little Women.”

Among his more eclectic credits, Martin competed on Food Network’s “Bakers vs. Fakers” show and once tap danced in the front window of Lululemon in Manhattan for a special Cardio Tap NYC promotion.

He traces his family roots to Ireland via his grandmother, born in County Limerick, his grandfather, from County Roscommon, and his great-grandmother, from County Kerry.

We chatted recently about the show and his work. Here’s an edited look at our conversation.

BI: Before we talk about anything else, tell me about the responsibilities of a Dance Captain in a major musical.

KPM: Sure. The Dance Captain, is essentially the choreographer’s right-hand person. The choreographer will be with us throughout the rehearsal process, but once the show is open, their job is basically done and they step away and are no longer required to attend. The Dance Captain is the person who maintains the integrity of all the choreography in the show, whether that is giving notes on things, making sure things are still intact the way they were set . . . If someone is out of the show for a reason – there’s an injury, someone is sick – the Dance Captain will then work with the Stage Manager to reassess how certain numbers can be done, fix some of the staging, and adjust things so the show can run as smoothly as possible. 

BI: You and [choreographer] Ilyse Robbins make for a formidable team.

KPM: Ilyse hired me as her Dance Captain after we worked together our first time . . . I’ve had a wonderful working relationship with Ilyse. She and I have known each other for 15 years and I’ve been her Dance Captain on a number of shows she’s choreographed and directed.  She was actually the one who reached out to me (for “Swept Away”). She said, ‘I think this would be a really great show for you’ . . . I auditioned, they chose the 11 of us who are now in the show and it’s a really fantastic group of people. Our brains are so attuned to each other that we always know what the other is thinking. It’s a really fantastic working relationship.  I admire and respect her so much that she actually officiated my wedding (to my husband Alex).

BI: Jeremy Johnson shared some of his thoughts on the Irish subtleties in the show.  History tells us that many who fled the Irish potato famine wound up starting new lives in New Bedford.   

KPM: Irish laborers were common in the maritime industry and definitely would have brought their Irish traditions with them – especially those related to Irish music and folk dance. Irish and Scottish immigrants would have shared their fiddle-driven melodies and storytelling ballads, and upon settling in rural America would have been a huge inspiration for what we now know as Appalachian and bluegrass music.

BI: I understand your own lineage had a significant influence on you growing up in Rhode Island.

KPM: Much of my childhood was spent learning about and celebrating our Irish heritage. For years, my family has been an integral part of the “Ireland’s ‘32’ Society” in Providence. The society was formed in 1967 to foster social relationships among Irish Americans, and welcome newcomers from Ireland. In addition to various social events throughout the year, the society would host dinner dances around St. Patrick’s Day and Christmas. I would attend those as a child and learn lots of Irish social dancing and listen to Irish music. 

My mother and her sisters grew up doing Irish step dance, and although I never learned that as a child, I have since dedicated much of my dance career to its American counterpart, tap dance! My grandfather passed before I was born, but he had a huge connection to music. He owned a small record label called Harp records in Providence in the 1950s and 60s and would hire Irish musicians to perform at various venues in Rhode Island and to record on his label.

BI: Growing up, what sparked your own interest in performing?

KPM: It was something I naturally gravitated to. I played sports growing up. Still really enjoy doing that.  I loved art . . . I’ve been doing music from a young age.  I played piano, I played trumpet, but once I found theater, specifically musical theatre, I knew, oh, this is where all my talents combine into one. 

BI: Do you recall your first time on stage?

KPM: (Laughing) It depends what you consider a stage.   The auditorium in elementary school is where I forced my friends in fourth grade to put up a production -- I use that term very loosely -- of a book I found in the library called General George of Yorktown. It was about George Washington and the battle of Yorktown.  I got my friends to do it, the teachers agreed to do it as an assembly for all the classes, and we put the script on a podium right in the middle of the stage and everyone walked up and read their lines. 

BI: You were a producer as well.

KPM: I sure was, if you can call it that. 

BI: What was the first legitimate stage show that made an impression on you?

KPM: Trinity Rep in Providence does a staging of “A Christmas Carol” every single year, and it’s always different every single year.  I was maybe five or six and my parents and grandparents took us for Christmas and I remember one of the ghosts flew overhead . . . I was enthralled.

BI: There’s a full circle moment there because I know you eventually appeared in that show at Trinity.  Plus, I’ve seen you more than once in “A Christmas Carol” at North Shore Music Theatre.

KPM: I’ve been so lucky to do it a number of times with them.  My first time doing the North Shore production was 2010 after the theatre finally reopened and [then Executive Producer] Jon Kimball hired me to play Young Scrooge . . . I got to do that role for four years, which was great.  And then in 2024 I graduated to the role of Bob Cratchit.  I’ve done it the past two years and hope there are many more ahead of me.  It’s such a great tradition in that area and the show is fantastic.

 BI: Turning back to “Swept Away,” I understand this isn’t your first time in a show about a shipwreck.

KPM: I did “Titanic: The Musical” at North Shore.  Actually, the same producing team owns Theatre By The Sea in Rhode Island, and they’re doing “Titanic” this summer and I’ll go reprise my role. So, with “Swept Away,” it’s twice in once year I’m on a sinking ship!

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“Swept Away,” through May 23, SpeakEasy Stage Company, speakeasystage.com. A special thanks from the writer to Jim Torres.