by Brian Major
Last updated: 2:19 PM ET, Thu November 21, 2013
The newest Royal Caribbean International cruise ship, the 167,000-ton Anthem of the Seas, will be based in Southampton, U.K. and launch summer Mediterranean cruises beginning in 2015, the company announced Thursday.
The new 4,108-passenger Quantum-class cruise ship, currently under construction in Germany, will feature a musical theme upon its debut, highlighted by a dedicated music hall offering live performances by "state of the art and edgy" entertainers.
Following the ship's yet-unannounced 2015 Mediterranean itinerary, Anthem of the Seas will re-position to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for winter Caribbean cruises, said Adam Goldstein, Royal Caribbean's president and CEO, in a press briefing Thursday at London's Heron Tower.
In harmony with its name, Anthem of the Seas will feature dedicated performance spaces for onboard musical shows and entertainment. A stately music hall will offer "intimate musical performances right in the heart of the ship" that Goldstein said would feature "what we hope will be state-of the -art and also quite edgy" artists. He said Royal Caribbean would announce the venue's first entertainers in early 2014.
Another music venue, Anthem's "Two70" aft lounge, named for the 270-degree view of the horizon overlooking the ship's wake, will feature floor-to-ceiling glass walls nearly three decks high with evening DJ music and live shows.
The venue will also feature technology designed to create "a transformative journey as day goes to night," said Goldstein, with the floor-to-ceiling windows utilized for high-definition video projection in the evening.
Two70 will also offer digital music performances throughout the night, along with a three-story high bar equipped with 100-inch LED-TV screens suspended on robotic arms moving independently and in unison.
Anthem of the Seas will become Royal Caribbean's second Southampton-based ship, joining Adventure of the Seas, as the company continues to expand its U.K. guest base.
"Our business has a long history with the port of Southampton, and over the last 10 years we have annually increased the number of cruise opportunities from the port," said Goldstein.
Like its sister ship Quantum of the Seas, scheduled to debut next fall, Anthem will also offer guests a skydiving experience; a glass pod that will lift guests more than 300 feet above the ocean; and Sea-Plex, an indoor sports and entertainment complex at sea featuring bumper cars (or "dodgeums" which Goldstein revealed to be the British term for this familiar pastime), a circus school with a flying trapeze and roller skating.
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