Big Fish

It is always a pleasure to visit with Cygnet Players and enjoy watching a society delivering such a consistently high level of entertainment. Originally scheduled for February 2020, and repeatedly postponed ever since, this musical had thus been in the production pipeline for almost three years.

Big Fish revolves around the relationship between Edward Bloom, a travelling salesman, and his adult son Will, who looks for what is behind his father's tall stories. The story shifts between two timelines. In the present-day real world, Edward Bloom faces his mortality while his son, Will, prepares to become a father himself. With a Witch, a Giant, a Mermaid, and the love of his by his side, Big Fish promised to be a blend of fairytale, romance and adventure…

As the auditorium lights dimmed, a succinct announcement was made regarding the recent death of Her Majesty the Queen. This was followed by a two-minute silence that was impeccably observed throughout the audience.  A very poignant, and much appreciated gesture, by Cygnet Players.

Kathryn Felton deserves huge credit as Director. This was a truly heart-warming show that had been delivered by an exceptionally strong cast. The energy, pace and joy shown by all performing was infectious. I cannot understand why Big Fish isn’t staged more frequently as this really was an exceptional show. From a design and staging perspective, the concepts were simple but elegantly executed by the seamless incorporation of projections.

The quality of acting from the principal line-up was phenomenal and this was achieved whilst maintaining some fantastic southern drawls. Big Fish included plenty of really emotional moments and without such strong acting the impact would have been greatly reduced. The standard of vocals was equally impressive and also deserves special recognition.

Congratulations to everyone involved and for delivering another high quality production. For a show that included such a sensitive topic as cancer, Big Fish struck a careful balance between being emotional and fun – something that is so often hard to achieve. This was a feel-good show and one I greatly enjoyed watching. I look forward to visiting next February for your production of Young Frankenstein.

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