Goldfish – Bridewell Theatre, London

The tale of a talking fish in the dying days of the Klondike goldrush takes the stage at the Bridewell Theatre.

Goldfish

Reading the premise for Goldfish, what intrigued me was what a big story it sounded for a fringe theatre production. I like a company who take on a challenge, and it seemed that’s what Yawning Dog Productions had done. Goldfish, a new play by Nina Beck, is set for a start in the Klondike Gold Rush in Alaska, 1899. Not the sort of setting we usually see around these parts. It’s ambitious also in its story. Goldfish tells the tale, or fable, of Jefferson “Soapy” Smith (Ben Keenan), mayor of the settlement of Sheep Camp. Sheep Camp seems to be a real place and, whether we look at the historical or fictional version, life there was not great by 1899. The gold had dried up. No money coming in. Starvation a very real prospect.

So what is an ambitious mayor (and apparent former gangster although I don’t remember this being explained in the play) to do? In between having his picture taken and thinking of ways to get the last remaining pennies out of residents, it seems Soapy is waiting for a miracle. One which comes when a young girl, apparently drowned, instead emerges from the cold Alaskan waters clutching a fish she says can talk. Soapy also hears these piscine pronouncements, but unfortunately doesn’t share with the audience what he learns.

To verify this miracle, Soapy calls in renowned biologist Dr. Mole. Who turns out to be his ex (wife?) Kathleen Power (Ingrid Werner), who left Soapy holding the baby some years ago. The baby is now a probably consumptive boy (Dougie Smith), and the second half of the play turns into more of a family drama. The boy brings an abrupt end to proceedings, but I’ve given a lot of spoilers already so let me leave at least one mystery intact.

Successful Moments, But Not All Cohesive

As my plot synopsis hopefully indicates, Goldfish packs a lot into an 80 minute running time. Perhaps a little too much, as I wasn’t sure what the overall purpose was. The Klondike setting, other than a general sense of desperation, was almost incidental. I felt, as I said, that it morphed at some point from a historic fable to a family drama. But it was entertaining enough, buoyed by some good performances. Ben Keenan as “Soapy” Smith I thought put in a solid performance, likewise Ingrid Werner as the career-driven Kathleen. There wasn’t much in the way of character development for the minor roles, but Sam Newman as sceptic Tappan Adney was strong, and Gus Flind-Henry and Alastair Braidwood charasmatic in their roles.

Some of the directorial choices I have to say I didn’t quite understand. Guy McNair-Wilson directs, applying his film directing experience. I could see there was intent, for instance in a scene where two background characters moved in slow motion, but I was unsure of the purpose. The set design I was divided on. I loved the main, swinging part of the set. A very deft way to move big props in and out, and an effective backdrop. I didn’t like the AI backgrounds that were projected, though. The simpler ones were successful, but I found the animations unnecessarily distracting. Also distracting, before I finish this section, was a lot of off-stage whispering, particularly towards the start, which meant I missed some dialogue.

A few of the things I’ve mentioned would be simple to address, others more complex. And some bits I wouldn’t change for anything, including the live music (by Anthony Evans-Pughe and Alastair Braidwood) and the dancing scene. Goldfish in my opinion has potential, and shows off the potential of its cast and creatives. Perhaps with a sharper focus on the story it wants to tell, this fishy fable will come to life.

Salterton Arts Review’s rating: 2.5/5

Goldfish on until 7 November 2026. More info and tickets here.