Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1975 Steven Spielberg blockbuster Jaws, critically-acclaimed Olivier award-nominated West End and Broadway production The Shark Is Broken, swims into Salford's The Lowry from next February 4-8 and Newcastle Theatre Royal March 18-22).
Co-written by and starring Ian Shaw - and inspired by his father Robert Shaw’s experiences playing shark hunter Quint in the film - The Shark Is Broken celebrates movie history as it peeks at the choppy waters behind the Hollywood blockbuster and imagines what happened on board good ship The Orca when the cameras stopped rolling. The actors playing Roy Scheider and Richard Dreyfuss are still to be announced.
It's the open ocean in 1974. Filming is delayed… again. Lead actors Robert Shaw and his younger stars Richard Dreyfuss and Roy Scheider are crammed into an inadequate boat, entirely at the mercy of foul weather and a faulty mechanical co-star.
Alcohol flows, egos collide and tempers flare on a chaotic voyage that just might lead to cinematic magic… if it doesn’t sink them in the process.
Following its critical and sell-out success at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019, The Shark Is Broken transferred to the West End, where it enjoyed an extended run due to huge popular demand and an Olivier award nomination for best comedy. In 2023 it transferred to Broadway where it gathered fresh critical acclaim.