★★★☆☆ The Shark Is Broken is a cleverly conceived piece of theatre that explores the behind-the-scenes drama of one of Hollywood’s most iconic movies, Jaws. Co-written and starring Ian Shaw, son of Robert Shaw, the play imagines the conversations between Shaw, Roy Scheider, and Richard Dreyfuss as they wait aboard the boat set for the famously unreliable mechanical shark, Bruce, to start working. With biting humour and poignant reflection, this production dives into the egos, insecurities, and strained relationships of three men stuck on a boat.
At the heart of the show is Ian Shaw’s excellent portrayal of his father, Robert Shaw. It’s not just an uncanny impersonation—although his physical resemblance and vocal cadence are extraordinary—but a performance infused with affection and complexity. He captures Robert’s bravado, wit, and underlying sadness, creating a character who is both hilariously self-aggrandising and deeply vulnerable.
Shaw is supported by a talented cast who do much more than mere impressions. Dan Fredenburgh gives a grounded and likeable performance as Roy Scheider, portraying him as the steadying force amidst the bickering and bravado. Ashley Margolis is delightfully neurotic as Richard Dreyfuss, playing up the character’s youthful arrogance and insecurities with a charm that makes him endearing despite his ego. The trio have a great chemistry, capturing the uneasy camaraderie of three actors forced to coexist under pressure.
However, where The Shark Is Broken falters is in its narrative—or rather, the lack of it. The play is largely a series of conversations, witty and insightful as they are, without much momentum or development. It’s an interesting character study, but it never quite decides what it wants to say. As a behind-the-scenes glimpse at Jaws, it’s entertaining, but as a standalone story, it feels somewhat hollow. We watch these men bicker, bond, and reflect on their careers and lives, but there’s no resolution. The stakes are low, the conflicts are brief, and the emotional beats, while beautifully acted, lack the necessary weight to be truly impactful.
Duncan Henderson’s set design is brilliant. The fishing boat, closely resembles the film set, creating an intimate performance space that forces the three actors to constantly be under each others feet. Behind the boat is a video backdrop of the ocean and sky, which, when teamed with Adam Cork’s fantastic sound design, helps with the geographical aesthetics and transitioning forward in time. However, a play about close proximity being performed in a vast theatre auditorium does loose some of that intimacy, I think I would have engaged much more if this were in a studio theatre.
The play heavily relies on modern-day hindsight for its humour. Jokes about Nixon being the ‘worst’ president in U.S. history or Spielberg’s next projects involving UFO’s and dinosaurs get big laughs, but they’re easy laughs.
That said, The Shark Is Broken excels as a nostalgic tribute, not just to Jaws but to the actors who made it. Ian Shaw’s performance is a love letter to his father, bringing Robert Shaw back to life with all his contradictions and complexities. The play also touches on themes of alcoholism, fatherhood, and the loneliness of fame, though it never fully explores them. It’s a character exploration that skims the surface rather than diving deep, but it does so with humour and an undeniable sense of affection.
In the end, The Shark Is Broken is a wonderfully performed, beautifully designed piece of theatre that feels a little lost in its expansive setting. In a smaller, more intimate space, this production could have truly thrived, capturing the claustrophobia and tension of its premise. As it stands, it’s an enjoyable evening of nostalgia and wit, if not quite the emotional deep-dive it could have been. For fans of Jaws, or anyone fascinated by the stories behind the screen, it’s well worth a watch—but like the mechanical shark itself, it might not deliver the bite you were hoping for.
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