Winds of change are in the air in the earthy, very real performance of Fishermen's Friends: The Musical.
I always love watching anything which is stripped back, and you feel like the only thing happening in the world is between you and the characters you see on stage. Those no-fuss, no-nonsense performances where they don't need extra production to make you feel what they want you to feel are always what stick in my mind the most.
But Fishermen's Friends was different in that while there always seemed to be somewhere your eyes could wander to, the sense you were still just among some sailors catching up in their local pub was the feeling you end up being transfixed on.
Featuring thirty-seven musical numbers the musical is based on the true story of the Cornish singing sensations, Fisherman’s Friends, and the hit 2019 film about their life.
You can feel the energy change as a sense of calm hits the audience as they take it all in. The unsuspecting men are swept up by the joy of singing and are a delightful reminder of the reason why people do something they love- not just because they are keen to gain anything from it, but because it’s what makes them who they are.
Playing with nostalgic old tunes which seemed to ring a bell with each person in the audience at least once throughout the performance, the narrative that played out was a celebration of Cornish culture, kindness and community.
It all starts when a group of Cornish fishermen came together to sing the traditional working songs they’d sung for generations, they hoped to raise a few quid for charity.
Nobody, least of all the fishermen, expected their story to end on the Pyramid stage of Glastonbury.
The cast features seven folk musicians, who between them play around forty instruments, in a show packed with sea shanties including the numbers Keep Hauling, Nelson's Blood and No Hopers Jokers & Rogues.
The world premiere stage production of Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical is bound for the Theatre Royal Bath where it appears from November 1-5.
The company starring in the first UK tour is led by James Gaddas (Bad Girls, Coronation Street, Medics), Parisa Shahmir (The Snow Queen, The Last Ship), Robert Duncan (Drop the Dead Donkey, Casualty), Susan Penhaligon (A Bouquet of Barbed Wire, A Fine Romance, Emmerdale) and Anton Stephans (The X Factor, Starlight Express).
Tickets are on sale at the Theatre Royal Bath Box Office on 01225 448844 and online at www.theatreroyal.org.uk
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