Writer: Amanda Whittington
Director: James Grieve
When a group of Cornish fishermen got together to sing for fun and to raise some money for local charities, little did they know where their journey would take them. This is the world premiere tour of Fisherman’s 
Friends: The Musical, which is based on the lives of that singing group and their community in Port Isaac, and right from the start the production makes it clear what it’s about. This is a story of the sea, of the men who work with it, and of their music.
Move forward a few years and in comes Danny, a former record company man who hears the group singing. They are his route to money and rehabilitation, by getting them a record deal. The only problem is that he doesn’t work for the record company any more, and when his ex-boss hears the group she is not impressed. As the men lose heart and decide to go back to their fishing, is this the end of their story?
The sense of place is established early on, the flexible set by Lucy Osborne depicting a dockside setting which easily transforms into the inside of a pub, beautifully enhanced and transformed by Johanna Town’s atmospheric lighting into a small boat rocking on the sea. James Grieve’s direction and Amanda Whittington’s book combine to give the production an authentic, down-to-earth feeling as though we truly are transported to Cornwall.
The main focus is around one family – grandparents Jago and Maggie father Jim, and daughter Alwyn, and how Danny’s visit affects them, but this is essentially an ensemble piece and the music is lifted to a new level when we have the company and on-stage band adding to the usually a cappella vocals of the shanties. Those shanties are striking too, of course: after all, this is a show about how they took this previously unknown group to stardom, with the seven voices of the Fisherman’s Friends coming together wonderfully in a series of well-known and less well-known songs.
As Jim, James Gaddas demonstrates a nice contrast of humour and grief for his wife, with a protective air towards his daughter whom he is determined not to lose. Gaddas also has a couple of numbers away from the rest of the group and shows us some pleasing vocal skills. Susan Penhaligon’s Maggie is practical with a humorous glint in her eye, especially when it comes to her grand-daughter, and Robert Duncan’s Jago is well-depicted as a man who knows he’s getting too old to go to sea but can’t quite let it go. Also in fine voice is Parisa Shahmir as Alwyn, her haunting ballads contrasting well with the gritty sounds of the shanties. It’s a shame we don’t get to hear more of her. Dominic Brewer (Danny, on at this performance for the indisposed Jason Langley) also gives us some excellent though underused vocals and makes the best of a role that is written very stereotypically, both in his behaviour and in the reactions of the locals to his arrival.
It’s a show about community and friendship, and how music can bring people together – and in the end, this feelgood show will have you on your feet and clapping along with the rest of the audience.
Runs Until 4 February 2023 and on tour
The Reviews Hub Score
A feelgood feast of shanties
