6 Panton Street, London, SW1Y 4DN GB
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Nice Fish

Nice Fish Tickets

4.4/5 - based on 45 reviews
from 45 verified reviews
  • Starring: Mark Rylance, Jim Lichtscheidl
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Nice Fish in London

Starring:

Mark Rylance, Jim Lichtscheidl

This play was a smash Off Broadway, written by our very own Mark Rylance in combination with one of the popular US poet, Louis Jenkins. Wry, charming and very, very funny, it's director Claire Van Kampen’s latest cleverly staged production and it's a real visual knockout, no surprise from the hugely talented wife of Rylance. Welcome to Nice Fish, both the punchline of the play and its title. If you love top class funnies with a sweet touch, this one's for you.

Nice Fish – The story

Two friends are out on a frozen Minnesota lake, trying to catch fish via a couple of holes drilled in the ice. It's the tail end of the fishing season and all around them the melting ice creaks and groans. The lake is vast and stretches as far as the eye can see.

In the distance you can see a road lined with trees and cars, so far off it may as well be a fantasy. It's enough to make anyone feel small in an existential sort of way, and Van Kampen’s music plus the fabulously evocative ambient sounds (thanks to Scott W. Edwards) actually make you feel cold.

Erik, played by Jim Lichtscheidl, is a real 'salt of the earth' type, an experienced fisherman and almost fanatical about the sport. Naive Ron, played by Rylance, is less experienced and has a melancholy touch, made absolutely hilarious by th actor's wry, drawled delivery, pure Midwestern in its flatness. He's nailed the accent, no surprise when he actually spent his life from age two to eighteen in Milwaukee.

The pair spend hours on the ice, and eventually fall into that trance-like state that people tend to adopt when spending long stretches of time in solitude. When a feisty young woman and irritating officer from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources enter the picture, plus an old spear fisherman, more hilarity ensues.

There are some amazing stage effects, particularly during the regular blackout scenes, with winds so powerful they blow the actors sideways. And you'll adore the ending, which we're not going to reveal here! Suffice to say it's totally surreal. Jenkins' poetry unifies the piece, laconic and provocative, and that's what most audience members remember best.

The direction offers a playful touch, with sudden blackouts fuelling the comedy. The set, by Todd Rosenthal, is beautiful and convincing. And seeing Rylance do his hugely funny wide-eyed, thick-voiced thing brings audiences to helpless, delighted laughter. Look out for him wrestling with the tent and you'll be in pieces.

The show is recommended for people aged 9 and above.

Nice Fish tickets – Funny, eccentric, unforgettable

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Nice Fish Official Theatre Tickets

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Nice Fish Ticket Information

  • Booking until:

    Saturday,11 February 2017

  • Cancellations & Refunds

    Once booked, tickets to Nice Fish are usually non exchangeable and non refundable as per our terms & conditions. In practice, however, we will do our best to accommodate your request as long as we are notified at least 48 hours before the performance. Please contact us for more information.

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Nice Fish reviews

4.4 out of 5 based on 45 reviews

What to expect:

Acting
Music
Costumes
Story
Lighting
  • Recommended for:
  • Theatregoers (89%)
Latest customer reviews

Please note the reviews below are from an old production of Nice Fish.

Outstanding!

Reviewed on 12 February 2017 by , London, United Kingdom

Weird and wonderful

Reviewed on 09 February 2017 by , Stansted Mountfitchet, United Kingdom

Funny and poignant

Reviewed on 08 February 2017 by , London, United Kingdom

Entertaining Evening

We enjoyed nice fish, it was well worth coming to see and we would certainly recommend. The acting was brilliant, it was very funny if not a little unusual!!. It true that we weren't quite sure what was going on at times but it certainly brought a lot of interesting conversation afterwards, I would recommend.

Reviewed on 05 February 2017 by , Jarrow, United Kingdom

see it while you can

Reviewed on 02 February 2017 by , Terling, United Kingdom

Very enjoyable

Quirky and funny play Would highly recommend

Reviewed on 02 February 2017 by , Gateshead, United Kingdom

Fun night out!

Reviewed on 02 February 2017 by , London, United Kingdom

Brilliant but bonkers!

Excellent acting, set, staging, absolutely stunning lighting. Intriguing play but a bit unusual! I enjoyed it but don't have a clue what it really meant (if anything)

Reviewed on 02 February 2017 by , London, United Kingdom

Vivid design, funny existentialism and interesting use of puppets.

Reviewed on 02 February 2017 by , London, United Kingdom

Disappointed

Very disappointed with the play. Not very funny and not enjoyable

Reviewed on 02 February 2017 by , Northallerton, United Kingdom

Creative and contemporary

Reviewed on 29 January 2017 by , Guildford, United Kingdom

Don't miss it

What a wonderful touching, really funny show. All the cast were great and Mark Rylance quite superb. We loved it.

Reviewed on 28 January 2017 by , Polstead, United Kingdom

Magical Mark Rylance

A thoroughly amusing and entertaining show. Brilliantly acted by all the team especially Mark using minimal props with maximum impact.

Reviewed on 26 January 2017 by , Witney, United Kingdom

Funny, intriguing and brilliantly acted.

Reviewed on 26 January 2017 by , Great Dunmow, United Kingdom

Funny, literary, slightly aimless

Reviewed on 25 January 2017 by , Purley, United Kingdom

Bonkers but wondrous bonkers. .

Chose this show for various reasons . . I like Mark Rylance's acting, (though booked before the Sirdom!) I like snow, I like fishing. I was not disappointed on all counts from the stage set with its distant habitation and lighthouse, middle distant shed and doll's house figure fishing at an ice hole. The rambling script and performances were unexpectedly laugh out loud funny and had the right amount of gentle slapstick. Now the ending was just bonkers . . but fantastical bonkers and if anyone asked what it was about I'd have to say 'Go see for yourself!'

Reviewed on 24 January 2017 by , Surbiton, United Kingdom

Give it a miss

The actors are great (especially Mark Ryland and his facial expressions) but I am none the wiser as to what this play was about. I laughed through it. The end seems to be a laugh on the audience laughing at the actors laughing at the audience.....

Reviewed on 23 January 2017 by , London, United Kingdom

Surreal, inventive, up close and far away.

Reviewed on 22 January 2017 by , Cork City, Ireland

Strange

Reviewed on 20 January 2017 by , Los Angeles, United States

'Nice Fish' a Self-indulgent Disappointment

As much as I admire Mark Rylance as an actor, his 'Nice Fish' left me cold. There was no character development, the philosophy was tired and disjointed. Sad to say, the play was boring.

Reviewed on 18 January 2017 by , Albuquerque, United States

Brilliant Sir Mark as usual!!

The play was magnificent. So funny from start to nearly finish and then a twist at the end. Superb acting from all of the cast.

Reviewed on 15 January 2017 by , Birmingham, United Kingdom

Thought provoking comedy

Sir Mark was brilliant. Close to the stage his facial expressions were very easy to observe, relate to and enjoy. The other actors both complemented and added. The story is simple but the messages are not. The comedy is sometimes simple but also subtle. Loved the mechanised puppets, and as a result started to enjoy the evening before anyone got on the stage. I now want to read the play. I'd love to see the play again but I live in North Wales!

Reviewed on 13 January 2017 by , Old Colwyn, United Kingdom

The most beautiful piece of work !

Reviewed on 26 December 2016 by , Cardigan, United Kingdom

Surrealist

Reviewed on 22 December 2016 by , London, United Kingdom

Hilarious!

Book your seat for a great experience! Mark Rylance creates a masterclass in comic timing and human experience.

Reviewed on 08 December 2016 by , Amersham, United Kingdom

must see

very off the wall production ....with brilliant acting!

Reviewed on 08 December 2016 by , Chedglow, Malmesbury, United Kingdom

A Christmas Cracker!

The sublime Mark Rylance and Jim Lichtscheidl are on a frozen lake in Minnesota fishing through holes in the ice. This may sound boring but the humour is deadpan dry, full of irony and cracks you up. So skilfully put together from prose poems of Louis Jenkins by Mark Rylance it had us laughing from start to finish. The background puppetry added another complementary dimension and the play is full of surprises. The Harold Pinter theatre staff add to the theme and give you fish cloakroom tokens to leave your coats and also bar cocktails with a fishy twist! The staff were great. A good deal was if you bought two glasses of wine (there was no interval) you could take your two glasses to your seats and have the rest of the bottle after the show back in the bar - much better value and you could relax whilst everybody else hurried off! Funniest show I have seen since One Man, Two Guvnors.

Reviewed on 02 December 2016 by , Tonbridge, United Kingdom

Some fish? Some turkey!!

Dreadful. Give it a miss. Tedious from the start. Canned laughter necessary. Parlous script and direction sadly. As a regular theatre-goer (not musicals)'expected much more. Really disappointed as Rylance can act really well and was brilliant in Twelfth Night amongst others. Maybe it needed to stay other side of the Pond.

Reviewed on 30 November 2016 by , London, United Kingdom

A novel and quirky show

Reviewed on 30 November 2016 by , London, United Kingdom

Reflections in the cold west

This is a set of loosely connected vignettes acted out in great style. There are more reflective moments alongside acutely funny observations. Go with an open mind and be prepared to engage in an intellectual level. Hopefully you will still leave the theatre only a few paces from where you entered.

Reviewed on 30 November 2016 by , Waltham On The Wolds, United Kingdom

Interesting....

Reviewed on 18 November 2016 by , Singapore, Singapore

04 Dec
2016
Monty Leigh

Review: NICE FISH at the Harold Pinter Theatre

by Monty Leigh | Sunday, December 4 2016, 12:25

Nice Fish Having just completed a sold out New York run, the hit-comedy show Nice Fish, co-written by Mark Rylance and Louis Jenkins hits the London stage. Rylance performs as a perfect clown, with impeccable comedic timing.

Review: NICE FISH at the Harold Pinter Theatre