Abbey Grange Academy’s stirring performance of Mia and the Fish brought myth, movement, and modern meaning
For the 30th anniversary of the National Theatre’s Connections Festival, The National has invited ten youth theatre companies to perform specially curated shows on the stage of the renowned Dorfman Theatre — this year being especially precious as they are the first to grace the stage after its recent £26.4 million renovations across the whole building.
On the second evening of the festival, audiences enjoyed two performances, first of which was Mia and the Fish. This play was performed by Abbey Grange Academy from Leeds, written by Satinder Chohan. This mystic tale, adapted from an ancient Indian myth, Manu and the Fish, follows the story of Mia and her sister Halima who are recent refugees. While on their seaward venture to seek safety from their war-torn homeland, they were followed by a tiny rainbow fish. This treacherous journey is cleverly choreographed with the large ensemble embodying ocean waves and stormy weather.
Once on land, Halima adapts quickly to their new life with an ease Mia can’t seem to mimic. The collection of peers is cleverly cast with an assortment of colorful teens, made up of Insta obsessed besties, self-proclaimed ‘Crypto-King’ Paz, an eco warrior, and a surfer girl.
In her loneliness, Mia encounters the same fish who followed her in her journey to land, and to her surprise, it can talk. The fish is embodied by the eight ensemble members who have donned translucent, flowing sleeves, with the ‘head fish’ holding a tiny blue light. Although simplistic in its approach, the costuming for the piece is effective for every character, helping audiences to identify the various characters’ personalities, juxtaposed against the uniform ensemble dressed in black t-shirts and jeans.
In this production, unity and movement shone out above all. Performing on such a large scale is no easy feat, especially when engaging with a piece that covers such large issues such as the climate crisis, xenophobia, and overall hardships of finding yourself in the chaos of the world today. While the dialogue was, at times, difficult to understand, subtitles supplemented the action allowing the audience to pick up on any crucial plot beats they might’ve missed.
When Mia’s rainbow fish, which she affectionately names Samaki (Arabic for fish), delivers an ominous prophecy of a massive storm that may destroy all of mankind, the young teens rally together to fix up a boat (simply established by a length of rope lifted and swayed in sync by the ensemble).
The onset of the storm came in with a loud bang and flash of light synchronized with more ensemble ocean movements. A ‘Lord of the Flies’ conflict ensues onboard when the teens don’t believe Mia can communicate with a giant fish (which has now apparently transformed into a narwhal). That is, until Samaki guides them to dry land, where they discover they are the lone survivors on earth and vow to make the new world a better one.
Overall, this piece was impressive in its scale and precise direction. The young talent is projected through their passionate approach to ensemble work and enthusiastic engagement with the script. While, of course, it was not at the level of a typical National show, it was an incredible opportunity to see these young people getting involved in the arts and working with fellow artists.