Kiss the Fish is the latest offering from Indian Ink, and the first of their productions to employ a cast of more than one. Jacob Rajan has made a name for himself, and the company, as a talented solo artist. His use of masks and puppets is masterful, and his talent for comedy enviable. Along with David Ward's music, these skills have become the hallmarks of Indian Ink productions. Audiences have come to appreciate and expect Rajan's style of storytelling of all Indian Ink productions. This, then, is something of a departure. Rajan's style is evident in many parts of Kiss the Fish, and he appears as a supporting cast member. However, in my mind he was the strongest performer and most at home with this style of theatre. Therefore, it felt somewhat odd to witness him taking a lesser role in this play.
Kiss the Fish has a charming, if somewhat rambling, story. Its characters are simple but recognisable. There are elements of humour, tragedy, romance and heroism. There is an effective use of music, and the songs are enjoyable. The maskwork adds to the characters. The puppetry is effective, though sadly limited to only one character. Unfortunately I struggled with the mixed styles the show employs. Rajan brought a familiar other-worldliness to proceedings and I enjoyed his performance a lot. The rest of the cast, however, seemed to have less of a grasp on the Indian Ink style. Their performance style often owed more to British pantomime than to Asian masked theatre.
The story is nice and, though not immediately clear, it eventually ties most of its ends together. I also laughed a fair amount so that goes pretty far.
Overall, I would say the production's strongest feature is that it has a nice and light feel to it. There is nothing too challenging to watch, though it is not shallow. It's just nice.
Watch this play for a gentle and easy night out.
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