Reality and fantasy collide in Goldfish. It’s a dynamic, inventive performance—a game of eye spy on stage, where everyday items are transformed through the communal magic of suspended disbelief. 

A solo puppeteer spins a fable for children. We hear a story of people who get rid of time: no night, no day. This creates a flood, devastating the land. But when two disaster recovery workers suddenly burst into the theatre, fiction becomes fact and a new story demands to be told.     

Familiar items come to life: a tarpaulin becomes a surging ocean; pallets of tinned food become battlements; and bags of rice become sandbags to hold back the tide.    

As the scenario unfolds, we begin to ask: what role should humanity, and the theatre, play in times of increasing disaster? And will a goldfish need to save us all?  

Goldfish is a ground-breaking collaboration between celebrated Tasmanian puppetry company Terrapin and Japan’s Aichi Prefectural Art Theater, with performers from Australia and Japan. The show does not travel with a set. Instead, a new set is made for each season using the materials of disaster recovery unique to each place. These materials are then donated to key organisations working in disaster management.

‘★★★★ 1/2 – The Paper Escaper is a beautifully crafted work written for the young and to be enjoyed by all ages.’ – ArtsHub on The Paper Escaper, Theatre Royal Hobart

‘★★★★★ Every child should see this. And I mean the big ones too… That dragon was cheeky, naughty, divisive, loving, empathetic, melancholy and downright entertaining. The Story of Chi was one of those experiences where the pure joy…took your breath away.’ – Glam Adelaide on The Story of Chi, Adelaide Festival Centre