A good deal of what made “Jaws” a great movie can be traced to a mechanical shark that refused to do its job.
The notoriously unreliable contraption broke down so often during filming that director Steven Spielberg was forced to keep it largely out of sight. Meanwhile, his three leading actors were left with an unusual amount of time on their hands.
As it turns out, that was probably not a good idea.
Thingamajig Theatre Company’s production of “The Shark Is Broken” concludes its run at the Pagosa Springs Center for the Arts this weekend, with three final performances Nov. 13, 14 and 15.
Written by Ian Shaw, the son of “Jaws” actor Robert Shaw, and Joseph Nixon, the play takes audiences back to the troubled 1974 film shoot, where Robert Shaw, Roy Scheider and Richard Dreyfuss find themselves stranded aboard the Orca, waiting for the mechanical shark to be repaired.
With nothing particularly useful to do, the actors entertain themselves with card games, drinking, arguments and increasingly personal insults. Robert Shaw, the seasoned British actor, has little patience for the insecurities of his younger colleague Dreyfuss, whose considerable ambition is matched by an equally considerable need for reassurance. Scheider, caught between the two, does his best to maintain some semblance of peace.
He is not especially successful.
Directed by Laura Moore, the Pagosa production features Tim Moore as Robert Shaw, Scott Morehead as Scheider and Cameron Vargas as Dreyfuss. The three actors spend the entire evening together aboard a cramped fishing boat, where minor irritations have a way of becoming major confrontations.
Much of the comedy comes from the audience knowing something the characters do not. Today, “Jaws” is recognized as a landmark in American filmmaking, a movie that changed the industry and helped invent the modern summer blockbuster. But during its production, the cast had no particular reason to believe they were making history. They were working on an over-budget picture about a giant fish, with a director who was still relatively inexperienced and a mechanical monster that rarely cooperated.
The actors’ arguments about careers, artistic credibility and the prospect of being remembered take on a rather different meaning when viewed from 50 years in the future.
Yet the play is not entirely concerned with Hollywood egos. Beneath the jokes and professional rivalries are some surprisingly candid examinations of insecurity, aging and the peculiar business of making a living as an actor. The writing also touches on Robert Shaw’s complicated personal history, particularly as the men discuss the now-famous USS Indianapolis speech, one of the most haunting moments in the original film.
That the play was co-written by Robert Shaw’s son gives these scenes an additional layer of interest. Ian Shaw is not simply revisiting a celebrated movie. He is also examining a father whose public reputation and private struggles were not always easily reconciled.
For audiences familiar with “Jaws,” the production offers an entertaining glimpse into the circumstances surrounding a film that has become part of American popular culture. Those who have never seen the movie will find plenty to enjoy in the uneasy relationship among three very different men who have been obliged to share a small boat for considerably longer than any of them would prefer.
After opening Thingamajig’s 2026-2027 fall and winter season on Oct. 9, “The Shark Is Broken” will close Sunday, Nov. 15. This weekend represents the final opportunity for Pagosa audiences to catch the production before the Orca makes its last voyage.
The remaining performances are Friday, Nov. 13, and Saturday, Nov. 14, at 7 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 15, at 3 p.m. at the Pagosa Springs Center for the Arts. Tickets range from $29 to $42 and are available at www.pagosacenter.org or by calling the box office at (970) 731-SHOW (7469).
The production runs approximately 90 minutes without intermission and is rated PG-13 for strong language, alcohol use and adult themes.
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