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The Money Fi$h

Reviewed by Lovell Estell III

Hudson Theatre

Through December 20

RECOMMENDED:

“. . . To many a man the sea may be a mistress, to others it is their downfall.” These words by poet David Harris come to mind after seeing writer-performer John Cox’s engaging one man show about his adventures and trials at sea.

Cox, a former Army Ranger, went looking for fortune and excitement, and found it working for a few years on a commercial fishing boat.

“Hell isn’t hot,” he intones, minutes into the play. “It’s freezing cold, wet, and stinks like fish.”

Over the next hour and a half, he draws us into the dangerous, visceral world of men at sea, where they very often find it necessary to battle each other for space and safety, as well as the merciless fury of the ocean; but he also relates a much more personal story of struggle and search on the road to success.

Cox, who has the cherubic face of a young teenager and an easy-going, conversational style, is a gifted storyteller who infuses the narrative with a bracing sense of place that you can’t help but feel, and the many characters he mimics with uncanny ease are an arresting bunch of rogues and seamen that can illicit chills as well as laughs.

The one hitch in the show is a script that needs a bit of pruning. Cox has a tendency at times to ramble on and to veer into the inconsequential. The rusted out, exposed bow section of a boat, courtesy of John Iacovelli, makes for an ideal backdrop; Julie Ferrin provides just the right touch with the sound design, while director Michael Arabian helms this sea story with precision and insight.

The Hudson Theatres, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., Hlywd.; Sat., 3 & 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 pm., through Nov. 22. EXTENDED! Through Dec. 20. (323) 960-7780 or www.themoneyfishplay.com Running Time: ninety minutes without intermission