By Cayman Compass contributor Christopher Tobutt
The Harquail Theatre shimmered with colour on 9-10 May as the Cayman Music School staged ‘Finding Nemo Kids – The Musical’, its joyful production of Disney’s youth adaptation, ‘Finding Nemo JR’.
After months of rehearsing just once a week, 58 children – ages 6 to 12 – stepped into the lights with a confidence that surprised even their parents. Whatever nerves they carried backstage vanished the moment the curtain rose. Like the fish they portrayed, they darted, glowed and moved with a sense of purpose and play that felt utterly natural.
Director Inika Pierre, trained at London’s Central School of Speech and Drama, spoke about why this story resonates so deeply. “It’s about disability, being different and being accepted,” she said.
Nemo’s ‘lucky fin’ becomes a symbol of the challenges children face when they feel out of place. And Marlin, the single father terrified of letting his son into the “real world,” mirrors the protective instincts of many parents in the audience – watching, worrying and ultimately discovering just how brave their children can be.
The Cayman setting added its own layer of meaning. The story’s ‘Drop Off’ – the edge of the reef where the ocean suddenly plunges into the deep – is similar to what is called the ‘wall’ in Cayman. It’s a place where first-time divers hesitate and metaphorically, the place where children, too, must eventually step forward into something vast and unknown.
From the opening number, ‘In the Big Blue World’, the young cast filled the theatre with movement and colour. When Nemo sang the line “I’m ready to go,” it carried the tremble of a child wanting independence, but not quite sure how to claim it. The ensemble swayed like a school of tiny reef fish – costumes sparkling, fins fluttering, each child embodying not just a character but a personality. Sweet, forgetful Dory flitted from one side of the stage to the other, carefree and chaotic, her energy so perfectly childlike that the audience laughed with affection.
The sharks were a comic highlight – funny in their menace, with costumes that clearly took time, care and imagination. Their big number, ‘Fish Are Friends, Not Food’, had the audience giggling. Their timing was sharp as each of the big white teeth they were looking through.
Throughout the show, the children didn’t just play fish – they became them. The bold ones darted forward like curious wrasse; the shy ones hovered like cautious butterflyfish; the confident ones glided with the ease of young parrotfish on a sunny Cayman morning. Their personalities shone through their costumes, their movement, their voices. It was impossible not to see the parallels: children learning courage, trust and resilience through the very roles they were performing.
The emotional heart of the evening came with ‘We Swim Together’, a recurring theme that felt almost like a message from the children to the audience. In that moment, the musical expanded beyond the stage. It wasn’t just about fish sticking together. It was about the families, classmates and siblings in the crowd cheering them on. Yes, the big wide world – the sea beyond the drop off – can be scary. But if we keep on swimming through the doubt and fear side-by-side … well, we can accomplish anything.
By the final reunion between Marlin and Nemo, the theatre was glowing with that unmistakable parental warmth – the pride that comes from watching children step into something bigger than themselves and overcoming fear – not just for the child, but for the parent, too. They weren’t just performing. They were learning bravery, trust and the joy of swimming together.
Christopher Tobutt is a freelance journalist who has written for various publications in the Cayman Islands since 2003.
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