The Kansas City Premiere of The Shark is Broken plus food and a talkback by Metropolitan Ensemble Theater at the Warwick

·  Friday, August 14, 2026

·  5:45 PM – 9:30 PM

Friday, August 14, 2026

5:45 PM = Heavy hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and chat in the theater space

6:30 = Director’s talk just for Arts Alive KC (theater cleared at 6:45 to prep the show)

7:30 = Performance begins

9:00 = Dessert and talkback

 About The Shark is Broken: Fifty years ago, a landmark film premiered that forever changed Hollywood. Steven Spielberg's Jaws, adapted from Peter Benchley's bestselling novel, became the highest-grossing movie of its time and ushered in the era of the summer blockbuster.

But the production was anything but smooth sailing. The film's mechanical sharks were plagued by constant malfunctions, frequently sinking after being designed and tested in freshwater tanks before facing the corrosive saltwater off Martha's Vineyard.

The Shark Is Broken, written by British playwrights Ian Shaw (son of Robert Shaw) and Joseph Nixon, imagines what happened during those long, frustrating delays at sea. The play follows the film's three lead actors—Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, and Roy Scheider—as they are stranded aboard the Orca with nowhere to go. As egos clash and sharp wit collides with deep-seated insecurity, a hilarious and deeply human portrait emerges of three artists wrestling with fame, rivalry, and the fragile nature of masculinity., this behind-the-scenes look at the making of Spielberg's classic becomes the ultimate tale of man versus man… versus beast.

Tickets for the evening - which will also entitle you to a discount code of 75% off parking in the lot - are only $40 per person.

As always tickets are non-refundable. However, you may give or sell your tickets to a friend if your plans change.

Metropolitan Ensemble Theater at the Warwick (MET's beautifully restored Main Street, Kansas City home)

3927 Main Street
Kansas City, MO 64111