Catch A Big Fish, May 8 – 10, in Denver Area
New Production Set to Make a Splash at Christ the King Parish
Get ready, Denver, for a big treat: Backyard Musical, the newish local theatre company that put on the sold out 12 Angry Jurors in February, 2026, is back with the musical Big Fish.
Based on the Daniel Wallace novel, Big Fish tells the father-son story of Edward and Will Bloom. Will feels he doesn’t really know his father, Edward, who is dying of cancer. Will’s heard many larger-than-life stories about his father, stories involving the circus, teaching a man to fish, and meeting Sandra, who will become Mrs. Bloom. Will sorts through these stories to understand who his father really is.
Big Fish, inspiring and family-friendly, will run in Ballard Hall at Christ the King Roman Catholic Church, Friday, Saturday, May 8 – 9 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, May 10 at 1:30 p.m.
Ross Lefort, co-founder of Backyard Musical, directs. Hannah Steadman, a FOCUS missionary at Colorado State University, plays the lead role of Sandra Bloom, wife and mother to the Bloom men.
Steadman appreciates the musical’s rich theme. “It provides an opportunity to think more about who am I? What am I created for?”
She’s also enjoying the variety of feelings and experiences Sandra goes through. “She has a beautiful power ballad grieving that her husband is going to die. She also has this levity. When she auditions for the circus, she has this fun, silly song,” Steadman says. “She explores emotion really well and there’s just this wide spectrum.”
In 2025, Steadman participated in Backyard Musical’s concert version of Bright Star, the Steve Martin-Edie Brickell musical. She’s grateful to have the opportunity to revive the theatrical pursuits she enjoyed as an adolescent. “I’ve been performing and had fine arts in my life since I was 12,” she relates.
The arts and the contemplation of beauty played a significant role in Steadman’s conversion as an undergraduate at the University of Nebraska. Conversations with FOCUS missionaries (focus.org) explored the transcendentals of Truth, Beauty and Goodness.
“Extrapolating from the transcendentals, that’s how we get to encounter the Lord,” Steadman says. “Things that are visible reveal the invisible. There’s something so striking to me about the arts. Music draws us out of ourselves. We are able to take every created element and create an opportunity to encounter the Lord with these stories.”
Steadman has found that these undergraduate discussions have proved out. “We can let the Lord sanctify everything. There are so many different creative outlets, baking, hospitality, directing choirs, so many elements that we don’t think about letting the Lord into. The simple gift of self can provide an opportunity to encounter the Lord, even if it’s a small one.”
So, if you’re in the Denver area, don’t miss the chance to get to know Backyard Musical’s vibrant local cast. Big Fish promises to delight, inspire and leave you believing in the beauty of a well-told story. I’ve got my tickets!
PERFORMANCE DEETS:
WHERE: Ballard Hall, Christ the King Catholic Church, 830 Elm Street, Denver, 80220
WHEN: Friday - Sunday, May 8 - 10
TICKETS: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/big-fish-the-musical-tickets-1982941365002