Opened at the Neil Simon Theatre on September 5, 2013. Closed December 29, 2013 after 98 performances — 4 months. Big Fish is a musical with music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and book by John August. It is based on Daniel Wallace's 1998 novel, Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions, and the 2003 film Big Fish written by John August and directed by Tim Burton. Wiki link