DANNY AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA
About
Danny and the Deep Blue Sea is set in a rundown bar in the Bronx, where two of society’s rejects, Danny and Roberta, strike up a halting conversation over their beer. He is a brooding, self-loathing young man who resorts more to violence than reason; she is a divorced, guilt-ridden young woman whose troubled teenage son is now being cared for by her parents.
Danny, whose fellow truck drivers call him “the animal,” seems incapable of tender emotion, while Roberta, who is still haunted by the memory of an ugly sexual incident involving her father, is distrustful of men in general.
And yet, as their initial reserve begins to melt, and they decide to spend the night together, the possibility of a genuine and meaningful relationship begins to emerge—the first for both of them.
REVIEWS
…Every once in a while, I am treated to an amazing evening of theater featuring actors who step outside of themselves and totally encompass their characters every single moment they are onstage. With performances as riveting as any I have seen, Tanna Frederick and Robert Standley are marvels to behold as unlikely lovers Roberta and Danny in John Patrick Shanley’s DANNY AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA, brilliantly directed with soulful abandon by Carl Weathers at the Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica. The Rainbow Theatre Company production is the show to see this summer!
Frederick and Standley have worked together before and it is very clear why; their chemistry on stage is undeniable.
Tanna Frederick is equally enticing as Roberta. Roberta is alone, strong, and needing a validation before the night ends.
The play is the equivalent of sitting at ringside watching a prize fight that concludes in a loving embrace.
Right from the get-go, the set design and wardrobe set the scene perfectly. And it goes from there. I was actually engaged the entire time. And it helped that the two actors, Tanna Frederick and Robert Standley, (who reminded me so much of Springsteen), are perfect for their roles.
