Danny and the Deep Blue Sea

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Danny and the Deep Blue Sea
Written by John Patrick Shanley
Date premieredJune 1983
Place premiered Circle in the Square Theatre
New York City
Original languageEnglish
SettingBronx bar, New York City

Danny and the Deep Blue Sea is a play by John Patrick Shanley.

Contents

The production, a one act play, revolves around two troubled characters, Danny and Roberta, who meet and strike up a conversation in a bar. John Turturro and June Stein originated the roles in 1983. Since its original production premiered Off-Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre it was revived in 2004 and was staged again in 2023, directed by Jeff Ward.

Summary

Set in the Bronx, the story revolves around Danny and Roberta who strike up a conversation in a bar. "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." [1]

Characters

Cast

Role Circle in the Square Theatre,
New York 1983		 Second Stage Theatre,
New York 2004		 Lucille Lortel Theatre,
New York 2023
Danny John Turturro Adam Rothenberg Christopher Abbott
Roberta June Stein Rosemarie DeWitt Aubrey Plaza

Productions

The play is a two-person play which originated off-Broadway in 1983 at the Circle in the Square Theatre. It was directed by Barnet Kellman with the performances of Danny and Roberta being originated by June Stein and John Turturro respectively. The play was revived in 2004 starring Rosemarie DeWitt and Adam Rothenberg at the Second Stage Theatre off-Broadway. [2]

In 2023 it was announced that the play would be revived again off-Broadway starring Aubrey Plaza and Christopher Abbott at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in a production directed by Jeff Ward [3] and produced by Sam Rockwell. [4]

Reception

Reviews

Mel Gussow of The New York Times declared, "Performed without intermission, it is too long (85 minutes) to be approached as a vignette, and it is too dramatically underdeveloped to be regarded as a full-length double portrait...the play is the equivalent of sitting at ringside watching a prize fight that concludes in a loving embrace". [5]

For the 2004 revival, David Rooney of Variety wrote, "A dark and dirty riposte to meet-cute Hollywood romances about lovable losers finding each other . . . the play traces the to-and-fro swing of the pendulum between the characters as hope and the possibility of love materialize before them, first as drunken make-believe and later as something frightening but real. Subtitled “An Apache Dance,” it unfolds like a pained pas de deux, its deliberate rhythms precisely choreographed". [6]

Awards and nominations

Original Off-Broadway production

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResultRef.
1983 Obie Award Outstanding Performance John Turturro Won
Theatre World Awards Won

2024 Off-Broadway revival

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResultRef.
2024 Drama League Awards Outstanding Revival of a PlayDanny and the Deep Blue SeaPending [7]
Distinguished Performance Aubrey Plaza Pending
Lucille Lortel Awards Outstanding RevivalDanny and the Deep Blue SeaPending [8]
Outstanding Lead Performer in a Play Christopher Abbott Pending
Outstanding Lighting DesignJohn TorresPending

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References

  1. ↑ "Danny and the Deep Blue Sea". Dramaticist. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Danny and the Deep Blue Sea". Variety. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  3. ↑ Jacobs, Julia (2023-09-13). "Aubrey Plaza Has Found Her Scene Partner". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  4. ↑ "Aubrey Plaza & Christopher Abbott To Star In Off Broadway Revival Of 'Danny And The Deep Blue Sea'; Sam Rockwell Among Producers". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  5. ↑ "STAGE: 'DANNY AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA'". The New York Times . Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Danny and the Deep Blue Sea". Variety . Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  7. ↑ "2024 Drama League Award Nominations announced". Theatermania. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Wet Brain Leads 2024 Lucille Lortel Award Nominations; Read the Complete List". Playbill. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
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