Sea Wall/A Life

Posted by Donna Herman | Aug 12, 2019 | Reviews

Sea Wall/A Life

Score 90%

Sea Wall/A Life; Jake Gyllenhaal; Photo by Richard Hubert Smith

Score 90%

By Donna Herman

Theater is a collaborative art. Unlike writing or painting, you can’t do it alone. The reason why Sea Wall/A Life moved from The Public Theater Off Broadway to The Hudson Theater on Broadway recently is that Tom Sturridge and Jake Gyllenhaal discovered something they hadn’t realized while performing at The Public. This production of Sea Wall/A Life turns out to be a collaboration between the performers and the audience. Sensitive direction by Carrie Cracknell has obliterated the fourth wall and created a space where memories can be shared with safety and acceptance. For my full review of Sea Wall/A Life go here.

Sea Wall/A Life by Simon Stephens and Nick Payne, Directed by Carrie Cracknell

WITH: Tom Sturridge (Alex); Jake Gyllenhaal (Abe)

Scenic Design by Laura Jellinek; Costume Design by Kaye Voyce & Christopher Peterson; Lighting Design by Guy Hoare; Sound Design by Daniel Kluger; Projection Design by Luke Halls; Original Music by Stuart Earl; Production Stage Manager, Peter Lawrence; Stage Manager, Kate Croasdale. Presented by Nine Stories, Ambassador Theatre Group, Seaview Productions, Benjamin Lowy Productions and The Public Theater at The Hudson Theater, 141 West 44^th Street, NYC. For Tickets visit www.seawallalife.com or call 855-801-5876, or visit the theater Box Office at 141 W. 44^th St.

Review

90%

Sea Wall/A Life

90%

About The Author

Donna Herman

Donna Herman is a native New Yorker and a self-confessed theater addict. It all started in her childhood, which was spent on movie and television sets and in dark empty theaters while her mother, an actress, and her father, a make-up artist and playwright/screenwriter, worked. She knew she wanted to be an actress at 4 years old while on location with her father who was working on the movie “West Side Story.” They were filming the “Officer Krupke” number on the street and Donna was inside the police barricades being helpful and pressing the lever on the coffee urn for the crew. Meanwhile, the kids from the neighborhood were pressed against the sawhorses looking in. She knew then she always wanted to be on the inside. But it wasn’t until her 8th birthday when she saw her first Broadway show, “My Fair Lady,” that she fell prey to her addiction. Donna went on to act throughout her school career and attended Boston University’s School of Fine Arts Theater Program where she studied Acting and Directing. After graduation, she returned to NYC and began the life of a struggling actress. She was fortunate enough to originate the role of Chang in John Jesurun’s downtown cult serial classic play “Chang In A Void Moon” which performed a new episode at The Pyramid Club on Avenue A every Monday night for almost a year in the 80’s. Many downtown notables were in the cast including Steve Buscemi, Black-Eyed Susan, David Cale, Greg Mehrten, and Anna Kohler. While pursuing acting, Donna made money by working in recording studios and eventually got hired full time to manage Spyro Gyra’s new recording studio when Julian Lennon was recording his first album there. From there she became the Production Coordinator on the film of his concert tour for his production company. This led her to a job with the award winning audio post production facility where she stayed for 12 years and was the Controller. From there she went to Charlex, Inc. an award winning special effects and design company for the advertising industry, where she was the CFO and stayed for 17 years. But her love for the theater has never waned and living in New York, she has always been able to indulge it. She has even been called to revise her role as Chang occasionally over the years, the latest for episodes 59 to 61 in 2015. She is now looking to get back to a more creative life and reviewing theater and designing jewelry.

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