Wave After Wave

Sean and Nathanael are cousins, born just a few weeks apart in 1988. Every year they visit the same beach in Southern California (first as children, then as adults) to swim in the ocean, eat carne asada, and witness how their lives, their bodies, and the natural world around them have changed year after year. Spanning 10 billion years in the life of the earth, Benjamin Benne’s Seattle Rep 20x30 Commission is a...

Sean and Nathanael are cousins, born just a few weeks apart in 1988. Every year they visit the same beach in Southern California (first as children, then as adults) to swim in the ocean, eat carne asada, and witness how their lives, their bodies, and the natural world around them have changed year after year. Spanning 10 billion years in the life of the earth, Benjamin Benne’s Seattle Rep 20x30 Commission is a theatrical meditation on human and ecological transformation, intimacy between men, and the cycles of life and death that shape our existence. [synopsis by dramaturg Paul Adolphsen]

Commissioned by Seattle Repertory Theatre
(formerly titled "this man i call mi primo")

WORLD PREMIERE: Actors Theatre of Louisville (Louisville KY), 2026

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Wave After Wave

Recommended by

  • Shaun Leisher: Wave After Wave

    I was so captivated by the relationship between these two cousins. A gorgeous reminder of our mortality. An exploration of masculinity, love and the destruction of our planet. Really made me think of my own life as I get older with each passing year. Really made me think of my own connection to the people that matter most in my life. The framing device of the waves to show the passing of time was so effective. I'd love to see this produced. So much potential for adventurous acting choices and choreography.

    I was so captivated by the relationship between these two cousins. A gorgeous reminder of our mortality. An exploration of masculinity, love and the destruction of our planet. Really made me think of my own life as I get older with each passing year. Really made me think of my own connection to the people that matter most in my life. The framing device of the waves to show the passing of time was so effective. I'd love to see this produced. So much potential for adventurous acting choices and choreography.

  • Lainie Vansant: Wave After Wave

    I had the pleasure of seeing a staged reading of Wave After Wave presented by the Great Plains Theatre Commons (via Zoom). This piece has beautiful language, but also makes a lot of space for beautiful movement. I love when a piece lends itself to a lot of different visual and technical representations, and I think this is one of those pieces. Challenge your designers, actors, and audiences with this incredible piece!

    I had the pleasure of seeing a staged reading of Wave After Wave presented by the Great Plains Theatre Commons (via Zoom). This piece has beautiful language, but also makes a lot of space for beautiful movement. I love when a piece lends itself to a lot of different visual and technical representations, and I think this is one of those pieces. Challenge your designers, actors, and audiences with this incredible piece!

  • Nick Malakhow: Wave After Wave

    A gentle and thorough exploration of these two men that, for all of the subtlety it finds in their everyday existences, manages to be monumentally adventurous in form and thematically profound. I loved how reading this conjured imagery of an exciting movement-based theatrical evening in my mind, but that I could also tell how it could change so much depending on which creative production team tackles it. I'd love to see this on its feet someday soon! A narrative that explores male intimacy and friendship with such tenderness is a precious rarity.

    A gentle and thorough exploration of these two men that, for all of the subtlety it finds in their everyday existences, manages to be monumentally adventurous in form and thematically profound. I loved how reading this conjured imagery of an exciting movement-based theatrical evening in my mind, but that I could also tell how it could change so much depending on which creative production team tackles it. I'd love to see this on its feet someday soon! A narrative that explores male intimacy and friendship with such tenderness is a precious rarity.

View all 4 recommendations

Development History

  • Type Workshop, Organization Great Plains New Play Festival, Year 2025
  • Type Workshop, Organization Seattle Repertory Theatre, Year 2024
  • Type Workshop, Organization New Mexico State University, Year 2024
  • Type Reading, Organization Primary Stages, Year 2024
  • Type Workshop, Organization Colorado New Play Festival, Year 2024

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization Actors Theatre of Louisville, Year 2026

Awards

  • New Play Festival
    Ojai Playwrights Conference
    Finalist
    2025
  • Terrence McNally New Works Incubator
    Rattlestick Theater
    Semi-Finalist
    2025
  • New Play Festival
    Great Plains Theatre Commons
    Selection
    2025