It Comes In Waves at The Seagull Theatre Review
Image: Mike Kwasniak
Written by Eleanor for Theatre and Tonic.
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in return for an honest review. All opinions are our own.
It Comes in Wavesis a three-person play set in a grief café in Lowestoft, Suffolk.
Written by East Anglian writer, poet and teacher James McDermott, the play was inspired by the death of his father during the COVID-19 pandemic and explores how humour and community can help people navigate grief.
The story follows Jordan (Meg Atherton), a teenager who has lost her dad; Crystal (Érin Geraghty), a widow in her sixties; and Howard (Ben Nealon), the group leader, who we later discover lost his son. This varied group of characters is a great way to explore the different ways people experience grief, and how the relationship you have with the person you’ve lost shapes that experience.
Opening at The Seagull Theatre in Lowestoft, this intimate 142-seat black box theatre is the perfect setting, giving the audience the feeling that they are part of the group and keeping everyone engaged throughout the approximately 80-minute performance.
Each scene begins with the characters sharing their grief level for the day by giving a number, with one meaning they’re feeling awful and 10 meaning they’re closer to feeling okay. Not only does this help set the tone for each scene, but it also provides a clear transition between them. We follow the characters through some of their hardest days, but also some more hopeful ones, as they share activities and techniques that help them process their grief. There’s a fantastic balance of comedy, heartbreak and tender, deeply personal moments throughout.
The set is minimal but very effective. A table complete with a kettle, biscuits and mugs, a pile of chairs in the corner and a whiteboard immediately give the space the familiar feel of a village hall, making the grief café feel authentic and lived-in. Three opaque screens line the back wall, with projections of waves and other coastal scenes displayed during the short scene breaks. Their semi-transparent quality also becomes important later in the play, allowing us to see characters who aren’t physically present in a scene but are being spoken about. The simplicity of the set works beautifully, creating an intimate environment that keeps the focus on the characters and their stories.
Before selected performances, James McDermott and grief recovery specialist Simon Arthur are holding ‘Navigating Grief’ workshops. I attended the opening night’s session not knowing what to expect and, not only did I find it personally interesting and helpful, it also gave me a greater understanding of the ideas behind the play and why grief cafés can be so valuable. I hadn’t heard of grief cafés before, but they seem to provide an important space for people to navigate one of the most difficult experiences we face in life.
One of the play’s greatest strengths is its ability to make audiences laugh while tackling such a difficult subject. McDermott has spoken about how humour can help diminish grief’s power over us, and that balance is felt throughout the performance. It never shies away from loss, but instead shows how connection, conversation and shared experiences can help people carry it.
It’s wonderful to see local theatre thriving in this way and to have such a heartfelt and important story shared in such an intimate setting. The writing is thoughtful, the performances feel completely believable, and the set and lighting work together beautifully to bring the story to life.
It Comes in Waves is currently touring across East Anglia, with its next performance at Seckford Theatre in Woodbridge on 24 June, followed by UEA Drama Studio in Norwich. To see further dates and book tickets, click here .
To read more of James McDermott’s thoughts on the show, grief cafés and the importance of local theatre, read our interview here.
★★★★★
