Danny and the Deep Blue Sea starring Tanna Frederick and Robert Standley, and directed by former NFL player Carl Weathers, will open July 1 in Santa Monica.

The setting is 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. 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.

Carl Weathers was famous first as an NFL player with the Oakland Raiders, then as an actor for his iconic movie roles (Apollo Creed, Action Jackson), and his roles as a regular on several TV series (Chicago Justice, Brothers, In the Heat of the Night, Street Justice), and as a television director (Always Night, For the People, Sheena, Strong Medicine, Silk Stalkings).

Tanna Frederick and Robert Standley are becoming the Hepburn and Tracy of local stages, having also appeared together previously in The Rainmaker (L.A. Times Critic’s Choice) and Jack & Jill. They also appear in the 2016 feature film Ovation. Ms. Frederick’s stage credits also include Always…But Not Forever, Sylvia, A Safe Place, Dutchman, and more. Known as a queen of indie films, her screen credits include Train to Zakopané, Just 45 Minutes From Broadway, Queen of the Lot, Irene in Time, The M Word, Hollywood Dreams and more.

Robert Standley won an Ovation Award for his performance in Barbarians and Outer Critics Circle Awards for his roles in A Streetcar Named Desire and Picnic. Other stage turns include Post Office (at the Kirk Douglas) and national tours of Cotton Patch Gospel, According to Coyote, and The Rainmaker. He’s familiar to television audiences from stints on Invasion, Melrose Place, Breaking Through and All My Children.

Danny and the Deep Blue Sea was written by John Patrick Shanley and will be performed at The Edgemar Center for the Arts: 2437 Main St., Santa Monica, CA 90405. The play runs through September 10, 2017. Performances are Saturday at 8:00 pm and Sunday at 4:00 pm (dark August 12-13) — Admission is $25; students/seniors are $20 — Reservations can be made at (310) 392-7327 or online at http://bit.ly/2qCaHej.