This Isn’t Working is a surreal pseudo-comedy following a listless, unreliable narrator (Donovan himself) who arrives on stage the night of the performance without a clear sense of why he’s there, set in an unspecified future where the idea of a “job” has been rendered obsolete. Across the piece, Donovan moves through memories of forgotten occupations, lumberjack, farmer, office worker, professional mourner, using text, physical embodiment, dance, and song to ask whether an occupation defines a person’s value or is simply a brutal necessity. The work features original lyrics by Donovan, music by Matt Ray, and direction by Keenan Tyler Oliphant.

This work-in-progress showing marks the culmination of Donovan’s Arts Center Dance Residency. LMCC’s Dance Residencies are made possible by support from Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels. Learn more about the Dance Residency program here.

Sean Donovan is an actor, dancer, writer, choreographer, and director. He creates theater and dance performances that challenge the boundaries and intersections of both mediums. His most recent work, Cabin, premiered in 2019 at The Bushwick Starr (NYC) to critical acclaim. Ben Brantley of The New York Times called it “darkly lyrical and exquisitely rendered.” Other works include The Reception at HERE Arts (NYC), and 18 1/2 Minutes at JACK (NYC), both in collaboration with Sebastián Calderón Bentin. His work has also been presented in The Under the Radar Festival (NYC), CUNY’s Prelude Festival (NYC), Incubator Arts Project (NYC), FAE Festival in Panama, Stanford University (CA), New York University (NYC), and others. Beyond his own work he has choreographed works for acclaimed theater companies, The Talking Band, The Civilians, Taylor Mac, and others.

He is currently on David Byrne’s Who is The Sky World Tour as a singer and dancer. As a performer, Sean won a 2022 Lortel Award for his performance in Heather Christian’s Oratorio for Living Things at Ars Nova. He’s worked with David Byrne, Taylor Mac, Jason Robert Brown, Lee Sunday Evans, Tina Satter, Heather Christian, Faye Driscoll, Miguel Gutierrez, Jane Comfort, The Builders Association, Witness Relocation, and many others. Recent theater and dance credits: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (The Goodman), Bark of Millions (BAM and World Tour), The Trees (Playwrights Horizons), Elements of OZ (Skirball Center), Thank You for Coming (BAM and World Tour).

In 2018 he co-wrote Morning Chardonnay, a new web series with Hannah Heller. Other film and television credits include Law and Order: Organized Crime, Feast of the Epiphany directed by Oscar winning director Jeff Reichert, Laurence, and others. He has also danced in multiple music videos.

He received his BFA in Theatre from New York University’s Experimental Theatre Wing. He has performed internationally in over 35 countries worldwide and has also performed at theaters and venues throughout the U.S. He currently teaches movement and choreography at NYU. seanpdonovan.com

Photo by Maria Baranova