The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is full of emotion – frustration, confusion, hope, excitement, and gratitude.
Is it possible to successfully capture this mix of feelings in a 90-minute theater production?
Emily Rogers, RN, was the key to the Geffen Playhouse’s premiere of “tiny father,” a drama that digs deep into the emotions of a new dad who must navigate the premature arrival of his daughter.
Rogers, a NICU nurse at UCLA Health for 19 years, provided insights from her firsthand experience in the hospital to prepare the actors for their roles and to consult with them throughout the staging process.
Having been involved in musical theater since high school – she later starred as Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz” – Rogers says she was excited and honored to take on this task.
“I was called in to make sure that the cast and the crew portrayed the hospital setting adequately,” Rogers explains. This key role included working closely with the props crew, teaching the staff how to use the medical equipment, demonstrating how to portray lifesaving methods for a baby, and showing the actors how to pick up and bottle-feed the child.
She also engaged with the actors, offering perspective on the nursing experience and the challenges faced by parents of premature babies.
With the help of Rogers, “tiny father” realistically portrays the emotional and physical challenges of the NICU experience.
“I appreciate that they wanted to show the nurse’s side of working in an environment that can be both traumatic and fulfilling,” says Rogers, highlighting how the play humanizes the individual characters and their unique stories.
Although many “patients enter the hospital not because they want to be there but because they have to be there,” Rogers says, she believes that the NICU is a “joyous place.” It’s a powerful emotion that is captured by the play.
“Having a baby in the NICU is sometimes hard, but at the end of the NICU journey you have a perfect human being that leaves the hospital and has a wonderful life,” she says.
“The people that work in the hospital are there to help and want families to get better," she says. "It is an extremely rewarding place to work, where big successes are measured in tiny increments”
The West Coast premiere of “tiny father,” featuring Tiffany Villarin and Maurice Williams, continues through Sunday, July 14. UCLA Health is a sponsor of Geffen Playhouse productions. For tickets and more information, visit the Geffen Playhouse.