Less than one percent. Those were the odds given to life partners Jase and Terence Sullivan when they started their journey to parenthood with the help of a gestational carrier and separate egg donor.
The couple had been talking about having a family ever since they were married at a Napa Valley winery in 2015. Like many newly married couples, the discussion continued for a few years. And then the research began.
“We looked at different clinics and connected with a family attorney who recommended New Hope Center in Virginia Beach. It was definitely a long plan,” says Jase, who is the managing director for Richmond Shakespeare.
Jase and Terence provided a great deal of support and encouragement to the women who were helping them realize their dreams of parenthood, in spite of the odds. They were at the fertility center when the embryos, which included DNA from Terence and Jase, were transferred to the gestational carrier.
“The process was intense,” says Jase, about the science necessary to expand their family.
On March 22, 2019, the couple became the proud parents of twins, Mary Alison (Jase is the father) and Talford, (Terence is the father).
“When they were born, we got the call from Norfolk General hospital that [the carrier] was going to have a C-section because it was ahead of schedule,” Terence says. “We got in the car, got to the hospital, got suited up, and went into the room as they are lifting our first child out of her. It was the most surreal experience.”
The twins were born premature. Mary Alison weighed three pounds and ten ounces. Talford was six pounds, three ounces. Because of a health challenge, newborn Talford had to be intubated.
“It was scary,” Jase says. “They were in the neonatal intensive care unit for a month. The staff at Norfolk General was amazing. Here they had twins, a gestational carrier, and two dads. It was like a special episode of Grey’s Anatomy.”
A Connection Since Day One
Jase and Terence met at a Halloween party in 2009, where both had opted not to wear costumes. Jase noticed Terence across the room.
“My jaw dropped. Terence had a flannel shirt on. I thought he was dressed as a lumberjack – and who doesn’t love a lumberjack?” Jase says with a chuckle, adding there was an instant attraction. “I said, ‘That is my person right there.’”
They started talking and continued the conversation after they left the party. “After that, we saw each other every day … I thought, this is my husband,” Terence adds.
At the time the two were dating, Jase was an artistic associate at The Firehouse Theatre in Richmond. He was directing Rent and starting the audition process when Terence told him he was going to audition.
“I didn’t know he was a performer,” says Jase, who studied Shakespeare at Cambridge University in the UK and has a bachelor’s degree in theatre from William and Mary and a master’s degree from VCU. “I had over 200 people auditioning. When Terence came up on stage, I was nervous. He did his audition and [the late] Carol Piersol [who headed Firehouse at the time] said, ‘That is our Roger.’”
That was the couple’s first show together and it was followed by The Rocky Horror Show (Terence won a best actor award for his portrayal of Dr Frank-N-Furter) and The Wild Party.
Soon after, the couple moved to San Francisco for Terence’s career. An alum of Maryland Institute College of Art, Terence has worked as a producer, creative strategist, and independent consultant. He can now also add digital creator on TikTok with one million followers. His most viral video hit 3.5 million views.
Theatre-Loving Dads Reunited on Stage
It’s been ten years since Jase and Terence have worked together on a production. The two are currently doing Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods at The Steward School’s Cramer Center for the Arts through March 24. Jase is directing and Terence is playing Cinderella’s Prince and The Wolf.
“It’s been great working together again. It’s been a long time since we have been able to be creative together,” says Jase. “It’s nice to have that part of our life back and get to work with an amazing team of actors and designers. It has been incredible.”
Theatre looks like it’s in the couple’s children’s future as well. “We have two little performers,” Jase says. “They will be ready to hit that stage. They are definitely performers.”
While the couple is glad to have the opportunity to work together professionally, Jase and Terence agree that learning the stages of parenthood is a different kind of challenge. “It’s the hardest thing in world,” says Terence. “That has been the biggest surprise. We have been so committed and so grateful that this happened to us. We will do anything they need. I really can’t remember not being a parent.”
Joan wrote about The Bakers from Richmond Shakespeare’s Into the Woods.
Read the RFM review of Into the Woods.
