Review: 'Unfaithful' The Stage Play

UNFAITHFUL, The Stage Play
Written By: Kimberlyn Engram

Unfaithful, the stage play, written by Kimberlyn Engram (a retired master sergeant in the US Army), is an autobiographical depiction of the harsh realities of infidelity and emotional abuse. The story-line centers on a pompous Army soldier, Kenny (Denzel Wells, who stars in Tyler Perry's "If Loving You Is Wrong") and his overly dutiful wife, Rochelle (Taundra Noel Shaw). Being a military ex-wife, I personally know the stress and pressures that field duties and deployments can have on a family. I also know how these activities can be a breeding ground for infidelity and can lead to the deterioration of a marriage.

My favorite part of this production is the comradery that Rochelle has with her friends, Trina (Monique Barsh) and Camille (Teairra Mari of the reality series "Love and Hip Hop Hollywood"). You know those "ride or die" friends that have your back and will fight for you until the end. And you know a good production is always enhanced by good music and this one had two powerhouse singers -- the incomparable Shirley Murdock, who has several top ten R&B hit songs to include one of my favorites "As We Lay", who portrayed Kenny's mother (Delores) and the love crooner, Tony Terry, who sings one of my favorite romantic ballads, "With You", portrayed one of Kenny's friends (Eric). At times, Delores' loyalty was conflicting between her "Stand-By-My-Son-At-All-Cost" attitude to the "I'm-A-Woman-Who-Knows" compassion towards her daughter in law, Rochelle. She finally comes to her senses at the end and realized her son was the initiator and nucleus of the couple's problems and that her son was "dead wrong". As reality dictates, in the middle of most of these conflicts is usually an innocent child whose feelings are being ignored. In this case, Briana (Kaila Anderson) is that child. To add fuel to the fire, Briana is Rochelle's step daughter and she is dealing with the fact that Rochelle's treats her more like a mother than Kenny treats her like a dad. He tries to buy her affection instead of being an active father with sincere love.

As you can see, Unfaithful is truly an emotional rollercoaster with many twists and turns. I admit, sometimes I wanted to get off the ride - a lot of melancholy to deal with at one time. I do admire the playwright's courage to have her life's story depicted on stage and I am glad that she openly advocates for domestic violence prevention and intervention, which I am a lifetime proponent. There were a couple of transitional gaps that need to be worked out, but all-in-all the story-line is a good one. Continued success on your tour throughout the United States.

**For more information about Unfaithful and Playwright Kimberlyn Engram, please visit social media sites for Lucy's House Entertainment:

FACEBOOK: Lucy's House Entertainment & K Michele Engram

iNSTAGRAM: @Lucy's House Entertainment & Playwright_KimEngram

TWITTER: @Lucyshouseent

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