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“When
Love is not Enough” is an exceptional comedic-drama
stage play about a black family struggling to hold on to love.
The play is set in rural Georgia in 1972 in the kitchen of
the Sloathum family. On this day the Sloathum family celebrates
the one-year anniversary of Big Momma (Juanita Howard) living
with her son Ulysses (William J. Vila) and his wife Roberta
(Lisa-Roxanne Walters). The day also marks another anniversary-Ulysses
and his son Junior (Sean C. Turner) not speaking to each other.
When Roberta comes into some money, instead of making life
better for the family, the money surprisingly doesn’t.
Ulysses wants to use the money to buy a lunch truck, Junior
wants to use the money to save his marriage with Troyetta
(Dana Shavonne Rainey), and Roberta wants to spend the money
for Big Momma’s operation to cure her alzimers.
The play is about the families struggle to hold on to their
love for each other through challenging times. The plays creator,
Lester Melvin, tackles some hard issues such as racism, alcoholism,
gambling addiction, spousal abuse, un-forgiveness, sibling
rivalries, and self-hatred.
Ulysses has just been fired from his job of ten years at the
factory-he’s been replaced by a machine that can do
the work faster so he decides to drink away his sorrows. Ulysses
is also at odds with his deceased brother Boy Johnny who fought
in the Vietnam War because he thinks that his mother loves
him more.
Roberta tries her hardest to get her husband and son speaking
again but cannot even speak to her own mother because she
can’t forgive her for not helping her when she was abused
by a man when she was younger.
Junior holds a lot of resentment towards his father because
when he asked him for a job at the factory he said no.
Troyetta is fed up with her husband Junior because she’s
tired of his drinking and not having a job.
Although the play does tackle some hard-hitting issues it
isn’t all drama. Big Mama comes in every once in a while
saying a prayer to add some comic relief to the tension and
characters like Junior and Ulysses are very humorous as well.
When asked what he wanted audiences to take away from the
play Melvin said, “I want the play to provoke conversation
within their relationships and awareness.”
“We want [people] to be talking about it at least a
week or month later”, said Melvin.
Shirley Pon said after watching the show, “I really
liked the show. The daughter-in-laws speech towards the end
when she decides to leave was powerful.”
Actress Juanita Howard (Big Momma) had this to say about the
play, “I guess I want people to come away with the fact
that people have choices. Everybody’s got to make their
choice and we live with the consequences of those choices.”
'When Love is not Enough’
WITH: William J. Vila (Ulysses), Lisa-Roxanne Walters (Roberta),
Juanita Howard (Big Momma), Sean C. Turner (Junior), and Dana
Shavonne Rainey (Troyetta).
Show Dates: January 28-29, 2005 8:00PM
January 30, 2005 4:00PM
308 West 133 Street
New York, NY
(Between Fredrick Douglas Blvd. and St. Nicholas Ave.)
For tickets and more information call: 201-562-5337 |
