Revolving around the familial issues of men, the stage play “Confessions of a Good Man” includes several families who are all going through different life events. There are many secrets and problems that characters are trying to hide, which causes tension in the families.
Though the story focuses on the lives of men, the play was produced by a group of female leaders at Walking on Water (WOW) Production Company, which was founded by Tangie Beaty. Beaty and her business partner, Donna Johnson, created the play, with Beaty serving as the writer and director.
WOW Production’s mission is to create real-life situations that many people have been through and can relate to. Beaty said she aims to create a production that is empowering and helps to change the community for the better.
“Our reason for how we do what we do is for the basis of bettering our communities," Beaty said. "And not necessarily community based on racial or status, but just about our communities, whether you live in the hood or you live in the suburbs. You know, just reconnecting our families back so that we can have a better life or world."
Beaty said that often in life women claim to want a “good man” but have trouble defining exactly what a good man is.
“So we tell this story from the likes of a divorced man, to a married man, to a single man, to men who got hurt, to men who are scared of commitment – we cover all of it,” Beaty said.
Although fictional characters, the key players in the production are brought to the stage in relatable ways. According to Beaty, the actors all have some sort of shared experience with their characters.
A few of the actors said they also agreed with Beaty. Elijah Brown plays a character named Malik, and he has grown up in similar ways as his character.
“It’s easy for me because I deal with that actual struggle because I don’t even have a father figure in my life. So I went through the same struggle as my character,” Brown said.
Sierra Folder plays a woman who is struggling with marital issues. Although Folder is not married, she said her and her character have similar personalities.
“The way that she acts, she is really quirky, she is really funny on the inside,” Folder said.
One takeaway Beaty wants audiences to leave with is that hiding secrets and issues from family does not end well. It is a lot easier to get through hard times with family by your side, she said.
“You can choose your friends, but you cannot choose your family,” Beaty said. “Life is too short to hold onto grudges or to not be free to be whoever it is that you are. And so we want to make sure that we put that on the stage, like it’s okay to be you, whatever that is."
"Confessions of a Good Man" will be playing at Harrison Theatre at Midlands Tech at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 27, 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 28 and 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 29. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door.