The First Lady Play: A Review

On March 16, 2013, I attended the evening performance of the production of "The First Lady". This story is the brainchild of Mae F. Davis who has poured her heart and soul into creating this piece. While the concept of the play is noble, and it does deliver the Playwright's intended message, like many amateur productions it did need some polishing. At times the plot was a bit redundant, the leading lady received motherly advice from two different women, and while the words were different the message was the same, as was the static  set, making the performances feel a little flat. Unfortunately the conflict between the leading lady and the antagonists was also underwhelming. I wanted to see more from the actors after the initial conflict, but the script didn't leave space for the actresses to deliver.  The play was also lengthy and cumbersome, about ninety percent of the plot took place over the course on a single day. Despite this the acting was a lot more polished than I had expected it to be and the singing voices of all of the actors were well rehearsed, in harmony and even beautiful.

Rhonda Christopher as Lady Belford. Courtesy of John Jayfresh Photography

I am not a lighting nor a sound tech, so to me everything appeared well orchestrated. However I couldn't help but notice that one of the actors kept adjusting their mike which yielded quite a bit of feedback. Despite the flaws, this production was an uplifting experience with a group of talented Christian actors. I enjoyed the message and anticipate that the encore performance on June 8, 2013 at the Arts Bank Theater will be much more polished. Stay tuned!