After making its stage debut in fall with “Life and How to Change It” at Beatniks on Conkey’s the Other Side, Showtime Theatre Productions returns to Hammond.
“Bad Company, Good Morals” runs June 29-July 1 at Beatniks on Conkey.
“I went through a lot of rough times and I was looking for an outlet,” said Khyel S. Roberson about why he wrote “Bad Company, Good Morals.”
“I always did stage theater so I wrote this play to give advice to myself or anyone dealing with internal struggles with who you want to be in the world versus how people perceive you. I was just dealing with perception issues and thought there were a lot of people dealing with perception issues.
“I just tried to make a show that spoke on that. Me being very spiritual as well, on top of those perception issues there’s a lot of spiritual moments in the play. It’s almost a prayer. It goes back and forth on the prayer and how to handle these sort of situations.”
Sonya Ward, of Chicago, and Roberson and fellow Calumet City, Illinois, residents Arielle Henry and Nathan Wilkes, comprise the cast.
“They’re incredible. I like the colors they’re bringing to the characters. It’s really three-dimensional. They’re really making their characters literally pop up off the page,” said Roberson, who is also the director of “Bad Company, Good Morals.”
“They’re even teaching me a lot of things about the characters that I hadn’t even thought of. They have given me more insight on my own show. That’s been a blast too. Talking with them about their personal issues and connecting with the show is really beautiful.
“The audience may or may not be going through things similar to these characters. It’s a blessing working with this cast. They have brought so much to the table and so much to the show and so much to the characters than I even thought of.”
Subjects in “Bad Company, Good Morals” may be sensitive to children younger than 13 years old.
“It’s about an older man named Samuel T. Tiller. He’s an aspiring preacher but he doesn’t own a church. He’s a very successful man. He’s very rich. He owns a halfway house in Chicago,” Roberson said.
“People that need a place to stay and people who are going through a lot of issues in their lives or can’t afford to live elsewhere live with him. He teaches them but the thing is that these people that live there are taking advantage of everyone in the house, including him.
“It teaches the lesson to be careful of the company you keep because they might have bad intentions. That’s the moral of the show. It’s a very heartfelt show. Just come see the show with an open mind and be ready to feel and ready to learn.”
Roberson is the founder and artistic director of Showtime Theatre Productions (www.facebook.com/STPTheatre), which focuses on original plays, musicals, films and series.
“I started Showtime Theatre Productions so people can submit their original works and promote that,” he said.
“There’s a lot of talented people that may write plays or short films or web series but they’re either afraid to put them on or don’t know anyone that they can speak to to get their work out there or get their faces known.
“People can contact me if they have any original work and want to produce their art and have people look at their art.”
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‘Bad Company, Good Morals’
When: 7:30 p.m. June 29-30; 1:30 p.m. July 1
Where: Beatniks on Conkey, 418 Conkey St., Hammond
Tickets: $10
Information: 219-852-0848; www.beatniksonconkey.com