Valley-based Playwright’s ‘Family Reunion’ to Premiere

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Michael Anthony Forney’s “Why Me?” franchise of stage plays keeps growing.

The playwright-director-producer will premiere the third and latest installment, “The Family Reunion,” on Nov. 23 at the DeYor Performing Arts Centre’s Ford Family Recital Hall.

“Reunion” continues the saga of the Horton family as it goes through the drama of life. Forney launched it several years ago with “Why Me?” and premiered the follow-up, “Why Me Too,” in 2023.

The reason Forney keeps revisiting the franchise is simple: His audiences have gotten attached to the characters and want to see more of them.

“It was the crowd,” he said. ‘They love this family.”

In the upcoming installment, the Horton family is getting ready to have a reunion, but unresolved issues are rising up.

“In [“Why Me Too”], the mother passed away and her sister took over the house,” Forney said. “But she’s out of touch about what the family had been going through, all the drama. She thinks she is doing a good thing [with the family reunion], but it’s going to blow up in her face.”

Forney is expecting the theater to be sold out for the premiere. “We almost sold out the Ford for the last one, and I’m sure we will this time,” he said.

The play will be presented the following night at a theater in Columbus.

The cast is largely the same as the previous offering but a little larger. “There are some new faces,” Forney said. “The last one had six or seven actors, but this one has 14. It’s one of my biggest casts ever.”

Forney, a Youngstown native, has offices in his hometown and in Columbus. The actors in his plays hail almost entirely from those two cities.

The cast of “The Family Reunion” is Michael J. Taylor Jr., Wayne Bonner Sr., Ram Torres-Ramirez, Jaylene Lewis, LaToya Jones, Rosetta Perry, LaTasha Dendy, Siea Glover, Lyric Williams, Lauren Williams, Ensley C. Thomas-Chester, Christian Dion, Wanda Clark and Grant Galloway.

Using the same actors not only builds familiarity with the audience but also among the cast members and creative team. “From a director’s standpoint, it makes it easier,” Forney said.

For tickets to “The Family Reunion,” go to ExperienceYourArts.org. Tickets can also be purchased at the DeYor Performing Arts Center box office. Group discounts are available. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and is PG-13 in nature.

Those who can’t catch the performance live will be able to view it later. Forney is filming the play and will post it on his ForneyExtremeTV streaming service, alongside the first two plays in the franchise.

ForneyExtremeTV was launched late last year and has since grown to over 20,000 viewers. The site hosts all of his stage productions and is available to subscribers.

Forney explained the growth strategy for his streaming service.

“The first year of ForneyExtremeTV was experimental,” he said. “How many subscribers can I get? What kind of content should I allow that’s outside my company? “Now, we’ve pretty much created a niche.”

As the service enters its second year, Forney is looking into offering advertising opportunities. “Not a barrage that would turn viewers off, but some,” he said.

Forney’s production company, he notes, has the capacity to create commercials for clients. 

Pictured at top: Jaylene Lewis and Rosetta Perry in a scene from “The Family Reunion.”

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.