TV: GMC’s “In Sickness and in Health” Premiering June 23rd

GMC TV, America’s favorite channel for uplifting music and family entertainment, presents the GMC World Premiere Play “In Sickness and in Health,” starring Chico Benymon (“Half & Half,” Ali), Jennifer Freeman (“My Wife and Kids,” You Got Served), Roger Guenveur Smith (American Gangster, Final Destination), and Golden Brooks (“Girlfriends,” Timecode).

The powerful, true-to-life drama about the role of sacrifice and courage in marriage is the third installment in the popular series of wedding vow-themed productions that have aired on the network in 2012. “In Sickness and in Health” makes its world television premiere exclusively on GMC TV on Saturday, June 23rd at 7:00 p.m. ET with encore broadcasts at 9:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.

Based on an original screenplay written by Cas Sigers Beedles (“A Cross to Bear”, “If You Really Love Me”) and directed by Roger Melvin (“The Love You Save,” “If You Really Love Me”), “In Sickness and in Health” tells the powerfully moving story of Faith (Freeman) and Norman (Benymon), a soon-to-be-married couple facing a potentially life-altering dilemma. With just two weeks to go before their wedding, Faith still hasn’t told her fiancé her deepest secret—that she suffers from sickle-cell anemia. The timing has just never seemed right to come clean about it. Her healthy lifestyle appears to be keeping the disease in check and she’s cherished the belief that Norman’s love would heal her. But having lost her mother to the disease at age 40, she has no illusions about its destructive potential and doesn’t want to put Norman through what her father endured. As the stress of the looming wedding brings on a few painful sickle-cell episodes, Faith reacts by pushing Norman away, which in turn triggers her sister to tell Norman about her illness. Hurt and angry, Faith calls the wedding off and, after a heart-to-heart with Faith’s father about the responsibility of marrying a partner with an illness, even Normanquestions his love and commitment to Faith. Can the couple overcome their fears and embrace love, with all the sacrifice that entails, and move forward with their plans?

“The wedding vow, ‘in sickness and in health,’ is not just words,” says Leslie Chesloff, GMC’s executive vice president of programming. “The third installment in this series really hits home as it explores what it means for one person to commit to another for a lifetime—even in the face of a potentially debilitating illness—and for the other person to accept that love and support. This is the kind of powerful, engrossing, real-world drama our viewers have come to expect from GMC and we seek in our programming to provide.”

Airing throughout wedding season, the four plays in GMC’s nuptial series each feature a different cast and new storylines all tied into elements of the traditional marriage vows. Previous productions in the series, “For Richer or Poorer” and “From This Day Forward,” premiered in April and May, respectively.

The GMC World Premiere Stage Play “In Sickness and in Health” stars Chico Benymon (“Half & Half,” Ali), Jennifer Freeman (“My Wife and Kids,” You Got Served), Roger Guenveur Smith (American Gangster, Final Destination), Golden Brooks (Girlfriends, Timecode), Michael Blackson (The Savages) and gospel singing sensation Darlene McCoy. Screenplay by Cas Sigers Beedles (“A Cross to Bear”, “If You Really Love Me”). Directed by Roger Melvin (“The Love You Save,” “If You Really Love Me”).

GMC’s “In Sickness and in Health” is produced by Swirl Films’ Eric Tomosunas, who has produced and taped numerous stage plays and feature-length films for television and DVD including, 35 & Ticking, Love for Sale, A Mother’s Prayer, There’s a Stranger in My House, “Love Me or Leave Me”, “The Ideal Husband”, “The Love You Save”, and “Sugar Mommas.”