Fishing for Fidelity

by Kim E. Ruyle

[Full-Length]
When a lottery ticket given as a wedding gift unexpectedly pays out, four lives and relationships are fractured. Charles, a principled associate professor of neurobiology, and Blanca, his brilliant post-doctoral colleague, are collaborators on an NSF-funded study exploring the limits of human free will. Charles is married to Denise, a ferociously competitive corporate attorney, while Blanca has just wed Terrence, an ambitious pharmaceutical executive whose values don’t align with hers. Blanca insists the winning lottery ticket be returned to Charles, but he refuses – after all, a gift is a gift. Since Denise and Terrence are both avid anglers, it’s suggested that a fishing competition settles who gets to keep the ticket. At an upscale resort on a lake famous for trophy muskies, they find themselves isolated in a crucible that surfaces private desires. Accusations of betrayal – professional, marital, and ethical – collide with arguments about choice, responsibility, and whether fidelity is an act of free will or a neurological illusion.

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Fishing for Fidelity

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Garrett W. Martin: Fishing for Fidelity by Kim E. Ruyle

“

Fishing For Fidelity is tight, simple set designed, and big on character development. Kim E. Ruyle does an exceptional job at capturing human pitfalls of greed, lust, temptations, and love as two couples grapple with the human experience over fishing. The characters have an artful dance throughout the play that will likely stick with audiences for long after the show has ended. What a wonderful read.

Fishing For Fidelity is tight, simple set designed, and big on character development. Kim E. Ruyle does an exceptional job at capturing human pitfalls of greed, lust, temptations, and love as two couples grapple with the human experience over fishing. The characters have an artful dance throughout the play that will likely stick with audiences for long after the show has ended. What a wonderful read.

”
George Sapio: Fishing for Fidelity by Kim E. Ruyle

“

A great, tense, tight four-hander. A simple gift--or is it really that simple?--creates tension between two couples, testing their loyalty to each other and their partners. A gripping essay into the fragility of relationships, one's own beliefs about their partners and friendships, and how a simple gift, given in innocence, can shake foundations.

A great, tense, tight four-hander. A simple gift--or is it really that simple?--creates tension between two couples, testing their loyalty to each other and their partners. A gripping essay into the fragility of relationships, one's own beliefs about their partners and friendships, and how a simple gift, given in innocence, can shake foundations.

”
Lisa Dellagiarino Feriend: Fishing for Fidelity by Kim E. Ruyle

“

Oooh in this full length, a winning $50,000 lottery ticket threatens to tear two couples (and one friendship) apart. I love how the conflict grows bigger and bigger out of a piece of paper so physically tiny. I especially enjoyed the way discussions of Charles and Bianca's work on decision making and free will were peppered in as you watch four people wrestle with those very things.

Oooh in this full length, a winning $50,000 lottery ticket threatens to tear two couples (and one friendship) apart. I love how the conflict grows bigger and bigger out of a piece of paper so physically tiny. I especially enjoyed the way discussions of Charles and Bianca's work on decision making and free will were peppered in as you watch four people wrestle with those very things.

”

View all 4 recommendations

CHARLES: Male. ~40. Married to Denise. Associate Professor of Neurobiology, University of Wisconsin. He is the principal researcher working on a National Science Foundation grant and Blanca’s supervisor . Although attracted to her, he’s never acted on his feelings and always kept their relationship professional.
DENISE: Female. Mid-30s. An attorney with a private corporate law practice. As an attorney, she is a shark and will use every trick in the book to benefit her client. She grew up in Northern Wisconsin where she fit in with her four brothers, all sportsmen and highly competitive.
BLANCA: Female. Late 20s. Latina. She is recently married to Terrence and a post-doctoral research assistant working with Charles. She is demure by nature but has prevailed against academic obstacles and institutionalized prejudices. Blanca’s native language is Spanish, but she’s been educated in the US for the past ten years and is very fluent in English.
TERRENCE: Male. ~40. Senior vice-president of sales and marketing for a global pharmaceutical company. He’s an ambitious glad hander obsessed with sales commissions, bonuses, and climbing the corporate ladder.