Produced by Isaac Dayley in memory of Alan Taylor, who committed suicide 10 years ago on December 4, the evening will be hosted by Marti Gould Cummings and MAC Award winner Michelle Dowdy.
The cast will be led by two-time Tony nominee Alison Fraser, Teal Wicks (Wicked), downtown rocker Kenyon Phillips, Virginia Preston (On the Town), operatic soprano Cree Carrico, cabaret artist Tori Scott, Theresa McCarthy (House of Cards), and Josh Tolle (Kinky Boots) as well as Hannah Rose DeFlumeri, Michael Lowney, Andre Jordan, Brita Filter, and other local drag talents.
Zi Alikhan will direct the premiere, which will also feature a full band under the direction of Ryan Shirar.
The autobiographical story of a homosexual Mormon boy portrayed through eight different scenes, Shards is described as “a dark and intriguing musical that shines light on the inner struggle of being raised in an extremely religious household under a parent’s watchful eye. While attending the staunch Brigham Young University and a required commitment to their 8 Honor Code Rules, the Boy’s world slowly begins to fall apart, unhinging demons of drugs, sex, and suicide in a coming of age story.”
“I wrote this show in the name of advocacy, therapy, and connectivity,” said Allen in a statement. “While mostly everything in this story actually happened, members of the LDS faith or not can relate to the similar struggles of relearning about who you are. It is a message that love and friendship can be a powerful tool to claw your way out of the shackles of despair. It is an honest look at the LGBTQ community, at suicide, and the idea that we are all, in our own way, Lost Children of God.”
Proceeds from ticket sales, private contributions, and auctioned items will be donated to the Trevor Project, the nation’s leading organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13–24.
There will be a VIP pre-performance at 7 PM, with a post-show talk back at 9:45 PM, and an after party at 10:15 PM.
VIP tickets are priced at $200, general admission at $125, and student tickets for $75. Tickets are available by clicking here.
