The cast includes Dashiell Eaves ("Gotham"), Lexi Rhoades (Sistas the Musical), Genson Blimline (Rock of Ages), Justin Scott Brown (Les Miserables), Ashley Kate Adams (La Cage Aux Folles), Jenna Leigh Green (Wicked), Ari Wilford (Once), Eean Cochran (Bring It On), Jamyl Dobson (The Anthem) and Ash Law Edwards (Assassins).

This reading is directed by Fresh Ground Pepper’s Andrew Scoville (Here Lies Love) with musical direction by Brandon Sturiale (The Marvelous Wonderettes). 

According to press notes, the show "is a musical church service, a ghost story, a creation myth. It enacts a drama that has recurred throughout American history: African Americans rising up to claim their liberty, while some white Americans react with both violence and willful blindness. The storytelling and the music are modern, but the setting is in Kentucky at the dawn of the Civil War.

"The story's hero, Sadie Applewhite, has just killed her enslaver during a slave revolt, and becomes committed to freeing as many of her enslaved family members as she is able. She is aided by newly converted abolitionist minister while being hunted by slavecatcher and spokesman for white supremacy, Hamish Press. She is driven forward by a deep desire to recover her memory and history, while many characters are trying to do the opposite: to forget their past and travel West to found a new Eden."

It is produced by Ashley Kate Adams of AKA Studio Productions (The Dodgers) in association with the Judson Arts. Melanie Lisby (Broadway Cares) is the production’s stage manager.

The reading will be presented at 7 PM Aug. 27 at The Judson. The address is 239 Thompson Street.

For more information and industry RSVPs, email AKA Studio Productions at [email protected].