A benefit staged reading of Dennis Bailey and David Mixner’s play Jacob's Ladder will be presented October 6 at 7 PM at Theater 555 Off-Broadway. 

Directed by Jim Cooney, the reading will star Ephraim Birney (Gotham), Tony nominee Melissa Errico (Amour), Suzanne Grodner, Mark Mackillop (Anastasia), Mary Page Nance (A Beautiful Noise), and Rob Sutton (Beauty and The Beast). Alex Mustelier will read stage directions. 

The one-night-only reading will benefit The David Mixner Memorial Fund at The Ali Forney Center, a favorite non-profit of the late Mr. Mixner.

Jacob's Ladder is set in spring 1944 when an unassuming young staffer to FDR, Jacob Greenstein (Birney), discovers a daring and controversial proposal that has been set forth to divert Allied forces to bomb the concentration camps in Eastern Europe. Jacob is then thrust into a moral firestorm that pits politics against humanity, loyalty against conscience, and silence against action. 

The Ali Forney Center’s mission is to protect LGBTQ+ youths from the harms of homelessness and empower them with the tools needed to live independently.  When David Mixner passed in 2024, it was one of his final wishes to establish the David Mixner Memorial Fund to support the lifesaving work of the Center. 

Benefit tickets range from $50 to $150. For ticket information click here. Those unable to attend the benefit but would like to support the Memorial Fund can click here.