A heavily revised version of the 2003 Off-Broadway hit Zanna, Don't will make its premiere at Pennsylvania's Theatre Horizon June 29.
Entitled Zanna Don’t (the Reboot), the one-night-only concert reading (part of the company’s 42nd and Main Concert Series) will begin at 7:30PM. Molly Braverman will direct Tim Acito and Alexander Dinelaris' musical.
One of the major changes in the show—set in a parallel universe high school where homosexuality is the norm and heterosexuality is taboo—is the lead character, Zanna, is now pangender. Additionally, 40 percent of the score has been re-composed, and the vast majority of the dialogue is new.
“Perhaps above all, the show wants us to think again about what else we can aspire to be, beyond sexuality or gender identity,” Acito said in a statement. “While those are two central aspects of human identity, of equal or greater importance is discovering what we stand for—morally, personally, and politically.”
The cast will include Cassie Okenka (School of Rock, Bonnie and Clyde), Teri Furr (Gypsy, Beauty and the Beast, Les Miserables), Rusty Reynolds (Miss Saigon, Funny Girl, Big River national tour), and Kevin DeJesus-Jones (Spider Man: Turn Off the Dark). The evening will also have musical direction by Noah Mallitz and lighting design by Angela Coleman.
“The show forces us to think again about who has been left out of our country’s beloved iconography—not just LGBTQ people, but also women, people of color, religious minorities, and the economically disadvantaged,” Acito said. “On a more personal level, the show asks us to think again about the damage we can do to ourselves and to others when we run away from problems instead of facing them head on.”
The performance is part of Theatre Horizon’s “Pay What You Decide” initiative. Tickets are available to book in advance, but there is no obligation to pay until after audience members have seen the show. Tickets can be booked at TheatreHorizon.org. It is suggested that guests arrive and collect tickets 15 minutes before the show starts in order to secure seats.
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