Tim Acito Debuts Revised ZANNA, DON'T (the Reboot) at Theatre Horizon Tonight

Everything old is new again, and leave it to Tim Acito, writer of the 2003 off-Broadway hit Zanna, Don't, to prove that adage. The composer will premiere a brand new version of his beloved musical, appropriately called Zanna Don't (the Reboot), at Theatre Horizon for a one-night-only concert reading, part of the company's 42nd and Main Concert Series tonight, June 29, 2017 at 7:30PM.

"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 of the revision. "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 original show, set in a parallel universe high school where homosexuality is the norm and heterosexuality is taboo, has been heavily revised. Approximately 40% of the new Zanna, Don't score has been re-composed, and the vast majority of the dialogue is also new. Acito says that the main characters now have clearer goals, backgrounds, and relationships. One of the biggest changes is that the lead character, Zanna, is now pangender.

"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. "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 all-star cast includes Broadway's Cassie Okendka (School of Rock, Bonnie and Clyde, Wicked first national), Teri Furr (Gypsy starring Tyne Daly (June), Beauty & the Beast, Les Miserables), Rusty Reynolds (Miss Saigon, Funny Girl, Big River national tour), and Kevin DeJesus-Jones (Spider Man: Turn Off the Dark).

Part of the unique nature of the performance is Theatre Horizon's "Pay What You Decide" initiative. The company wants to encourage more people to come and see unique and conversation-generating works at Theatre Horizon, more often. Pay What You Decide not only allows guests to pay what they can afford, rather than a fixed ticket price, but also removes the financial risk of buying a ticket for a show in advance. As always, tickets will be available to book in advance, but there is no obligation to pay until after audience members have seen the show. They can then decide on a price which they think is suitable based on their experience. All money collected will help Theatre Horizon. At the end of the show, guests can decide what to pay, either by cash at the door or by card at the Box Office.

Tickets to the June 29 performance at 7:30PM can be booked at theatrehorizon.org. It is suggested that guests have arrived and collected tickets 15 minutes before the show starts in order to secure seats.

Reservations (pay what you decide): www.theatrehorizon.org

Cassie Okenka: Cassie is the co-founder of the 42nd and Main Concert Series and is currently in School of Rock on Broadway. Credits include Broadway - Bonnie and Clyde (Bonnie u/s), Wicked 1st National (Glinda u/s), Wizard of Oz National Tour ( Dorothy).

Teri Furr: Broadway: Gypsy starring Tyne Daly (June), Beauty & the Beast, Les Miserables. National Tours: Gypsy, Les Miserables, Dreamgirls, Pump Boys & Dinettes. Regional credits include: JCSuperstar, A Chorus Line, 42nd Street, Under Glass and How I Learned to Drive. Teri, having worked as a director, choreographer, and teaching artist, has a BFA in Musical Theatre (Syracuse University) and an MA in Counseling (Montclair State University).

Rusty Reynolds: Rusty has been seen on Broadway in Miss Saigon (final company) and Funny Girl (Actors' Fund), and Off-Broadway in Carnival! (York Theatre Co.). Tours include Big River, Miss Saigon and Hot Shoe Shuffle, and regional credits include South Pacific (Paper Mill), Animal Crackers (Goodspeed), A Christmas Carol (Syracuse Stage), Funny Girl (Westchester Broadway Theatre; Gretna Theatre); Gifts of the Magi (Cleveland Playhouse), George M! (Gretna Theatre) and others. Rusty is the composer and lyricist of the musical BIX.

Kevin DeJesus-Jones is thrilled to be making his Philadelphia debut at Theatre Horizon! A recent transplant from New York, Kevin has been most recently seen onstage as Tulsa in Gypsy at Virginia Repertory Theatre, and as the Hero Flyer in Broadway's Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. Thanks to Mom, Dad, and Kristin.

Tim Acito wrote the book, music, and lyrics for Zanna, Don't! (GLAAD Award, 3 Drama Desk Nominations) and The Women of Brewster Place (Sundance residency; LA Ovation Award; NAACP Award), as well as the music for Korea's largest domestically created musical, The 200 Pound Beauty (Best Musical in Korea, 2009). A grateful recipient of multiple ASCAP Composer Grants, he is currently working on a new musical about the molecular epigenetics of inherited trauma.

Molly Braverman (Managing Director) is a Philadelphia native, returning to the city after ten years working as a Stage Manager and Director in New York and on tour. Stage and Production Management credits include, Broadway: Wicked, Collected Stories; 1st National Tours: Wicked, Little House on the Prairie; Off-Broadway/Workshops: The Picture of DorIan Gray, Zorba, Scandalous, An Officer and a Gentleman; Benefits: Christmas Eve with Christmas Eve (NYC), Wicked Rocky Horror Show (Las Vegas, Denver). Regional directing credits include Zanna Don't, Pippin, Boise Idaho, and 365Days/365Plays. She has served as Assistant Technical Director for off-Broadway's Theatre Row Studios and is a graduate of Columbia University.

ABOUT THEATRE HORIZON: Theatre Horizon, founded in 2005, is a professional nonprofit theatre company headquartered in the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania: Norristown, located 20 miles west of Philadelphia. Since its inception, Theatre Horizon has produced critically-acclaimed productions that fulfill its mission of connecting audiences and students with professional theatre artists through relevant and compelling theatre, and has been the recipient of multiple Barrymore Awards for Excellence in Theatre. The company has also presented original works and has an extensive education program that reaches hundreds of students in the greater Philadelphia region. Through theatre, the company creates a community of artists, students and audiences in which each member is encouraged to grow. More info at theatrehorizon.org.