Zanna, Don't! Will Get Cast Album from PS Classics Come Summer
By Kenneth Jones
16 May 2003
PS Classics, which recently preserved the Broadway revival cast of Nine for a cast album, will release the original cast album of Zanna, Don't!, the pop-flavored, funky Off-Broadway musical about a universe where everyone is gay.
The Zanna, Don't! cast goes into the studio in early June and a release is expected shortly after, PS Classics co-founder Tommy Krasker told Playbill On-Line. He'll also produce the disc. Krasker will team with engineer Tom Lazarus on the CD; their recent collaboration was the Nine album (in stores June 17).
The Drama Desk Award-nominated musical fairy tale by composer-lyricist-librettist Tim Acito and collaborator Alexander Dinelaris, opened at the John Houseman Theatre March 20 after previews and an Off-Off-Broadway test run in fall 2002.
Zanna, Don't! will be PS Classics' first disc with a contemporary bubble-gum pop flavor. Pleasing a wide demographic, the score boasts funk, rock, pop and techno-disco sounds, to say nothing of slap-happy musical theatre specialty numbers.
PS Classics was founded to focus on the heritage of American musical theatre and the tradition of American popular song, and Zanna, Don't! is a new color in the label's palette (while still fulfilling the company's mission). Past PS Classics releases include popular discs by vocalists Jessica Molaskey, Philip Chaffin and Christine Andreas, as well as "The Maury Yeston Songbook," a new studio recording of Vincent Youmans' little-known musical, Through the Years, and more.
Visit PS Classics online at www.psclassics.com.
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In the world of Zanna, Don't!, gay folks are the norm and straight folks are marginalized — the latter seeking asylum in San Francisco.
In fall 2002, the musical comedy that created its own unique universe, complete with quirky specialty songs about the nature of love, became a talked-about sell-out in its brief Off-Off-Broadway tryout run. Now, after a little script tinkering, an open-ended commercial run at the Houseman on 42nd Street introduces a wider audience to the music, book and lyrics of newcomer Tim Acito.
Set in a high school in Heartsville, USA, the show is billed as "musical fairy tale," focusing on two teen-age same-sex couples, Mike and Steve, and Kate and Roberta. Steve is the star quarterback and Mike is captain of the chess team; Roberta has just been dumped but hooks up with Kate, star of the mechanical bull-riding team.
The already upside-down world gets further twisted when one partner from each couple comes to realize their dawning heterosexuality. A pal of the couples is Zanna, a fashionably hip matchmaking teen (played by Jai Rodriguez) with super powers and a secret crush of his own.
Think of the show as a bright hybrid of Bye Bye Birdie, Grease, with a touch more social satire and heart.
The cast includes Anika Larsen (as Roberta), Darius Nichols (as Buck), Amanda Ryan Paige (as Candy/Karla), Enrico Rodriguez (as Mike), Robb Sapp (as Tank), Shelley Thomas (as Kate) and Jared Zeus (as Steve). Most of the players double and triple in roles. The intermissionless show began previews March 5.
The commercial Off-Broadway run follows a hot-selling Off-Off-Broadway run in October 2002 where producers Jack M. Dalgleish, in association with Stephanie A. Joel, and librettist-composer-lyricist Acito (who also did vocal arrangements) got a fuller look at the show and were able to address rough spots prior to the 2003 leap. Amas Musical Theatre presented the tryout. Rewrites happened in late 2002 and early 2003, but there were no wholesale song cuts or additions.
Audiences for the current run have gone wild for the director-choreographer Devanand Janki's staging. Show stopping applause is not uncommon, particularly after numbers such as "Be a Man"/"Don't Ask, Don't Tell," "Fast" and the funky "Whatcha Got?" The show has additional book and lyrics by Alexander Dinelaris.
The work's varied pop sound and bright, middle-of-the road, matter-of-fact attitude about love make it a property to varied audiences.
"The gay audience is a core market," producer Dalgleish previously told Playbill On-Line, agreeing that audiences who come to the show are surprised to learn the work is not the raunchy, bitchy or fleshy sort of show that some people expect from some gay-oriented stage shows.
He said his challenge as a producer is to let people know the show is a social satire with heart and sincerity, boasting a score that flirts with funk, rock, pop, classic musical theatre, country and more.
Trouble brews in the show's gay universe when high school pals Kate and Steve find they are attracted to each other after sharing a passionate moment in the school musical (about straights in the military). They are shunned as outsiders and even consider running off to San Francisco, which has a reputation as a heterosexual enclave.
While it does spoof gay cliches and gender attitudes, the show ultimately "lets you see individuals and not stereotypes," said Dalgleish.
Musical supervision is by Edward G. Robinson. Production designers are Wade Laboissonniere and Tobin Ost. Lighting design is by Jeff Nellis and sound design is by Robert Killenberger. David Geist is musical director and dance arranger.
The John Houseman is at 450 W. 42nd Street. Tickets are $65. Performances play 8 PM Tuesday, 2 PM Saturday, 3 & 7 PM Sunday. For information, call (212) 239-6200.
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