The reading of Caren Tackett's musical will be presented April 26 at a venue to be announced. Casting is also forthcoming.

In a statement writer Tackett said, "I was newly cast as a swing in Rent, and the urge to write overtook me. I holed myself up in our dressing room during the shows and wrote furiously. I'm not sure how other writers find their inspiration, but it's been my experience that sometimes it's the other way around; it finds you. I am a person who has chosen to throw myself into my life experiences the hard way, and learn my lessons in retrospect. It's not just an exploration of the cycles of fear and prejudice regarding sex, race, sexual orientation and organized religion. It's also my own life experience told in metaphor and myth."

Born Blue, according to press notes, "takes place in a post-apocalyptic dive bar somewhere between life and death where lost souls drink the 'Blue House Brew' whose purpose is not to intoxicate, but to flush away one's previous life experiences and prepare them for rebirth. The House band, 'Creatrix'  ('God'), speaks only the language of music, which they channel through soulful front-woman 'Infinity.'"

Anthony Rapp created the role of Mark Cohen in the Broadway and London productions of Rent. His other theatrical credits include Hedwig and the Angry Inch; You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown; Precious Sons; Six Degrees of Separation; Bright Lights, Big City; Raised in Captivity; Trafficking in Broken Hearts; Youth Is Wasted; Sophistry; and The Destiny of Me. Rapp's film credits feature roles in "A Beautiful Mind," "Adventures in Babysitting," "School Ties," "Dazed and Confused" and "Six Degrees of Separation." He was also seen in Chris Columbus' "Rent" film.

The upcoming reading is being produced by Caren Tackett and Kurt Alger. Tickets will go on sale March 15. *

Founded by Mike Nichols and Cynthia O’Neal in 1991, Friends In Deed — The Crisis Center for Life-Threatening Illness — "provides emotional and spiritual support for anyone diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-threatening physical illnesses." For more information, visit www.friendsindeed.org.