Theaters around the country -- including in Salt Lake City -- are scheduled to participate in a unique free event to raise awareness of the issue of marriage equality. ---

Standing on Ceremony: The Gay Marriage Plays was conceived and organized originally as a series of fundraising events in Los Angeles. Nearly a dozen celebrated playwrights -- including Moises Kaufman (The Laramie Project), Paul Rudnick (Jeffrey), Neil LaBute (Bash) and Doug Wright (I Am My Own Wife) -- contributed one-act plays on the theme of gay marriage, but the event grew out of its one-city-only concept to become a multi-venue event.

In Salt Lake City tonight at 6 p.m., Plan-B Theatre Company presents a script-in-hand production at Salt Lake Art Center's Creer Auditorium, with a cast including radio personalities Bill Allred and Doug Fabrizio, and local actors Kirt Bateman, Teresa Sanderson, Stephanie Howell and Jay Perry. Tickets are free, but must be reserved at PlanBTheatre.org; contributions to EqualityUtah are encouraged, with a goal of $10,000.

Attendees will also be able to participate in a live Q&A (via Twitter-sent questions) from the Minetta Lane Theatre in New York City, where Standing on Ceremony begins previews.