In 2010, two Utah institutions dedicated to challenging our perceptions—the Utah AIDS Foundation and Plan-B Theatre Company—are celebrating landmark anniversaries. So, for UAF’s 25th birthday and Plan-B’s 20th, both are teaming up for a special free night of theater.

Larry Kramer’s 1985 play The Normal Heart became one of theater’s groundbreaking works, a semi-autobiographical account of a man dealing with his HIV-positive status in the early years of the AIDS crisis. This one-night-only staged reading of The Normal Heart brings together talented local performers, including Christy Summerhays, Kirt Bateman, Mark Fossen and Jay Perry, to let the audience contemplate how much has changed—and how much hasn’t.

Admission is free, but reservations are highly recommended. You can use the cash you would have spent on the cash bar—or, better yet, on a donation to Utah AIDS Foundation.

The Normal Heart @ Jeanne Wagner Theatre, 138 W. Broadway, Aug. 14, 8 p.m. Free with reservation (request at jerry@planbtheatre.org) walk-ups seated after RSVPs. PlanBTheatre.org, UtahAids.org