Zink: The Myth, The Legend, The Zebra at Out of the Box Community Theatre

Commissioned by First Stage Milwaukee, Zink is about true courage in the face of unpredictable predators. Imaginative, funny, and heartbreaking, it's the story of the relationship of Becky, a lonely pre-teen girl with leukemia, to her guardian-angel herd of zebras on the African savannah. The zebras range from street-smart Ice Z to grandfatherly Papa Zeke, effete Zilch to endearing Shlep, a furry green monkey sure he is actually a zebra. In Africa, Becky learns about Zink, a mythical polka-dotted zebra once an outcast but later a hero with the most courage and biggest heart. Becky's health worsens and she zaps back and forth between her real life and the zebra world until the shattering, breathtaking and uplifting climax. Never maudlin, "playwright Bennett does a masterful job of balancing the hard realities of illness and the magic found on the zebras' African plains. (Courtesy Dramatic Publishing)