Scott Shearer of Cabot, left, portrays Marcus in the musical "The Choice" as he receives his orders from Octavius, played by Ed Green of Butler. The annual Easter musical will be staged April 8 and 9 at Penn Christian Academy.

The Sing Hosanna! performing arts group is breaking from tradition this year for its annual Easter production.

Instead of performing original material, the group has decided to stage the musical "The Choice."

"I've had the production for awhile and I just decided now was the time," said director Ralph Christy Jr. about his choice to deviate from creating the shows' content himself.

"The Choice" is a glimpse into the Easter story from a different perspective. Set during the rule of Tiberius Caesar in the seaside city of Capernaum, a young Roman centurion, Marcus, falls in love with a beautiful Jewish girl, Hannah.

As Marcus becomes fatefully intertwined in the events leading to the execution of Jesus, he weighs the words and example of Christ against the wealth and power of the world. In the balance hangs the Choice.

Scott Shearer is a toolmaker in Apollo by day and Marcus the Centurion at night. "Marcus just happens to be the centurion at Christ's crucifixion," said Shearer. "He not only is changed by that event but also through the healing of his servant. He meets Jesus through Hannah, a young Jewish girl with whom he has fallen in love."

"After his experience at the cross he has to make a choice whether to follow Jesus or his dreams of success in the Roman military," he added.

Shearer worked with Sing Hosanna! on its Christmas production, but that was his first theater experience since his debut 25 years earlier in a Knoch High School musical.

"That production 25 years ago was where I met Ralph Christy for the first time in 10th grade. My daughter Tara got me involved with Sing Hosanna! at Christmas after telling me how they needed male actors," Shearer explained.

Juggling life and rehearsals can be challenging, but Shearer said it's worth it. "I'm a father of six kids, running them all to their activities, coaching hockey and baseball, teaching kid's choir at our church, working and being a husband, and still trying to find time to learn all my lines," he explained. "But I have learned to leave it in God's hands and ask (God) for the strength, endurance and memory to get through it."

Shearer thinks the unique perspective is a plus at telling the story. "I think that our audience will experience the story of Jesus, being able to put themselves into Marcus' shoes," he said. "Knowing that we all strive for earthly accomplishments and title, and forgetting that we must forsake all the materialistic things in life to follow Jesus," he added.

Playing Hannah is Connie Hagan of Slippery Rock. "I play a Jewish maid who is in love with a Roman centurion. She is trying to help the centurion choose Jesus," she explained.Hagan, who works at Family Medicine Center in Slippery Rock, has been with Sing Hosanna! for three years in various singing capacities.Hagan appreciated the music in this score. "'Could He Be the One?' is one of my favorites. I love the lyrics and music," she said."The song is performed five times during the production by Marcus the Centurion, Hannah, an older Jewish man, again by Marcus after he chooses Jesus, and also as a reprise at the end by the entire ensemble," she explained. "It is very touching when sung by Marcus after he accepts Jesus. This songs points out that Jesus is the right choice for all of us, no matter who we are, or what we do."Harry Dillaman of West Sunbury plays Hannah's grandfather. "I portray Asa, a bakery owner with a Jewish wife, Rachel. We are very protective of granddaughter Hannah from a Roman," said Dillaman, who has been involved with Sing Hosanna! for six years."This production has taught me that times back then are not much different than now," he said. "Boy meets girl, they fall in love over the objections of their guardians, but all is well in the end if we believe in God," he added."I think the perspective will be an interesting twist to a story that so many people are familiar with," said Christy.Tickets go on sale March 27 for the two performances at Penn Christian Academy.