Dark Houses

Atlanta Living & Arts

Dark Houses

In March Legion Theatre in Cartersville, home of the Pumphouse Players, was preparing for a production of "Ada and the Engine," by Atlanta playwright Lauren Gunderson, when COVID-19 arrived. The set is still on the stage. Photo: Michael Boatright

The "ghost light" is the only source of illumination at the Balzer Theatre, where the Theatrical Outfit performs. Photo: Michael Boatright

At the Aurora Theatre in Lawrenceville activity did not stop and carpenters were building a set for a video that was to be shot on the premises when photographer Michael Boatright visited. Photo: Michael Boatright

Backstage at the Aurora Theatre in Lawrenceville is the shop, quiet now. Michael Boatright

The Alliance Theatre had been performing on its newly-renovated Coca-Cola Stage a little more than a year when the pandemic closed down the theater world in Atlanta. Photo: Michael Boatright

"There is nothing that speaks more of dark houses than the chained door at the Horizon Theatre," said Michael Boatright, whose images of empty theaters tell the story of the theatrical disaster this summer. Photo: Michael Boatright

The Stage Door Players were preparing a production of "The Outsider" at the Spruill Center for the Arts in Dunwoody when the city shut down. Photo: Michael Boatright

The formulas sketched on the floor of the set for "Ada and the Engine" at the Legion Theatre in Cartersville illustrate the story of Ada Lovelace, a 19th century mathematician who broke conventions by excelling in the hard sciences. The show was interrupted by the pandemic. The set remains on the stage. Photo: Michael Boatright

The Academy Theatre in Hapeville includes signage near their improv stage that refers back to the building's previous incarnation as a hardware store. Photo: Michael Boatright

The Fox Theatre in Midtown was undergoing some repairs when photographer Michael Boatright visited, and workers were climbing scaffolding to repaint the sky-blue ceiling. Photo: Michael Boatright

The Alliance Theatre in Midtown Atlanta finished a $32 million renovation in January 2019. A little more than a year later that theatre would go dark, along with many other theatrical facilities in Atlanta. Michael Boatright

The technicians at the Horizon Theatre, including co-founder Jeff Adler, were in the middle of constructing a new set for a show called "The Light" when the virus shut down the production. Photo: Michael Boatright

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Credit: Michael Boatright

In March Legion Theatre in Cartersville, home of the Pumphouse Players, was preparing for a production of "Ada and the Engine," by Atlanta playwright Lauren Gunderson, when COVID-19 arrived. The set is still on the stage. Photo: Michael Boatright

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