No sooner will playgoers have rung in a fresh new year than the Atlanta theater season will be heading straight to Hell — but only in a manner of speaking, that is, with a production of the Tony-winning Broadway musical “Hadestown” at the Fox Theatre.
By the time March goes out like a proverbial lion, courtesy of a crowd-pleasing Donna Summer jukebox musical at Aurora Theatre, the winter lineup promises a varied assortment of options in between. Although musicals are clearly at the forefront of the schedule, discerning fans of dramas or comedies won’t be at a total loss for other possibilities, as well.
Credit: T. Charles Erickson
Credit: T. Charles Erickson
January highlights
“Hadestown”
The Fox Theatre hosts this national touring company show, presented by Broadway in Atlanta. The critically acclaimed musical is inspired by two classic Greek myths about the young lovers Orpheus and Eurydice, and about King Hades and his wife Persephone, set in a hellish, modernized industrial underworld ravaged by climate change.
Jan. 10-15. Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 855-285-8499, atlanta.broadway.com.
“Kim’s Convenience”
A Korean immigrant and convenience store owner grapples with issues of urban gentrification and generational family friction in a topical comedy-drama at Aurora Theatre that served as the basis for a current Netflix series.
Jan. 19-Feb. 19. Lawrenceville Arts Center, 125 N. Clayton St., Lawrenceville. 678-226-6222, auroratheatre.com.
“The White Chip”
In a co-production between Theatrical Outfit and the improv troupe Dad’s Garage, former Outfit artistic director Tom Key stars in a dramatic comedy about addiction and sobriety, co-directed by current Outfit artistic director Matt Torney and Dad’s artistic director Tim Stoltenberg.
Jan. 25-Feb. 19. Dad’s Garage, 569 Ezzard St. SE, Atlanta. 678-528-1500, theatricaloutfit.org.
“Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters”
Adapted from the book by John Steptoe, and told in the style of African folklore, Synchronicity Theatre’s family-oriented new musical deals with sibling rivalry and an ultimate test of character.
Jan. 27-Feb. 19. Synchronicity Theatre, Peachtree Pointe, 1545 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-484-8636, synchrotheatre.com.
Also opening in January:
Atlanta Shakespeare’s whimsical farce “The Merry Wives of Windsor” (Jan. 7-29). Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse, 499 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-874-5299, shakespearetavern.com.
Legacy’s boisterous musical “Sister Act” (Jan. 27-Feb. 26). Legacy Theatre, 1175 Senoia Road, Tyrone. 404-895-1473, legacytheater.com.
Stage Door’s romantic comedy “Completeness” (Jan. 27-Feb. 12). Dunwoody Cultural Arts Center, 5339 Chamblee-Dunwoody Road, Dunwoody. 770-396-1726, stagedoortheatrega.org.
Credit: Jerry Siegel
Credit: Jerry Siegel
February highlights
“Urinetown”
Actor’s Express and Oglethorpe University Theatre co-produce this irreverent musical. Set in the not-too-distant future, it follows a ragtag team of revolutionaries who rise up against the corrupt “Urine Good Company” corporation.
Feb. 2-19. Conant Performing Arts Center (at Oglethorpe University), 4484 Peachtree Road NE, Brookhaven. 404-607-7469, actors-express.com.
“The Hot Wing King”
Playwright Katori Hall directs her own Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy-drama for the Alliance Theatre. As her protagonist, his beau, and a few of their friends gather in Memphis to prepare his culinary entry for the annual “Hot Wang Festival,” matters of Black masculinity and dysfunctional family dynamics threaten to boil over.
Feb. 10-March 5. Alliance Theatre, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-733-4600, alliancetheatre.org.
“Our Town”
Thornton Wilder’s famous Pulitzer winner receives a multilingual reimagining, wherein passages of the play have been translated into both Spanish and Mandarin. Lydia Fort and Marguerite Hannah, who recently collaborated on Horizon’s “The Light,” co-direct the show for Theater Emory.
Feb. 16-March 2. Theater Lab, Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, 1700 N. Decatur Road, Atlanta. 404-727-5050, theater.emory.edu.
“Good Bad People”
True Colors Theatre’s new drama involves a young woman who reunites with her estranged family after her brother is shot by a police officer. But when the rest of them refuse to make an official statement, she is forced to decide which is more important: making amends with her family or standing up for her personal beliefs — and her brother’s life.
Feb. 17-March 12. Southwest Arts Center, 915 New Hope Road SW, Atlanta. 470-639-8241, truecolorstheatre.org.
Also opening in February:
Out Front’s edgy friendship comedy “I Wanna [Expletive] Tear You Apart” (Feb. 2-18). Out Front Theatre, 999 Brady Ave. NW, Atlanta. 404-448-2755, outfronttheatre.com.
Atlanta Shakespeare’s annual staging of the romantic tragedy “Romeo and Juliet” (Feb. 4-March 4). Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse, 499 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-874-5299, shakespearetavern.com.
Georgia Ensemble’s mistaken-identity comedy “Women in Jeopardy” (Feb. 16-March 5). Roswell Cultural Arts Center, 950 Forrest St., Roswell. 770-641-1260, get.org.
Atlanta Lyric’s greatest-hits musical revue “The Best of Broadway” (Feb. 16-26). Jennie T. Anderson Theatre, Cobb Civic Center, 548 W. Marietta Parkway, Marietta. 404-377-9948, atlantalyrictheatre.com.
Credit: Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade
Credit: Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade
The national touring company production of “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” (Feb. 21-26). Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 855-285-8499, atlanta.broadway.com.
March highlights
“The Many Wondrous Realities of Jasmine Starr-Kidd”
In this year’s winner of the Alliance’s Kendeda Graduate Playwriting Competition, a 12-year-old computer genius may be able to hack into corporate mainframes or build an artificially intelligent friend, but convincing her separated parents to get back together proves to be a bigger challenge than even time travel. Tinashe Kajese-Bolden (“Everybody,” “Toni Stone”) directs.
March 1-26. Alliance Theatre, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-733-4600, alliancetheatre.org.
“Oh, to be Pure Again”
Religion and purity collide with rebellion and sex at a Texas fundamentalist Christian summer camp in this Actor’s Express drama, as the girls’ idealistic counselor confronts doubts about her own spiritual faith and values.
March 2-26. Actor’s Express, King Plow Arts Center, 887 W. Marietta St. NW, Atlanta. 404-607-7469, actors-express.com.
“Monty Python’s Spamalot”
City Springs Theatre mounts the rollicking musical version of the famous film comedy “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” With its own unique spin, the show retells the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, singing and dancing their way through medieval England in their search for that elusive goblet.
March 10-26. Byers Theatre, Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center, 1 Galambos Way, Sandy Springs. 404-477-4365, cityspringstheatre.com.
“Summer: The Donna Summer Musical”
Directed and choreographed by the accomplished Patdro Harris, who most recently helmed Theatrical Outfit’s “Flex,” the woman known as the Queen of Disco gets her own jukebox musical in this Aurora production.
March 16-April 9. Lawrenceville Arts Center, 125 N. Clayton St., Lawrenceville. 678-226-6222, auroratheatre.com.
Also opening in March:
7 Stages’ immersive, multidisciplinary “Pinocchio” (March 3-12). 7 Stages, 1105 Euclid Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-523-7647, 7stages.org.
Out Front’s drama about a gay Black man living with HIV, “One in Two” (March 16-April 4). Out Front Theatre, 999 Brady Ave. NW, Atlanta. 404-448-2755, outfronttheatre.com.
Atlanta Shakespeare’s epic “Pericles” (March 11-April 1). Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse, 499 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-874-5299, shakespearetavern.com.
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