It was gearing up to be a grand season of theater in the ATL until â it wasnât. Concern over the COVID-19 virus has forced all metro Atlanta theater companies to close temporarily and put a hold on their shows, many of which were mid-run. Most theaters shut down on their own, but a mandate by Atlantaâs Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms last week made it official that theaters and performing venues had to close.
Some of those productions include Out Front Theatre Companyâs gay-themed âwarplay,â Actorâs Expressâ âThe Brother Sizeâ â written by Oscar winner Tarell Alvin McCraney â and Theatrical Outfitâs âIndecent.â All three companies had already opened their respective shows.
Affected, too, was Aurora Theatreâs âOn Your Feet!,â a musical detailing the story of Gloria and Emilio Estefan, and 7 Stagesâ upcoming queer-themed âCollective Rage: A Play In 5 Betties.â Serenbe Playhouse, too, decided not to stage its version of the gay-themed âSpring Awakening.â
Almost every Atlanta company was affected. Broadway in Atlanta had to pull its musical âMiss Saigonâ while Onstage Atlanta had to cancel its version of âDisaster! The Musicalâ and postpone its â5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche.â The Alliance Theatre announced that it was scrapping all performances for the spring. The shows that were affected are âNaked Mole Rat Gets Dressed: The Rock Experience,â âIn My Grannyâs Garden,â â53% Ofâ and âSweatâ as well as the Festival of New Works.
The virus has forced other performing companies to shutter plans as well. Atlanta Opera had to cancel the closing weekend performances of its acclaimed âPorgy and Bess.â
What happens to the rest of the season remains to be seen. Some shows are sadly gone and not likely to come back while others could return for a later date. Ann-Carol Pence, Auroraâs associate producer and co-founder, is hopeful âOn Your Feet!â will come back. âWe left our set up for it hoping to return just where we left off,â she says. âWeâd love to see it back up and running in May.â
So far, Broadway in Atlanta has not canceled its upcoming run of the smash âHamilton,â scheduled to open March 31. Its Atlanta run â through May 2 â is one of the companyâs longest.
Shows scheduled for late April, early May, and beyond are â for the time being â still planned. Atlanta Opera, for instance, is still hopeful of staging âMadama Butterflyâ in May while Serenbe is gearing up for the comedy drama âSteel Magnoliasâ and the musical âKinky Boots.â
Out Front is hopeful that it can still stage its version of the classic âThe Boys in the Band,â set for a late April opening. If those dates do not work, the company has some flexibility about mounting the production another time.
In the interim, some companies have taken to streaming their product. Out Front has filmed âwarplayâ and is offering it on its website through March 29, says Paul Conroy, the companyâs artistic director.
Conroy saw the news about what was going on and reached out to the playwright for permission. He was lucky, he says, that none of the actors in âwarplayâ were Equity. âWe got permissions and were able to film and stream it,â he says. âWe are also looking at the possibility of putting some past shows online as well.â
The Allianceâs âNaked Mole Ratâ is also available for streaming through March 29 and its version of âIn My Grannyâs Gardenâ will be available soon.
More Info
âwarplayâ
http://outfronttheatre.com/event/warplay/
Streaming through March 29
âNaked Mole Rat Gets Dressed:Â
The Rock Experienceâ
https://alliancetheatre.org/production/2019-20/naked-mole-rat-gets-dressed-the-rock-experience
Streaming through March 29
âIn My Grannyâs Gardenâ
Coming soon
https://alliancetheatre.org/production/2019-20/my-grannys-garden