The Alliance Theatre’s 55th season season will feature an Obie winner, a Pulitzer winner and multiple world premieres, in addition to a production of The Shining performed in collaboration with The Atlanta Opera.
“We selected a variety of stories that honor the diverse and aspirational quality of this extraordinary city – new stories from new voices, familiar stories told in new and surprising ways and new partnerships with local and national arts organizations,” said Associate Artistic Director Christopher Moses in a press release.
Moses developed the Alliance’s 55th season in collaboration with BOLD Associate Artistic Director Tinashe Kajese-Bolden and Managing Director Mike Schleifer. Former artistic director Susan V. Booth stepped down from her role in 2022 after developing the 54th season, and a new artistic director has not yet been announced.
World premieres for 2023-2024 include Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, adapted for the stage by Brendan Pelsue; The Preacher’s Wife, a musical by Tituss Burgess and Azie Dungey; Furlough’s Paradise, by a.k. payne — winner of the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition — and Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale by Mark Valdez.
Award-winning productions for the season include English by Sanaz Toossi, an Obie Award winner for Best New Play; and Fat Ham by James Ijames, winner of the 2023 Pulitzer for drama.
“[The Preacher’s Wife] has been 13 years in the making,” Tituss Burgess told ArtsATL. “I’m honored to be partnering with the Alliance Theatre on a project so close to my heart. Working on a show about faith has tested my own faith — Ah, but just hold on! Help is on the way.”
Additionally, two limited-engagement productions are planned for Alliance Presents series. On stage August 25-27 is The Ballethnic Dance Company’s Jazzing: Memoirs in Jazz, A Series of Dances. This new collection of dances is inspired by The Breman Museum’s exhibition, A Jazz Memoir: The Photography of Herb Snitzer. January 5 through 7, a new play written by artist-in-residence Pearl Cleage, Something Moving: A Meditation on Maynard, will take the stage, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the election of Maynard Jackson as Atlanta’s first Black mayor.
“We are so excited to celebrate theater’s transformative power to strengthen human connection through stories that reflect the cultural vibrancy and rich diversity of Atlanta — stories that are equally harrowing, hilarious and hopeful,” said Kajese-Bolden. “Led by globally recognized artists channeling their vibrant and fearless spirits, we believe audiences will journey with us into imaginative experiences of self-actualizing, family legacy and communal empowerment.”
