For more than 50 years, the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, has been delivering world-class stage productions and educational programming to theater fans throughout the Southeast. As the region’s leading producing theater, the Alliance reaches roughly 165,000 theatergoers each year and hosts plays and musicals for diverse audiences. Its 2022-23 season, for instance, includes child-friendly productions like All Smiles and The Lizard and El Sol as well as dramas such as Water for Elephants and The Hot Wing King, the latter of which won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
Since its inception in 1968, the Alliance Theatre has premiered several iconic and award-winning productions, many of which were later shown on Broadway or in national tours. Below is a look at five of the most notable musicals and plays to debut at the Alliance Theatre.
1. The Color Purple
The Color Purple debuted on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on December 1, 2005, but it was shown for the first time ever at the Alliance Theatre. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Alice Walker, the musical is set in early 1900s rural Georgia. It highlights the harsh realities of being Black in the American South during that time.
On Broadway, the musical was directed by Gary Griffin with choreography provided by Donald Byrd. The musical ran for more than 900 performances at the Broadway Theatre with a cast that included Elisabeth Withers-Mendes, Kingsley Leggs, Brandon Victor Dixon, and Felicia P. Fields. Jennifer Hudson made her Broadway debut in the 2015 Broadway revival of The Color Purple, which won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. The original Broadway production in 2005 received 11 Tony nominations, including Best Musical and Best Original Score.
2. Aida
Aida, a musical produced by Elton John and Tim Rice, was first shown at the Alliance Theatre before earning national attention and acclaim on Broadway in the early 2000s. Based on a 19th-century opera by Giuseppe Verdi, the musical details a love affair between the titular character Aida, a Nubian and a captured princess, and Radames, an Egyptian captain responsible for enslaving her people. Their relationship is made even more challenging by the presence of Amneris, an Egyptian princess who also loves Radames.
John and Rice provided the music and lyrics, respectively, while Robert Falls directed the musical. The original cast included Heather Headley, Adam Pascal, John Hickok, and Sherie Rene Scott. Aida debuted on Broadway at the Palace Theatre in March 2000 and ran for more than 1,850 performances. It won four Tony Awards, including Best Original Score and Best Scenic Design. Headley won Best Actress in a Musical.
3. The Last Night of Ballyhoo
The Last Night of Ballyhoo is one of three Alliance Theatre original plays to win a Tony Award. Written by Alfred Uhry, the play debuted in 1996 and is set during the outset of World War II, in an upper-class German-Jewish suburb of Atlanta. The play examines Jewish identity and anti-Semitism in America and was inspired by Uhry’s own childhood memories.
The play opened on Broadway on February 27, 1997, with original Alliance Theatre cast members Terry Beaver, Dana Ivey, and Stephen Largay. Among other notable actors, Paul Rudd joined the cast for the Broadway production, which featured 556 performances at the iconic Helen Hayes Theatre. The Last Night of Ballyhoo received four Tony nominations and won for Best Play.
4. Ghost Brothers of Darkland County
After nearly a dozen years of pre-production, Ghost Brothers of Darkland County finally saw the stage at the Alliance Theatre in 2012. The brainchild of horror fiction author Stephen King and rock musician John Mellencamp, the musical follows protagonist Joe McCandless in the present and past as he analyzes his children’s struggles with their inner demons and notices similarities to what his brothers went through when they were growing up. There’s also a supernatural element, as to be expected with a King story, as it’s revealed the family is haunted by a character known as “The Shape.”
Despite mixed reviews, the musical was shown throughout the Southeast and Midwest in a 20-city tour in the latter half of 2013 and debuted on Broadway at The Beacon Theater in 2014. It also gave birth to a concept album that combines music and dialogue from the musical. Matthew McConaughey and Meg Ryan provided spoken dialogue for the characters of Drake and Monique.
5. Sister Act: The Musical
An upbeat comedy musical inspired by the 1992 movie starring Whoopi Goldberg, Sister Act: The Musical follows Deloris Van Cartier, a disco diva who witnesses a murder and is placed in a convent for protective custody. Music and lyrics were provided by eight-time Oscar winner Alan Menken and Glenn Slater, while Cheri and Bill Steinkellner wrote the book.
After debuting at the Alliance Theatre, Sister Act: The Musical was shown at London’s West End in 2009 and debuted on Broadway in 2011. It received five Tony nominations, including Best Musical.