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Ciara Renée as Esmerelda in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" at La Jolla Playhouse. (Photo by Kevin Berne)

Aurora Theatre 2017-18 Season to Open With ‘Hunchback’

The Atlanta theatre will mount a mix of contemporary plays and musicals.

ATLANTA: Aurora Theatre has announced its 2017-18 season, which will feature six productions.

“We are taking big chances,” said Aurora Theatre cofounder and producing artistic director Anthony Rodriguez in a statement. “This is no time to play it safe. As always, we have crafted a lineup that will feature talented artists, both on and off stage.”

The season will open with The Hunchback of Notre Dame (July 20-Aug 27), based on the novel by Victor Hugo and the Disney film, with music Alan Menken, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and book by Peter Parnell. The musical is about Quasimodo, a deformed bell ringer who lives in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. The show is a coproduction with Theatrical Outfit.

Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s Abigail/1702 will be next (Sept 21-Oct. 15). The play is a sequel to The Crucible and is about Abigail Williams, who accused the women in her town of being witches, as she finds a new life in Boston.

For the holidays, Aurora will present the 22nd iteration of its Christmas Canteen (Nov. 16-Dec. 23), a musical revue and sketch comedy show.

After that will be Maytag Virgin by Audrey Cefaly (Jan. 11-Feb. 11, 2018). The play is about the friendship between a widow and her odd neighbor.

The season will close with Ripcord by David Lindsay-Abaire (May 10-June 3, 2018), about a pair of senior citizens who are forced to room together at the Bristol Place Senior Living Facility.

The spring will also include another musical, which will be announced at a later date.

Founded in 1996, Aurora Theatre is the second largest theatre in Georgia. It serves 70,000 audience members a year.

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