CityGuide - 12 ways to take in the local theater scene

The best relatively ITP haunts for plays, performances, and onstage shenanigans

7 Stagese Magnum
Photo credit: Courtesy 7 Stages Theatre

There’s nothing like sitting in a dark room with strangers. We could be crying over Romeo and Juliet’s fatal miscommunication, laughing at an improv company’s spin on the King of Pops backstory, or simply trying to impress our dates with our prowess for all things theater. Whatever the reason, ATLiens love to going to the theater and, fortunately, inside the Perimeter (and out) there are productions for and by every walk of city life.

Atlanta’s avant-garde playhouse enjoys a sterling national and international reputation for the persistent stylistic daring and moral urgency of its work. The venue frequently hosts performance troupes such as Dad’s Garage and Full Radius Dance. The intimate Back Stage space is home to smaller produ... | more...

Founded in 1956, Atlanta’s oldest theatrical organization that has nurtured such talent as the Tony Award-winning Kenny Leon has found a new life and location in Hapeville, where it emphasizes educational programs as well as performances. | more...

Possibly Atlanta’s most exciting theater company, Actor’s Express specializes in finding bold new plays and rediscovering classics that are still kicking. | more...

CL: The lavish sets and production values at times risk upstaging the actual shows at Atlanta’s biggest and most prestigious theater company, which features the 770-seat Alliance Stage and the more intimate 200-seat Hertz Stage. In 2021, the National Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) presented Trahan Architects with the 2021 Interior Architecture Award for the Alliance Theatre project for the dramatic interior space of the Coca-Cola Stage. The Alliance Theatre is part of the Woodruff Arts Center.
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Dad’s Garage is a non-profit comedy theatre located in the heart of Atlanta’s historic Old Fourth Ward neighborhood. With award-winning Atlanta improv comedy, scripted shows, and a fully-stocked bar, we’re a major part of Atlanta nightlife and a great venue for date night. Come see us Thursday throu... | more...

An intimate 200-seat theater. A gift for sparkling comedy marks this scrappy Little Five Points playhouse, dedicated to finding intriguing new voices in Southern theater. | more...

The small theater company has had a long but turbulent life since its founding in 1971. It has undergone numerous changes in leadership and venue, but the 2001 debut of its permanent playhouse in Decatur offered one promising sign of stability. Another followed in 2008 with the addition of actress a... | more...

A wildly creative theater founded by Emory grads brimming with youthful enthusiasm, located in East Atlanta Village. | more...

Theatre that shows new and already established works. | more...

Female-focused theater company founded in the ’90s. Synchronicity stages original productions at various locations around town. | more...

CL: Having moved into a 200-seat performance space Downtown, this long-running Atlanta theater has begun staging more risky shows alongside its impeccable, crowd-pleasing fare.
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Since 2008, this hole-in-the-wall comedy venue has hosted improv comedy multiple nights a week as well as stand-up and sketch comedy. | more...