Broadway a
THE ORPHEUM TH
AMERICAN THEATRE DECEMBER GUILD 6 - 8, 2019 is ready for anything
JANUA
By Lisa Van Loo
T
he American Theatre Guild, which presents national tours of Broadway shows at the Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix, has a full slate of shows scheduled for the 20202021 season, beginning in January with South Pacific.
presents at a reduced capacity isn’t financially viable for the company, especially at the quaint Orpheum Theatre. But, she says smaller shows could be an option.
Even so, the American Theatre Guild is ready for anything, setting a season schedule and then arranging for a full back-up schedule, just in case. Hamm says opening the type of shows the American Theatre Guild traditionally
For more information, visit americantheatreguild.com/phoenix.
Once shows are greenlit to go, Hamm says they’ll be ready. New shows that haven’t toured JANUARY 31 - FEBRUARY 2, 2020 MARC Amy Hamm, executive director at the American yet, like An Officer and a Gentleman, will need Theatre Guild, just isn’t totally sure if the shows some time to prepare sets and casts. But, ADD-ON/SWAP A SHOW OP will get an opportunity to take the stage in time, shows SEASON that have already toured have sets in as she waits out the prolonged holding pattern storage and tour buses waiting to hit the road. the organization has been stuck in since spring. Until then, Hamm says the organization has “For a tour to work, it has to be able to jump doubled down on customer service and is from city to city. It’s not viable to go from Los working to spread the word about the national Angeles to Philadelphia. It’s going to be very “Save our Stages” effort, aimed at saving interesting,” Hamm says, explaining the need independent theatres from closing entirely. for continuity from a safety standpoint from “We don’t want to invite audiences back to the market to market. “It’s going to be hard to put a theater until we’re confident it’s a safe and Broadway touring season together without the comfortable environment,” Hamm says. “We’re majority of the country being open. It’s not a FEBRUARY 20, 2020 MA just waiting around like everyone else is.” model that makes sense.”
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