Actor Jordan Stovall performs with his puppet, Princeton, in the musical ‘Avenue Q.’ The musical opened Friday at Marietta's Alley Stage, which used to be part of the now defunct Theatre in the Square.
After 30 years of performances, Theatre in the Square shut down in March amid financial trouble. But one of the theater’s two stages is again come alive with performers — including puppets — now that “Avenue Q” has begun 16 days of performances.
“Avenue Q” began at 8 p.m. Friday and runs through Aug. 25 at the Alley Stage, on the corner of Anderson Street and Powder Springs Road, behind Marietta Pizza Company. Tickets are $20 to $25. The musical is adult-oriented.
On Friday morning, Rob Hardie of Marietta, who co-directs the production with Zip Rampy of Canton, said tickets to the opening-night show were nearly sold out.
Hardie said it was a no-brainer to locate his Next Stage Theatre Company at the empty Marietta Square facility. Next Stage had been nomadic over the past two years. For a year it was housed at the now-defunct Blackwell Playhouse space off Canton Road, and before that it called Gwinnett County and Cumming home.
“(Theatre in the Square) did such good work,” Hardie said. “The space not being utilized for artists just seemed like a shame.”
In May, Next Stage signed a 15-month lease with building owner, Marietta Councilman Philip Goldstein, for the 125-seat Alley Stage, the smaller of the two stages that had been used by Theatre in the Square.
“Avenue Q” is presented through a special arrangement with Music Theatre International.
Written by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, it won the Tony Award for best musical in 2004.
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