Stories that matter are on the Horizon for the theater’s 40th season

After 40 years, Horizon eschews a midlife crisis in favor of local premieres, beloved favorites and comedic collaboration.

For its landmark 40th season, Horizon Theatre will stage a variety of Atlanta premieres and also bring back some of its biggest hits.

“We looked all over the country for plays that we loved by amazing writers whose stories would matter to our audiences,” said Co-Artistic Director Lisa Adler in a statement.

The Game, a new play from writer Bekah Brunstetter, opens the season from June 28 to July 28. Brunstetter’s previous script, The Cake, was a success for Horizon in 2019.

The new play stars Jennifer Alice Acker and Chris Hecke as a married couple whose relationship is tested when the husband becomes addicted to a video game. Marcie Millard, Shannon Eubanks, Michelle Pokopac and Hope Clayborne also appear in the show, which was inspired by Lysistrata.

Hecke said he is most excited about working with the cast and Director Caroline Jane Davis.

“What excites me the most at the moment is the brilliance of our cast,” he said. “Building an ensemble-driven comedy can be so tricky. The comedic timing, collaboration and devastating truth each has brought to the table is inspiring. Puzzle-solving with them under the attentive guidance of our director has been invigorating.”

In August, a production of Academy Award-nominated actor and playwright Colman Domingo’s comedy, Wild with Happy, makes its Atlanta debut. The play centers on a struggling actor finding a unique way to mourn his mother.

Then, in October, a musical version of Amelie premieres. Based upon the charming French film that starred Audrey Tautou, the musical tells the story of a waitress in Montmartre who brings delight to the lives of those around her through a series of whimsical pranks. Heidi McKerley is slated to direct, with musical direction from Holt McCarley. The same duo was behind Horizon’s 2023 hit, Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 — which itself returns to Horizon this winter for another encore. Also returning to the stage for the holidays is the annual production of Madeline’s Christmas.

The season concludes with I Carry Your Heart with Me by Jennifer Blackmer in March, starring Carolyn Cook, and then Laughs in Spanish by Alexis Scheer in April.

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Benjamin Carr is an ArtsATL editor-at-large who has contributed to the publication since 2019 and is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association, the Dramatists Guild, the Atlanta Press Club and the Horror Writers Association. His writing has been featured in podcasts for iHeartMedia, onstage as part of the Samuel French Off-Off Broadway Short Play Festival and online in The Guardian. His debut novel, Impacted, was published by The Story Plant.