Interim Executive Director Christina Hamilton seeks to expand Aurora Theatre’s reach

Big changes are happening at Aurora Theatre as Jono Davis steps down from the role of executive director. While the theater searches for his replacement, Interim Executive Director Christina Hamilton is already stepping up with initiatives and a plan to, in her own words, “rewrite Aurora’s story.”

Hamilton’s prior experience has been in nonprofit management, but she’s never had an official position in an arts organization. She has orbited Aurora since 2016 when she first met Artistic Director Ann-Carol Pence at the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Regional Leadership Institute. Since then, she has been a frequent supporter and season ticket holder at the Aurora and even began contributing her free time in July 2025 for a part-time sales role. Now that she has stepped into a leadership position, she is eager to put her years of administrative experience to use.

As interim executive director, Hamilton’s responsibilities include managing HR, running Aurora’s fundraising and interfacing with the board of directors and many others, which she hopes to decentralize into separate positions so everyone knows who to approach for any issue they may have. This is part of her overall strategy to overhaul the internal structure of Aurora.

“We have not written anything down,” said Pence. “We have been great artists, and we never stopped working, but we also never slowed down to develop systems. And that is where Christina is really helping.” 

None of this was surprising to Hamilton, who admits that lack of organization is more common than not in nonprofit spaces. Her bigger challenge, however, is to expand Aurora’s fundraising capabilities. “I think that our hyper-local approach for the last 30 years has been very limiting,” she said. “And in order for us to meet this moment — where it’s already very difficult to fundraise for the arts — we need to reframe our work as important to the community.”

This involves expanding Aurora’s fundraising outside the state of Georgia, lobbying for national and federal grants and emphasizing the work that Aurora already does for the Lawrenceville community, such as offering classes and scholarships for low-income families. “We are such a successful theater, and we put on such amazing performances that it overshadows the nonprofit impact, so I’m trying to flip that.”

This business talk might be uninteresting to the average theater-goer, but that’s exactly why Hamilton’s administrative background has proven vital to Aurora, a sentiment echoed by Pence. 

“She is excited about fundraising; she is excited about fiscal responsibilities; she is excited about the board. That is where I am really lucky because in many nonprofits, that’s where we do not excel. We don’t have that person who gets excited about those things.”

That lack of interest in administration is part of the reason Davis stepped down from the position. “My decision was based on my pursuit for personal and creative projects after 13 years in theater administration,” he said. “I’m excited to focus on the continued growth of Georgia Theatre Conference, the Overture Series and the return of Atlanta Unifieds — and to reconnect more fully with my work as a performer and artist.”

Hamilton’s is a temporary appointment, and the theater will be using her time in the position to search for a permanent replacement. However, given the initiatives Hamilton has already taken, Pence expressed hope that she might be swayed to stay in the position for longer. Even if she doesn’t, it’s a sign that Aurora Theatre is in good hands until the reins can be passed on. 

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Luke Evans is an Atlanta-based writer, critic and dramaturg. He covers theater for ArtsATL and Broadway World Atlanta and has worked with theaters such as the Alliance, Actor’s Express, Out Front Theatre and Woodstock Arts. He’s a graduate of Oglethorpe University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree, and the University of Houston, where he earned his master’s.