An intimate Aurora theater celebrated its new season Monday March 7, with a ribbon cutting, but spectators were given a sneak preview of something else.
The newly renovated Copley Theatre, 8 E. Galena Blvd., started itsBOLD series this week. The run includes four shows: “Sweat,” “Hand to God,” “Fun Home” and “Bull: a love story.”
Tim Rater is the president and CEO of Aurora’s Paramount Theatre, which operates both facilities. He said shows at the smaller playhouse will complement the Paramount’s large-scale offerings.
“We believe theaters’ highest responsibility is to put a mirror up to our community,” he said, “and to bring people together and that's never been more important than it is today."
Rater said the idea to update Copley started about 10 years ago.
Amber Mak is the artistic producer and new works development director of the Paramount. She said the petite playhouse will bring the action directly to the audience.
“It's the closest, most intimate experience that you could have,” Mak added. “You're going to feel those emotions directly and it's going to be so visceral and so cool to be that close. I mean, human connection is something we need so badly right now.”
The evening ended with the announcement of the Paramount’s 2022/23 season Broadway shows. They are Dreamgirls, The Sound of Music, Into the Woods and School of Rock. Ticket information for both theaters can be found here.
- Yvonne Boose is a current corps member for Report for America, an initiative of the GroundTruth Project. It's a national service program that places talented journalists in local newsrooms like WNIJ. You can learn more about Report for America at wnij.org.