"As they looked at the end of their residency we all noted the difficulty of producing enough shows to create the revenue needed to support the annual operating costs. That is the big flaw in the world of local theater."
Cheri Morris, a board member of Act3 Productions, said that to Rough Draft Atlanta when the theater announced its relaunch at the end of September. The theater is Act3 Playhouse. It has 100 seats and sits in the Sandy Springs Plaza Shopping Center at 6285 Roswell Road, across the street from City Springs. You go in through the breezeway next to Five Guys, and parking is free.
Many neighbors know the stage across Roswell Road only as somewhere a show was once running. Since late September it has been run differently. No single resident company carries the building anymore. Several companies split the cost, and the plan is a fuller calendar than any one of them could support alone. The holiday season is the first full stretch under that model, and it plays out on the same block as City Springs' biggest weeks of the year.
Why One Company Couldn't Carry the Room
Morris laid out the math in the Rough Draft Atlanta piece. A production runs three weeks at four shows a week, so one company can stage six to eight shows a year at most. That comes to about 70 to 100 days of ticket revenue against 365 days of rent, insurance, HVAC and other costs. She added that grants and local giving used to cover the gap, and that both have shrunk in recent years.
That math played out over the past three years in the history of the theater's last resident company. Georgia Ensemble Theatre was founded by Bob and Anita Farley after Bob left his post as artistic director of the Alliance Theatre in 1990. It opened in 1992 at the Roswell Cultural Arts Center. ArtsATL's account by Jim Farmer traces what happened next:
| Period | Home stage | Subscribers |
|---|---|---|
| Before the pandemic | Roswell Cultural Arts Center | 3,500 |
| After the 2023 move | Jennie T. Anderson Theatre, Marietta | 1,500 |
| From 2024 | Act3 Playhouse, Sandy Springs | about 500 |
Roswell ended its contract with the company in 2023. ArtsATL reports that most subscribers did not follow it to Marietta. By the time it reached the small Sandy Springs room, the company was working in a format it had not produced in before. The board voted on April 19, 2026, to close for financial reasons. The last mainstage show was Forbidden Broadway: Greatest Hits, which ran March 13 through 29. A planned production and tour of A Wrinkle in Time was canceled, and so were the camps. The AJC republished the story on September 4.
Part of the company's work continues elsewhere. ArtsATL reports that Synchronicity Theatre will stage And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank later this year. Georgia Ensemble first produced the play in its 1997–1998 season and staged it almost every year after that.
How the Building Now Pays Its Bills
The new setup uses one managing organization to coordinate several resident companies. Each company runs its own season, classes, camps, cabarets or concerts. In Rough Draft Atlanta, Morris described the goal as "collectively spreading the work and comfortably funding the operations." The managing partner is 360 Arts Blvd, which goes by "The BLVD." It is a membership community for creative professionals and now uses the theater as its home base. Its free grand opening was held on Friday, September 25.
The anchors and partners are:
- Resident anchors: Ovations Theatre, which focuses on stand-up, sketch comedy and mainstage productions, and Spotlight Conservatory, which teaches acting, musical theatre and technical theatre to youth and adults.
- Production partners: Snug Concerts, an intimate concert series. The Overture Series stages concert versions of rarely produced musicals. Mad Artists' Entertainment produces musicals and plays.
Metro Atlanta CEO confirmed the same lineup on October 6. The September announcement also made a case for the location. "When creatives cluster, they amplify each other, and audiences and commercial activity follow them," it said, as quoted by Rough Draft Atlanta.
The theater has always had neighborhood roots. Morris told Rough Draft Atlanta that Art Sandy Springs helped bring Act3 to the city more than 14 years ago, into a space behind Trader Joe's. She said it started as "essentially a group of moms who wanted great theater opportunities for their talented kids."
The Calendar Through December
Here is what The BLVD's event calendar lists at Act3 for the rest of 2026:
| Dates | Show | Presented by |
|---|---|---|
| Oct. 30 – Nov. 1 | SIX: Teen Edition, second weekend | Spotlight Conservatory |
| Sat., Nov. 14, 7 p.m. | No Drama Comedy Show | Spotlight Conservatory |
| Nov. 20 – 22 | Tick, Tick... BOOM! | Mad Artists Entertainment |
| Fri., Nov. 27, doors 6:30 p.m. | The Lounge Sessions | BLVD Studios |
| Dec. 11 – 13 | Courtenay's Cabaret: Home for the Holidays | The BLVD |
| Fri., Dec. 18, doors 6:30 p.m. | The Lounge Sessions | BLVD Studios |
The relaunch coverage mentioned only two dates for SIX: Teen Edition. The run has since grown into two weekends, and the second one opens Friday, October 30, at 7 p.m. Mad Artists lists Tick, Tick... BOOM! on Friday, November 20 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, November 21 at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, November 22 at 2:30 p.m. Its ticket page showed all four performances sold out in mid-October. At the Lounge Sessions, live music starts at 7 p.m. and karaoke at 8:30. Courtenay's Cabaret plays Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Every date and time can change, so check the producer's page before you go.
Two Stages, One Block
Act3's new calendar lines up closely with City Springs' holiday schedule across the street. That makes an evening that uses both rooms easy to plan:
- Weekend of November 20. Tick, Tick... BOOM! plays Act3 all weekend. On Saturday, November 21, City Springs' Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center hosts A Magical Cirque Christmas.
- Friday, November 27. Roswell Dance Theatre's The Nutcracker begins its run at the Performing Arts Center, which continues through December 6. Across the street, the Lounge Sessions open doors at 6:30.
- Sunday, December 6. Sparkle Sandy Springs brings a nighttime parade and tree and Menorah lighting to City Green. The city's detailed schedule has not been posted yet.
- Sunday, December 13. Joe Alterman's Toast & Jam Holiday Jazz Brunch takes over the Performing Arts Center, and Courtenay's Cabaret has a 2 p.m. matinee at Act3.
- Thursday, December 31. The Atlanta Symphony plays New Year's Eve at the Performing Arts Center.
City Springs opens the season earlier with a free Veterans Day Tribute at Byers Theatre on Wednesday, November 11. The two venues differ in scale. City Springs can host a touring cirque show or a symphony. Act3 seats 100, close enough to see a teen cast's faces in SIX or to take a turn at karaoke after a set.
Past the Holidays
The BLVD's calendar already runs into the new year. The Overture Series brings Smoky Mountain Songbook to Act3 on January 23 and 24, 2027.
Life in Sandy Springs often comes down to the block between the City Springs green and the Sandy Springs Plaza breezeway. If you'd like to talk through which parts of the city keep evenings like these within walking distance, Marc Castillo is glad to share what he knows about the Roswell Road corridor. Schedule a private consultation.
