Atlantic Theater Company announces 2018-2019 season

Atlantic's 2018-2019 season includes a world premiere musical by Lynn Nottage, Duncan Sheik & Susan Birkenhead, world premiere plays by Donja R. Love, Abby Rosebrock & Amy Staats, a New York premiere by Carla Ching and a US premiere by Florian Zeller, starring Isabelle Huppert.

Atlantic Theater Company has announced its forthcoming 2018-2019 off-Broadway season, including three world premiere play, a U.S. premiere and a New York premiere plays and a world premiere musical. The productions will be performed in the following season order:

Atlantic kicks off the season with the world premiere of Donja R. Love's Fireflies, directed by Saheem Ali, which will begin previews at the Linda Gross Theater on September 26, 2018, before an official opening on October 15 and a limited engagement through to November 11, 2018.

Synopsis: "Somewhere in the Jim Crow South, the sky is on fire. A pregnant Olivia's fierce speech writing is the sole force behind her charismatic husband Charles and his successful Movement to galvanize people to march towards freedom. When four little girls are bombed in a church, Olivia and Charles' marriage is threatened - as this tragedy and years of civil unrest leave Olivia believing that "this world ain't no place to raise a colored child.""

Fireflies is the second part of a trilogy of plays by Donja R. Love. The first part - Sugar in Our Wounds - is set to play New York City Center's Studio at Stage II from June 5 through to July 8, 2018, courtesy of Manhattan Theatre Club.

Following this will be the world premiere of Abby Rosebrock's Blue Ridge, directed by Taibi Magar, which begins previews at the Linda Gross Theater on December 12, 2018, before an official opening on January 7 and a limited engagement through to January 27, 2019. The cast will be led by Tony Award nominee Marin Ireland.

Synopsis: "A progressive high-school teacher with a rage problem retaliates against her unscrupulous boss and is sentenced to six months at a church-sponsored halfway house, where she attends to everyone's recovery but her own. Set in Southern Appalachia, Blue Ridge is a pitch-dark comedy about heartbreak, hell-raising and healing."

At Atlantic Stage 2, the world premiere of Eddie and Dave, written by and featuring Amy Staats and directed byMargot Bordelon, will begin previews on January 10, 2019, before an official opening on January 22 and a limited run through to February 10, 2019.

Synopsis: "A raucous retelling of the rise and fall of Pasadena's most groundbreaking 80s rockers told through the foggy lens of a lonely, out of work MTV-VJ. Eddie and Dave is a gender-bending new play about hubris, friendship, family, fame, musical genius and what happens when the person you need is the one you find most irritating."

Next up, Atlantic will stage the U.S. premiere of Olivier & Tony Award nominee Florian Zeller's play The Mother, translated by Christopher Hampton and directed by Trip Cullman. Previews will begin at the Linda Gross Theater on February 20, 2019, before an official opening on March 11 and a limited engagement through to April 7, 2019. The cast will be led by Oscar nominee Isabelle Huppert as Anne.

Synopsis: "Can one love one's son too much? Anne has given everything to the family she's built. Now the years have gone by, and her children have grown up and have lives and loves of their own, leaving her alone in a world that is crumbling around her. The Mother is a captivating and disquieting new play about a woman grasping for stability that will leave you questioning the very nature of reality."

The only musical of Atlantic's 2018-2019 season will be the world premiere of The Secret Life of Bees, featuring music by Tony & Grammy Award winner Duncan Sheik, lyrics by Tony Award nominee Susan Birkenhead and a book by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage. The musical is based on the best-selling novel by Sue Monk Kidd. The production will be directed by Tony Award winner Sam Gold and will run at the Linda Gross Theater from May 10 through to June 23, 2019. An official opening date will be announced in the coming months.

Synopsis: "South Carolina, 1964. Lily Owens, a restless white teenager, struggles with her merciless father and the haunting memory of her mother's death. When Rosaleen, her black caregiver, is beaten and jailed for asserting her right to vote, Lily's rebellious spirit is ignited. She and Rosaleen escape on an adventure where they are taken in by a trio of black beekeeping sisters. While Lily tries to unlock the secrets of her past, she and Rosaleen find solace in the mesmerizing world of bees and spirituality in this extraordinary tale of awakening, fellowship and healing."

The final production of the season at Atlantic Stage 2 will be the New York premiere of Nomad Motel, written by Carla Ching, which will begin previews on May 22, 2019, before an official opening on June 3 and a limited engagement through to June 23, 2019.

Synopsis: "In the not-so-sunny side of California, Alix bounces between motel rooms, taking care of her brothers for her mostly MIA mother. Her classmate Mason is a budding songwriter trying to keep off the radar of his absent father in Hong Kong. Together, they must learn to scrape by without giving up their dreams. Nomad Motel is a surprising tale of kids raising themselves and making something out of nothing in the land of plenty."

Casting and additional creative team information for all productions will be announced at a later date.