Peachtree Playhouse

The play was Peter Shaffer's opulent epic, The Royal Hunt of the Sun, but what happened out front was perhaps even more spectacular. In the 765 seats of the auditorium, Atlanta's most ele gant citizens, jewels clinking discreetly at wrist and throat, settled down for the grand opening of Theater Atlanta's brand-new $1,200,000 repertory house.

Before them stretched an ingenious and superbly equipped stage, reaching 100 ft. from wing to wing and 70 ft. from lip to backdrop. White floodlights dimmed and gave way to soft oranges and blues; the first actor in a cast of 28 appeared onstage to begin Shaffer's drama of the conquest of Peru. For three hours the audience sat fascinated by the finest home-grown performance Atlanta had ever seen, and hundreds of people stayed into the morning hours to celebrate its arrival.

Eight Months Late. The opening was merely the last act of a drama in which Atlanta's cultural leaders had played the key roles. Formed in 1957 when three small-theater groups combined, Theater Atlanta had struggled along for years without a theater of its own, any real civic backing, or even a regular budget; it had a professional director but only amateur actors, and few Atlantans ever bothered to show up.

What changed all that was the 1962 crash of a chartered Air France plane in Paris in which more than 100 of Atlanta's foremost citizens were killed. As if to recoup the city's loss, Atlanta's remaining leaders poured brains, energy and money into the new project. Theater Atlanta forged ahead--and ran into the worst series of strikes in the city's history. One after another, carpenters, plumbers, electricians and sheet-metal workers walked off the job; last week's opening was a full eight months behind schedule.

Even without a building, T.A.'s board of directors, now composed of 50 influential Atlantans, rounded up a full-time professional staff and repertory company, and worked out a budget of over $200,000 a year. More than 300 members of the Women's Guild whirled around the city giving teas, socials, and the big sell on tickets (so far 6,000 season admissions have been sold at $20 each). Avis contributed the use of a station wagon, and Eastern Airlines donated thousands of paper cups for use at the fund-raising socials. Before the theater itself was ready, T.A. had established two acting schools, one for adults and one for children.

Tragedy-Struck. For managing director of the complex, the board picked an energetic 36-year-old New Yorker named Jay Broad. He traveled to dozens of cities lining up his company, hooked Actress Julie Haydon (widow of the late Critic George Jean Nathan) and a team of repertory veterans. In a 34-week season, Broad will stage eight plays, including an honest diet of Anouilh, Shaw and Arthur Miller. That's quite a recovery for a tragedy-struck city.

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