Arcadia Theatre announces 2025–26 season, education programs and fundraising push in Alpharetta

Randy Banfield, managing director of Arcadia Theatre, told the Alpharetta Cultural Arts Commission that Arcadia is launching as a new nonprofit organization and has announced its 2025–26 season while pursuing federal tax-exempt status.

Arcadia—formed from the community theater Act 1’s public-facing activities—has applied for 501(c)(3) recognition and has declared a six-show season that includes Peter and the Starcatcher (September), Annie (December), Neil Simon’s Fools (February), Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Nile (March), Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night (April, at Brook Street Park) and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (June). Banfield said Act 1 will continue as a drama ministry at Alpharetta Presbyterian Church while Arcadia pursues broader institutional support and public programming.

Banfield said the organization has started fundraising and received institutional support: Alpharetta Presbyterian Church (APC) is matching new donations dollar-for-dollar up to $5,000, and Austin Alpharetta committed a $5,000 sponsorship. He said Arcadia has paid for required show licensing and has operating coverage for insurance and other startup costs but remains actively fundraising to build reserves. "Those licenses ... can range from $1,200 to $5,000," Banfield said, adding that ticket revenue will not materially appear until the late summer.

Banfield described collaboration with the city and local stakeholders, including the Department of Recreation, Culture and Parks and Alpharetta Presbyterian Church, and said Arcadia has a signed contract with the city to use the Spotlight in June for a two-week youth summer camp. "We are currently, have a contract signed with the city to use the spotlight in June for a 2 week summer camp," he said. He also said Arcadia hopes to develop additional educational programming in the fall and following spring.

Banfield placed the new group in a broader local context, comparing Alpharetta’s growth in performing arts to developments in nearby cities and saying he hopes to open a public conversation about a larger downtown performing arts space in the future. He also said Arcadia wants to cooperate with other local organizations—naming Metro Ballet and the symphony as possible partners—and to rent and program multiple venues to demonstrate community demand.

"We have now announced our first season," Banfield said. "It means that we have a lot of chances to grow and we have a lot of chances to make a lot of mistakes." He described the new organization’s approach as seeking a broader base of artists and patrons and said the group will continue the 30-year legacy of Act 1 in a different organizational form.

The commission asked about audience composition and funding; Banfield said post-pandemic growth came from recent graduates and new local artists as well as patrons drawn by larger seasonal musicals that underwrite smaller productions. Kim (staff member, City of Alpharetta Department of Recreation, Culture and Parks) confirmed the city and the church are negotiating a memorandum of understanding to make props, costumes and rehearsal space available and said Act 1 will continue to operate as a church-affiliated drama ministry while Arcadia pursues a public-facing nonprofit model.

Arcadia’s near-term schedule and the Spotlight contract mean the group will launch education offerings this summer; Banfield said ticket sales and broader operating revenues are expected to materialize later in the season and that the organization will continue active fundraising.

Banfield closed by thanking the commission and restating the group’s goals to expand performing arts and educational access in Alpharetta.