For two consecutive seasons, the Paramount Theatre in downtown Aurora has wowed critics and audiences alike with its bold new Broadway musical subscription series.

The Paramount announced the four exciting shows on tap for 2013-14, the theater’s third spectacular Broadway season:  In the Heights (Sept. 11-Oct. 6); Miss Saigon (Oct. 30-Nov. 24); 42nd Street (Jan. 15-Feb. 9, 2014); and RENT (March 12-April 6, 2014).

Just two years ago, Paramount had 13,000 subscribers sign  up for its inaugural Broadway season in 2011-2012. This season, subscriptions rose to nearly 20,000, and audiences have been justly rewarded with  back-to-back hit productions of Grease, Annie, The Music Man and the soon-to-open season finale, Fiddler on the Roof.

 In year three, Paramount will extend the run of each musical production from three weeks to four to accommodate demand for affordable, Broadway-caliber productions conveniently located in downtown Aurora’s beautiful and historic Paramount Theater.  

As before, top theater artists from Chicago and all over the country will be tapped to reward Paramount audiences with breathtaking musical theater productions. 

At the directorial helm will be a rotation of two of Chicago’s most respected musical theater professionals – Paramount Artistic Director Jim Corti, the only person to win a Jeff Award for directing, choreography and acting, and Rachel Rockwell, named “Best Director” by Chicago Magazine in 2010, and most recently, right on the heels of her “Better than Broadway” production Annie last holiday season at the Paramount, “2012 Chicagoan of the Year-Theater” by the Chicago Tribune. 

Rockwell will stage season opener In the Heights and 42nd Street in January. Corti will direct Miss Saigon, and the season finale, RENT. 

“Audiences have come out in record-setting numbers to experience our Broadway productions. Critics are calling our shows some of the best musical theater being done in Chicago,” said Paramount President and CEO Tim Rater. “Yet our goal next season remains the same, to produce big, beautiful Broadway musicals with our own Paramount take. We’re also offering what we feel is the best priced subscription package in the state, and it’s the exact same deal as when we debuted the Broadway Series two years ago: Buy two shows, get two shows free.”

With Paramount’s four-play Broadway packages starting as low as $73.80, musical theater fans can enjoy four incredible musicals for the price of just one show downtown. 

While prices will be low, production values at the Paramount will be high. According to Paramount Artistic Director Jim Corti, “Every show in season three won the Tony Award for Best Musical and represents an astonishing array of musical theater at its finest. From the Golden Age of Broadway to some of the most popular composers in recent years, these soaring scores will stir your hearts and bring to our audiences a Paramount experience they will never forget.”

Current Paramount subscribers can take advantage of their exclusive opportunity to renew their series starting at 10 am on Monday, April 1, through May 11. 

New subscriptions are set to go on sale on Monday, June 3. Renewals and new subscriptions can be booked online at ParamountAurora.com, by calling 630.896.6666 or by visiting the Paramount box office, 23 E. Galena Boulevard in downtown Aurora.

In addition to the 2012-13 Broadway series, Paramount presents one of the most diverse live entertainment line-ups in Chicagoland.  Still this spring, the Paramount is offering up American Idol winner Scotty McCreery (Mar. 28), Stayin’ Alive: One Night of the Bee Gees (Mar. 30); Dwight Yoakam (Apr. 10); Stomp (Apr. 13 and 14); and Herman’s Hermits with Peter Noone and The Ides of March (May 18).

 The Paramount Theatre opened on September 3, 1931. Designed by nationally renowned theater architects C.W. and George L. Rapp, the theater captures a unique Venetian setting portrayed in the art deco influence of the 1930s. The first air-conditioned building outside of Chicago, the Paramount offered the public a variety of entertainment, including “talking pictures”, vaudeville, concerts and circus performances for more than 40 years.