Jeff Spevak

@jeffspevak1

The Rochester Broadway Theatre League couldn't sit on this news: Rochester gets Hamilton for the 2018-19 theater season.

There aren't even dates yet for the acclaimed musical, which received a record 16 Tony nominations last year, winning 11. When it plays the Auditorium Theatre will be announced this time next year.

It’s quite a coup for Rochester, as Hamilton has only just started touring nationally after dominating Broadway for the past few years. “We’ve had tremendous success here, and the producers realize how well we do when we open shows here,” said producer Albert Nocciolino.

Indeed, for the second straight season Rochester will be home base for an acclaimed Broadway musical opening its national tour. Last year it was The Curious Incident of The Dog In the Night-Time. And as a big crowd at the Auditorium Theatre learned Wednesday at the 2017-18 season reveal, this year that tour opening will be School of Rock, set for a Sept. 30 through Oct. 7 run.

The 2017-18 season will also include:

Fun Home.

A Christmas Story, The Musical.

On Your Feet!

An American in Paris.

Rent.

Disney’s The Little Mermaid, a special add-on not included in the subscription package.

Nocciolino was among those who lobbied hard for a New York state tax break for theater road productions, a little boost for the local economy. School of Rock , based on the film about a teacher who inspires his students with rock music, will be in production and rehearsals for four weeks here before it opens Sept. 30.

Some of these productions are pretty fresh. Besides School of Rock, Fun Home, On Your Feet! and An American in Paris will be first-time tours.

On Your Feet!, which runs from Feb. 6 through 11, is particularly significant to Nocciolino. It is the story of Gloria Estefan and her husband Emilio, whose Miami Sound Machine had been booked by Nocciolino to play Syracuse’s War Memorial in the winter of 1990. They never made it. On the way to the show, the tour bus was struck by a semitruck in the midst of a snowstorm outside of Scranton, Pennsylvania, leaving Gloria Estefan critically injured. The second half of On Your Feet!, filled with her Cuban-pop music, is Estefan's battle to recover from a broken back after doctors feared she would never walk again.

Nocciolino was one of the producers of the Broadway production of On Your Feet! “I was involved from the very beginning, from the first readings,” he said, as were the Estefans. “It’s their story,” Nocciolino said.

The rest of the 2017-18 RBTL schedule, after the precocious guitar-wielding kids of School of Rock clear the stage:

Fun Home, Nov. 14-19. From the book of the same name, it is the first Broadway musical featuring a lesbian protagonist. Nominated for 12 Tony Awards, it won five, including best musical.

A Christmas Story, The Musical. Based on the much-loved film about Ralphie, who really, really wants a BB gun for Christmas, runs from Dec. 12-17. The Bumpus hounds will be in attendance.

An American in Paris, March 20-25. Filled with the music of George and Ira Gershwin, it’s inspired by the 1951 film.

Rent, May 1-6. Celebrating its 20th year, it’s the story of struggling artists hoping to succeed without selling out.

Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Oct. 24-29. A mermaid’s quest for love ashore, based on the animated film, based on the story by Hans Christian Andersen.

Six-show season packages are available now at (585) 222-5000, rbtl.org and the Auditorium Theatre box office, 885 E. Main St. The Little Mermaid can be added to the six-show package for additional cost.

Subscribers to this year’s season package will get first crack at tickets for Hamilton when it goes on sale next season.

JSPEVAK@Gannett.com