A Florida Studio Theatre Summer

Summer has arrived and FST is shifting gears.

It seems like only yesterday when Sarasota Summers slowed to a lazy tropical pace, and the neighborhood dog would sleep in the street. All of the theatres would close, as the snowbirds flew north and the locals went fishing. Well, the locals may still go fishing, but the dog is definitely out of the street, and FST’s five theatres are bustling with activity.

But the mood is different. Summer is special. FST turns to a gentler summer stock operation. We all slow down a bit. The Mainstage plays seek out a bit more humor, a bit more nostalgia for days gone by, and some gentle insights into what it is that makes us human. Our Stage III goes into hibernation, and our Cabaret Theatre brings in “Guest Shows” from around the country. In the meantime, Improv explodes with a celebration of the 10th Anniversary Sarasota Improv Festival!

This summer all five theatres are alive and active with three Mainstage shows, three Cabaret shows, weekly Improv, a play for children, new play readings, a massive Improv Festival, a huge Summer Theatre Camp for children, another for teens, and evening classes of all sorts for the grownups who want to be kids again.

On the Mainstage:
• Always…Patsy Cline (Gompertz Theatre)
• Murder for Two (Keating Theatre)
• Other People’s Money (Gompertz Theatre)

In the Cabaret:
• Carole’s Kings (Court Cabaret)
• The Music of the Night (Court Cabaret)
• Gilbert & Sullivan Unplugged (Court Cabaret)

In the Lab:
• FST Improv Presents: FST Freestyle (Bowne’s Lab Theatre)

Theatre for Children:
• Reel Music (Bowne’s Lab Theatre)

All five theatres and all rehearsal halls are buzzing with excitement of young voices and the energy that comes from the hundreds of children attending our Summer Theatre Camps. We enjoy the freshness of the childlike imagination learning to act, sing, dance, and seek out the truth of what it means to be alive. Working through the summer months, with all of the children around us, is a reminder to the professionals of the clarity and purity of the childlike imagination. A reminder that the childlike state is the very essence of mind the creative professional seeks.

In addition to our vast education programs, the 10th Anniversary Sarasota Improv Festival promises to be bigger and better than ever. Twenty troupes will gather from around the country and from as far as France and Spain. Combined they will bring you 28 performances with over 75 performers! In addition, the schedule will be jam-packed with workshops for everyone —from the beginner to the experienced. (Get your tickets early because they’re limited.) The Festival promises to give a good punch to the month of July.

And if all of those plays, classes and improv shows are not enough to keep you busy, then come on down and help us finish up renovation of the Simonsen-Montminny Theatre Wing to make room for the Muriel O’Neil Costume Studio. Then, walk across the parking lot and help us execute the total renovation of our Producing Offices in a frantic two weeks from start to finish. They’re located upstairs in the Sudakoff Building. When finished, the offices will become The Muriel O’Neil Producing Offices. It’s going to be a busy summer.

We stay busy. And productive. And we do it for you.

Thanks for your continuing support during these busy times. Your continuing donations and hearty moral support is keeping the FST ship tight and safe and secure, so you can count on the same high quality and low price you’ve come to expect and deserve. FST is a theatre small enough to know you, and big enough to serve you.

And Remember:
When a play closes a mind opens.
When a play ends, a thought begins.
Enjoy the plays this summer.