Florida Repertory Theatre

Florida Repertory Theatre ended its 2021-2022 season on an artistic high note in the spring of 2022 with buddy: the buddy holly story and a new romantic comedy, maytag virgin. As the Theatre went into the summer of 2022, the staff worked hard to increase subscription and single ticket sales after the difficult pandemic closures showed a slow return to pre- pandemic levels. Despite the lower attendance in 2021-2022, the spring musical and romantic comedy saw higher attendance because covid cases were dropping and regulations were being lifted. As the summer began, Florida rep felt optimistic about its second full season post-pandemic. The Theatre opened its 2022-2023 season in the artstage studio Theatre with lady day at emerson's bar & grill by laney robertson, a hard-hitting and edgy musical that finds jazz icon billie holiday giving what would become her final public performance. The singing artist's life was plagued by troubles, and in her later years she succumbed to a drug addiction - and while the musical celebrates her music and accomplishments, it also gives audiences a stark look at the ravages of substance abuse in her life. In recent seasons, Florida rep has showcased many influential artists and composers of the 20th century: the gershwin brothers, johnny mercer, cole porter, rosemary clooney, nat king cole, sammy davis, jr., and even members of the rat pack. Despite the heavy subject matter and honest portrayal of holiday's struggles with systemic racism and substance abuse, the drama was an important story to tell. No exploration of the american songbook would be complete without billie holiday's story. The production opened in mid- september of 2022 to audience and critical acclaim, but less than a week after its opening, southwest Florida suffered severe damage from the landfall of hurricane ian. A near category 5 storm, ian's winds pushed water ashore for miles, inundated the barrier islands of sanibel and fort myers beach, and raised the water level in the caloosahatchee river for miles inland. The flood water in downtown fort myers flooded both of Florida rep's performance venues, offices, costume shops, and lighting and sound storage facilities. The wind caused major damage to the building's roof letting rain water into many other facilities. When Theatre staff arrived to assess the damage the day after the storm, it was clear that there would need to be a halt in planning to asses whether the spaces could be cleaned up in time to come back online. The staff worked together to remove damaged inventory, move the costume shop, offices, and rehearsal halls to auxiliary spaces so the season might move forward. Plans were set in place to move the entire production of lady day at emerson's bar & grill to another Theatre facility in town, and with only a one-week delay in the start of rehearsal, Florida rep's 2022-2023 season moved ahead as planned. Thanks to the hard work its staff and volunteers, Florida rep audiences only experienced a minor delay - and Florida rep got back to work to heal the community through high-quality live Theatre. The months ahead would see countless hours spent working with insurance adjustors, fema, and other agencies to calculate the losses. Work began immediately to repair as much damage to facilities as was possible, and that work happened concurrently with the day-to-day business of running the Theatre and producing a professional Theatre season. At the time of the hurricane, Florida rep was also rehearsing for a remounted production of driving miss daisy. Produced as part of the 2021- 2022 season, the pulitzer prize-winning play was being remounted for a limited run at the shell point retirement community's new performing arts hall. Sadly, because of the damage sustained at shell point (which is located adjacent to sanibel island), the production had to be scrapped. The production was meant to strengthen the relationship between Florida rep and one of its community partners - and despite having to cancel this production, Florida rep continues to work with shell point by sending educational productions and cabaret performances when schedules permit. The first production planned for the 2022-2023 season in the historic arcade Theatre opened as planned in late october - after a one-week delay in the rehearsal process due to the storm. Incident at our lady of perpetual help was a situation comedy that dealt with religion, family dynamics, and reproductive rights. Katie forgette's new play takes audiences back to the 1970s when a close-knit catholic family has their world turned upside down by a scandal at catholic school, and deals with important and timely issues through a comic lens. Despite the delay in rehearsals, the production opened on time. Ticket sales suffered because of the hurricane - many seasonal residents delayed their arrival and many local residents sustained major damage or lost homes altogether - but the overwhelming response was positive. It became clear in the early days of the run that audiences were deeply grateful to have an escape from the realities they were facing in recovering from the hurricane themselves. Lady day at emerson's bar & grill extended its run at a new venue and our lady of perpetual help ran as planned in october and november. Alongside recovery and cleanup, Florida rep's 2022-2023 season continued with more entertainment to help audiences escape. Agatha christie's and then there were none opened next in the arcade Theatre with a large cast bringing one of the greatest murder mysteries to vivid life. While that production was running, the next artstage studio Theatre production opened after crews and staff replaced drywall and flooring. Freud's last session by mark st. germain is a two-actor drama that imagines a meeting of c.s. Lewis and sigmund freud on the eve of world war ii. The production was a success in starting conversations about war, peace, and the role religion plays in our lives, and its message about two people with different perspectives coming together in times of trouble struck a chord with audiences. January is usually the beginning of the tourism season, but after the hurricane, Florida rep expected a slower start in 2023. January's funny and uplifting programming helped to combat having fewer-than-normal seasonal and short-term visitors. Ripcord by david lindsay-abaire and oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest opened in january, and kicked the year off with laughter. Ripcord tells the story of two women sharing a room in an assisted living facility - locked in a battle of wills over a window view. The comedy is a heartfelt and quirky play about two people finding common ground, and even amid the zaniness, it has heart and a hopeful message about healing after trauma and choosing to forgive. Wilde's classic comedy - arguably one of the greatest comedies in the english language - kept artstage audiences in stitches with its dry humor and crisp wit. The vividly drawn characters are as resonant now as they were in 1905, and coupled with a well-matched cast of seasoned professionals and broadway & regional veterans, the production played to near-sold-out houses for its 6-week run. In february, Florida rep showcased a modern american classic on the historic arcade stage, on golden pond by ernest thompson. Made famous by the film adaptation starring katherine hepburn, henry fonda, and jane fonda, the play is a tender family drama filled with humor, heart, and pathos. It is Florida rep's mission to produce a wide variety of work, and always looks for ways to showcase works that speak to the american experience, and on golden pond fulfilled that mission. The production starred two veteran actors who are actually a married couple as the central characters, so the chemistry and relationship between ethel and norman thayer was particularly vividly drawn at Florida rep. as a special bonus for audiences, playwright and academy award-winning screenwriter, ernest thompson (who was in his 20s when he wrote the play) joined Florida rep virtually to talk about his play. Mr. thompson participated in a talkback and gave a presentation about writing his play, adapting it for the screen, and what it was like to collaborate with hepburn and fonda. In his comments, he shared his gratitude that Florida rep would include his piece in its season. The 2022-2023 season culminated in the arcade Theatre with ring of fire by richard maltby and jason edwards. The musical revue tells the story of johnny cash's life from rural Arkansas in the 1930s to his death in 2003. Florida rep engaged an expert creative team to tell his story with theatricality and heart - while this production could have been successful as a concert, the five-person cast of actor-musicians instead played multiple instruments and multiple characters to tell his story of loss, addiction, love, failure, and success in a way that could only be done on a stage. All the creative elemen