Florida Studio Theatre Adds World Premiere of TOM JONES to Mainstage Season, 4/9-6/1

Florida Studio Theatre announces a change in its Mainstage season, revealing the World Premiere of Tom Jones, as the fourth show. The show will open in the Gompertz Theatre April 9 and run through June 1, 2014. Single tickets range from $18-36. Tickets may be purchased online at FloridaStudioTheatre.org, by phone at (941) 366-9000 or by visiting the Box Office.

Originally slated for the fourth Mainstage production was TWO POINT OH, by Jeffrey Jackson. However, the play was not developing along the lines FST had expected. It is because of this, we are pleased to announce the World Premiere of Tom Jones, by Mark Brown as the fourth and final show of the Mainstage season.

Tom Jones is a play written by Mark Brown, who also wrote the FST audience favorite, AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS. The play is an adaptation of the ground-breaking novel, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, by Henry Fielding. In this thrilling adventure of the heart, Tom Jones, a charming young man of questionable birth, is madly in love with Sophia Western. But when Sophia's father arranges for her to marry a loathsome man, she flees for her life. Aristocrats, wenches and scalawags abound in this bawdy and rollicking romp through the back roads and bedchambers of England.

Artistic Director, Richard Hopkins, speaks about this show stating, "First of all, Tom Jones is a wonderful swashbuckler of a story in the classic style of the great adventures. Second, it is adapted by Mark Brown, one of the best of our contemporary comic playwrights who authored AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, which was a huge hit for FST. Between Henry Fielding's classic novel, and Mark's ribald sense of theatricality, these two together make for a cosmic and comic energy relished by actors and directors alike. Mark has that rare ability to twist a classic into contemporary sensibility and make it thoroughly enjoyable. His adaptation is filled with the stuff of great theatre: love, sex, and laughter."

Tom Jones will serve as Mark Shanahan's FST directorial debut. Previous shows directed by Shanahan include THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, THE 39 STEPS, NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY, GASLIGHT and MRS. MANNERLY. Playwright, Mark Brown expands on the show stating, "I'm thrilled to be bringing my new play, Tom Jones, to the Florida Studio Theatre. Back in 2006, FST produced my play AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS when the play was still fairly new. FST did a tremendous production. I think it received five Sarasota Magazine Theatre Award nominations. Since then AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS has gone on to have an incredible life: it's been Off-Broadway twice; it's been on American Theatre Magazine's Top Ten Most Produced Play list; and along with productions across the U.S., it's playing in India and Turkey this year. I think Tom Jones is similar to AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS in that it's a classic story. It's a silly comedy and it's a small cast playing multiple roles. All of these elements add up to what I think will be a fun-filled theatrical experience."

FST announces its fourth show and the World Premiere of Tom Jones, opening in the Gompertz Theatre on April 11, 2014. Single tickets range from $18-36. Tickets may be purchased online at FloridaStudioTheatre.org, by phone at (941) 366-9000 or by visiting the Box Office.

About Florida Studio Theatre: Known as Sarasota's Contemporary Theatre, Florida Studio Theatre was founded in 1973 by Jon Spelman. Starting out as a small touring company, FST traveled to places such as migrant camps and prisons. The company eventually settled down into a permanent home, acquiring the former Woman's Club building - now renamed the Keating Theatre. In the years that followed, Florida Studio Theatre established itself as a major force in American Theatre, presenting Contemporary Theatre in its five theatre venues: the Keating Theatre, the Goldstein Cabaret, the renovated Gompertz Theatre, the John C. Court Cabaret and the new Bowne's Lab Theatre.

Even with its growth, Florida Studio Theatre remains firmly committed to making the arts accessible and affordable to a broad-based audience. Under Richard Hopkins, Artistic Director and CEO, FST develops theatre that speaks to our living, evolving, and dynamically changing world. As FST grows and expands, it continues to provide audiences with challenging, contemporary drama and innovative programs.

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