FST To Present FAMILY SECRETS and TWO JEWS WALK INTO A WAR

Florida Studio Theatre is presenting two additional plays this season: Family Secrets, a co¬medic one-woman exploration of family foibles, and Two Jews Walk Into a War..., a new play about a real-life Middle Eastern odd couple. Family Secrets by Sherry Glaser & Gregory Howells is back by popular demand, after it ran for 6 sold-out weeks during the Summerfest 2010 season. Two Jews Walk Into a War... by Seth Rozin is presented as part of the SARASOTA FESTIVAL OF NEW PLAYS 2011.

Family Secrets will run April 20 - May 1, and Two Jews Walk Into a War... will run May 5 - May 15 in Florida Studio Theatre's Gompertz Theatre. Single tickets are priced $28 - $30. They may be purchased by calling the Box Office at 941-366-9000 or by visiting FST online at www.floridastudiotheatre.org. Florida Studio Theatre is located in the heart of downtown Sarasota at the corner of Cocoanut Avenue and Palm Avenue (1241 N. Palm Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34236).
FAMILY SECRETS by Sherry Glaser & GREGORY HOWELLS

April 20 - May 1 in the Gompertz Theatre
This April, FST is remounting its hit production of Family Secrets, which played for 6 sold-out weeks during the Summerfest 2010 season. Sarasota star Carolyn Michel returns to the stage in a performance that was called "remarkable" by the Pelican Press, and "a winning performance" by Total Theater. Ms. Michel has a long his¬tory of working with FST, having worked with the theater for over 20 years. She has previously starred in many FST productions including a few other notable one-woman shows playing Ann Landers in The Lady With all the Answers in 2007, the title character in Rose in 2003, and playing Dorothy Parker in One Foot in Scarsdale in 1991 and 2004.
In Family Secrets, Ms. Michel portrays five family members, based on the eccentric family of playwright and original performer Sherry Glaser. The play weaves through the unique stories of the family members from patriarch Mort and motherly Bev to earth-child daughter Kahari, sixteen year old Sandra as well as Grandma Rose, who is finding romance in her golden years. The play explores the notion of family through both gen¬erational and cultural differences. The play won the NY Theater World Award for Best Debut, and was nomi¬nated for a Drama Desk Award and two L.A.'s Ovation Awards.

TWO JEWS WALK INTO A WAR... by SETH ROZIN
May 5 - May 15 in the Gompertz Theatre
Two Jews Walk Into A War... by Seth Rozin is part of FST's 20th annual SARASOTA FESTIVAL OF NEW PLAYS. It is also produced as part of the National New Play Network, an organization that FST works closely with to develop new plays and present world premieres of emerging playwrights. Inspired by a true story, Two Jews Walk into a War... is a witty and affecting play on the last two surviving Jews in Afghanistan. The Taliban has destroyed the only existing Torah, so Ishaq and Zeblyan must join forces to regenerate the Jewish population and reconstruct the sacred book. Their main obstacle - they can't stand each other! With comical bickering between the two men, can they pull off the impossible?

Two Jews Walk Into A War... made its world premiere at Florida Stage in November 2009. Seth Rozin, playwright, is the author of several plays, including Men of Stone (produced by Theater Catalyst in 2001, nominated for a Barrymore Award for Outstanding New Play, published by Playscripts, Inc.), Missing Link (produced by InterAct Theatre Company in 2002, nominated for a Barrymore Award for Outstanding New Play), Reinventing Eden (showcased by the National New Play Network in 2005, produced by InterAct in 2006), He is the founder and Producing Artistic Director of InterAct Theatre Company in Philadelphia, where he has directed over 45 productions, including the world premieres of Thomas Gibbons' Permanent Collec¬tion, Bee-Luther-Hatchee, Black Russian, A House With No Walls and 6221. He served as President of the National New Play Network from 2002-2006.

The National New Play Network (NNPN) is the country's alliance of non-profit professional theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays. Since its founding in 1998, NNPN has commissioned over a dozen playwrights, provided thirteen MFA graduates with paid residencies, and supported over 80 productions nationwide through its innovative Continued Life of New Plays Fund, which creates "rolling world premieres" of new plays. Through its programs, NNPN has granted nearly a half million dollars to theaters and artists in the past ten years. Hundreds of artists have gained employment through these efforts in the 24 regions of the country where NNPN member theaters are located. NNPN receives substantial support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Boeing Company, the Shubert Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. More information on the NNPN at www.nnpn.org.
 
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 three theatre venues: the Keating Theatre, the Goldstein Cabaret and its newest space, the Gompertz 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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