Florida Studio Theatre Presents SHEAR MADNESS

Florida Studio Theatre opens a special event in the Gompertz Theatre February 18, 2010. Shear Madness, by Paul Portner; Adapted by Marilyn Abrams and Bruce Jordan; Original Director: Bruce Jordan, is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running play in the history of American Theatre and is hailed as America's Favorite Comedy. Shear Madness will run through March 13, 2010.

The hilarious whodunit where the audience gets to solve the crime. A mixture of improvisation and up-to-the-minute spontaneous humor. The play is delightfully different every time you see it.

The play is set today in the Shear Madness Hair Salon in Sarasota. The landlady Isabel Czerny who lives above the shop is murdered, and every one of the actors has a reason to do her in. The audience gets involved in the action by questioning the actors and attempting to solve the crime.

Originally written by German writer, Paul Portner, in 1963 and titled Scherenschnitt, Shear Madness was a result of collaboration between two friends, Marilyn Abrams and Bruce Jordan in the summer of 1976. Shear Madness premiered at the Lake George Dinner Theatre in 1978, making its Off-Broadway debut at the Charles Playhouse Stage II in Boston, MA on January 29, 1980 and is still running with success. Shear Madness went on to open at The Jon F. Kennedy Center: Theatre Lab in Washington D.C. in 1987 and continues in 2010.

During its initial run in Lake George, Shear Madness was produced as a work in progress, as Abrams and Jordan allowed the actors to improvise each night, playing on and using good audience response, which eventually made it into the final script. Jordan continues to encourage the actors to "let the audience win," it is what keeps the magic in the show and continues to please audiences across the nation.

The Florida Studio Theatre production will include Shear Madness veterans, including returning New York Actors Michael Baldwin and Barbara Bradshaw. Baldwin (Tony Witcomb) New York credits include Twelfth Night (Pearl Theatre Co.), Bye Bye Birdie (Florence Gould Hall), Macbeth (Manhattan Theatre Source) and Rodelinda (Metropolitan Opera) along with numerous regional credits. Bradshaw (Mrs. Shubert) is a Carbonell award winning actress for Best Actress for her portrayal as Mrs. Shubert in Shear Madness (Broward Performing Arts Center) and as Emily in Afterplay (Coconut Grove Playhouse). She also won the Dramalogue Award for Best Actress for The Immigrant as Ima at the Westwood Playhouse in Los Angeles.

Joining them on stage is New York Actors Juliana Black (Barbara DeMarco) whose credits include Pippin, Aida and Thoroughly Modern Millie (Arvada Center), Bat Boy: The Musical, I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change and others (Lake Dillon Theatre Co.). She also has numerous choreography credits, in which she received a 2006 Ovation nomination for Urinetown: The Musical. Nick Caruso (Mikey Thomas) credits include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and 1776 (Stage Door Playhouse). He also has several improvisation and sketch comedy credits including Free Parking (writer/performer) with Dad's Garage, Tales from Mom's Crypt 7 & 8 and Corn's 7 Deadly Sins (Corn Productions) among others. Joseph Ditmyer (Eddie Lawrence) New York credits include the world premiers of War Uncensored (Michael Weller Theatre) and Moses My Love (Judith Anderson Theatre). Other credits include the National Tours of Damn Yankees and Shenandoah. Timothy C. Goodwin (Nick Rossetti) credits include The View From Here (Little Hibiscus Productions), The Sunshine Boys, Six Degrees of Separation (JCC Rochester) among others.
Co-Creator and Original Director of Shear Madness, Bruce Jordan directs the production. Jordan has been acting, directing and producing in theatre, television and film for the past 30 years, but never did he expect to be the producer/director of the three longest-running nonmusical plays in the history of American theatre. ("Shear Madness"- Boston, "Shear Madness"- Chicago, "Shear Madness"- Washington, D.C.).

A founding member of Rochester's GeVa Theatre, Jordan has directed classic and contemporary theatre from Moliere to Coward and from Shaw to Simon. He's also appeared in scores of plays form Hedda Gabler to You're a Good Man Charlie Brown. He made his television debut in 1970 on All My Children and his "big screen" debut with Barbra Streisand in The Way We Were.

The hit comedy show Shear Madness opens February 18 and continues through March 13, 2010 at the Gompertz Theatre. Tickets are $32 - $34 and may be purchased from the FST Box Office in person, by phone (941) 366 - 9000 or online at www.floridastudiotheatre.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.