FOREVER PLAID, FULLY COMMITTED & More Set for Florida Repertory Theatre 2024-25 Season

Florida Repertory Theatre has unveiled its 27th Season in the Historic Arcade and ArtStage Studio Theatres which opens to previews on September 17. The nine-show 2024-2025 season runs through May 18, 2024, and features musicals, comedies, dramas, and new works. Subscriptions are on sale now to renewing patrons and new subscribers, and packages start as low as $246 for six shows. Packages are available for 9, 8, 7, and 6 shows, and offer the biggest savings over single ticket prices – which increase when they go on sale on July 15, 2024.
 
“In season twenty-seven, our professional live theatre will renew its commitment to featuring a multi-talented ensemble of artists, top-tier talent, and first-rate production values in our historic and intimate venues,” said producing artistic director Greg Longenhagen. “We are pleased to offer a selection of plays and musicals that offer a wide variety of stories, music, and hijinks chosen to tickle funny bones, provoke discussions, and lift spirits.”

On September 17, Florida Rep’s 27th Season kicks off in the ArtStage Studio Theatre with “Forever Plaid,” a nostalgic, funny – and heavenly - musical revue celebrating music from the 1950s. When tragedy strikes on the way to their first big gig, four young singers get to perform their show-stopping concert in the afterlife. This smash-hit musical is filled with barbershop quartet harmonies and pitch-perfect melodies and features songs like “Three Coins in the Fountain,” “Moments to Remember,” “Sixteen Tons,” and more. The show was written and originally directed and choreographed by Stuart Ross, with musical continuity and arrangements by James Raitt. Previews Sept. 17-19; opens Sept. 20, and plays through Oct. 27, 2024.

The Historic Arcade opens to previews on October 22, with “Ben Butler” by Richard Strand. Inspired by true events, “Ben Butler” is a historically hilarious comedy about a runaway slave demanding sanctuary at Fort Monroe. Set at the dawn of the Civil War, Gen. Benjamin Butler faces an impossible moral dilemma: follow the law or alter the course of U.S. history. It’s a battle of wit and wordplay that, according to “TheatreMania” is “simultaneously thought-provoking and sidesplitting.” Previews Oct. 22 – 24; opens Oct. 25, and plays through Nov. 10, 2024.

The season continues in November in the Historic Arcade Theatre with “Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.” Hailed as one of Agatha Christie’s best-known stories and voted “best crime novel ever” by the British Crime Writers’ Association, this brand-new stage adaptation comes from the mind of Mark Shanahan, author of last season’s "A Sherlock Carol." The suspenseful whodunnit features a mysterious cast of suspects guarding secrets about blackmail and murder – and only the great Hercule Poirot can solve the case. The production is sponsored by Naomi Bloom. Previews Nov. 26 and 27; opens Nov. 29, and plays through Dec. 15, 2024.

The intimate ArtStage Studio Theatre bursts with hilarity with “Fully Committed” by Becky Mode.  This devastatingly funny one-man tour-de-force follows a day in the life of Sam, an out-of-work actor manning the red-hot reservation line at Manhattan’s #1 restaurant. Coercion, threats, bribes, and histrionics – these desperate callers will stop at nothing to score a table! Amid the barrage of frantic diners, Sam deals with his own career and family drama! One actor plays forty roles in this outrageous and touching comedy. Previews Dec. 10 – 12, 2024; opens Dec. 13, and plays through Jan. 12, 2025.
 
Florida Rep’s Historic Arcade Theatre kicks off 2025 with the offbeat, musical-murder-mystery “Lucky Stiff,” with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty (the creative duo behind “Anastasia,” “Once on this Island,” “Ragtime,” and more). When hapless English shoe salesman, Harry Witherspoon, learns he’s heir to a distant uncle’s fortune of rare diamonds, he’ll do anything to get his hands on the jewels – even if it means wheeling his uncle’s corpse around Monte Carlo for one last vacation. Meanwhile, a host of shady characters (including a jilted mob wife, a dogged do-gooder, and an optometrist) are hot on his trail! The production is exclusively sponsored by Ellie Fox. Previews Jan 7-9; opens Jan. 10, and plays through Jan. 26, 2025.

In late January, “Bloomsday,” by Steven Dietz plays in the ArtStage Studio Theatre. In this touching time-travel love story from the author of "Becky's New Car," Robert returns to Dublin to reunite with the woman who captured his heart thirty-five years earlier. Dancing backward through time, Robert and Cait retrace their steps and discover their younger selves - Robbie and Caithleen. Told with with, humor, and heartache, "Bloomsday" is a buoyant, moving story about making the most of the present before it becomes the past.  Previews Jan. 28-30; opens Jan. 31, and plays through Mar. 2, 2025.

On Valentine’s Day, “Boca” by Jessica Provenz opens in the Historic Arcade Theatre. Celebrate our very own Sunshine State by traveling east to Boca Raton – and a retirement community where the lawns and residents are perfectly maintained. This brand-new not-to-be-missed comedy follows a group of retirees who – between golf, bridge, and Botox – can be found dishing gossip and living it up like they’re teenagers again. Through it all, they find the key to happiness lies within their own community. Previews Feb. 11-13; opens Feb. 14, and plays through Mar. 2, 2025.

In mid-March, the powerful women and smashing sounds that made England swing in the ‘60s come to musical life in “Shout! The Mod Musical,” created by Phillip George and David Lowenstein, with continuity by Peter Morris. This non-stop revue features infectious, soulful pop anthems and ballads that made household names of Dusty Springfield, Petula Clark, Lulu, Shirley Bassey, The Seekers, and others. The musical is filled with eye-popping fashions, psychedelic dances, and new arrangements.  The production is sponsored by Bob and Jane Breisch. Previews Mar. 18-20; opens Mar. 21, and plays through Apr. 13, 2025.

Florida Rep’s season 27 closes in the ArtStage Studio with the sexy, witty, and provocative “Venus in Fur,” by David Ives. When Vanda arrives several hours late to her audition for a play based on a nineteenth-century erotic novel. The director is less than impressed, but Vanda’s masterful performance flips the script, and the audition turns into a tango for dominance between actress and director. The play turns up the heat on sexual power play and is sure to charm and mesmerize. Previews Apr. 15-17; opens Apr. 18, and plays through May 18, 2025.

Subscription packages for 9, 8, 7, and 6 shows are on sale now and give patrons the option to lock into seats or the flexibility to reserve as the season progresses for as low as $246. The popular Flex Pass offers the greatest flexibility and allows pass holders to lock into $63 tickets for the season after the minimum purchase of six tickets. Preview subscriptions sell out quickly for most plays, so the theatre recommends acting swiftly to lock into those seats and savings while supplies last. Premium subscriptions start at $360 (for six shows) and offer the biggest savings on premium seats.

Single tickets go on sale July 15, 2024, and start at $65/$61 for regular performances and $47/$43 for previews. Single Tickets for “Lucky Stiff” and “Shout! The Mod Musical” start at $69/$63.  Single tickets are priced dynamically and the value increases with demand. The theatre recommends the Flex Pass for single ticket buyers who want to lock into lower prices for the whole season early, then pick performance dates later – and the only way to lock into lower prices for Arcade musicals is to subscribe with any package.

Continuing for the 2024-2025 season, all evening performances in both venues start at 7 PM, except on opening nights (1st Fridays) which begin at the later 8 PM curtain time. Popular matinee performances on Wednesdays (Arcade), Thursdays (ArtStage), selected Fridays (Arcade), Saturdays, and Sundays begin at 2 PM. Florida Rep’s FREE parking for ticketed patrons opens two hours before every performance.

How to Purchase Tickets 

To read more about the 27th Season and to download a subscription order form, visit www.FloridaRep.org. To renew or become a new subscriber over the phone, please call the box office at 239-332-4488. Box office hours are Monday – Friday 10 AM – 5 PM; Saturday Noon - 5 PM; Sunday 2 hours before curtain.

Florida Rep's current season 26 is PLAYING NOW through May 19, 2024, and includes Ken Ludwig’s “A Comedy of Tenors” playing in the Historic Arcade through Mar. 3, “The Gin Game” by D.L. Coburn playing in the ArtStage Studio through March 10. The country-western musical, “Hank Williams: Lost Highway” runs in the Historic Arcade Mar. 19 – Apr. 14, and the electrifying drama “Oleanna” by David Mamet plays in the ArtStage Studio Apr. 16 through May 19, 2024.
 

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