The Guide: Arts & Entertainment

SARASOTANS OFTEN BOAST ABOUT OUR PERFORMING ARTS SCENE—and with good reason. Our professional theater, ballet, orchestra and opera companies frequently win raves from New York critics, while some of our many community theaters have won international recognition. We’re also home to some outstanding  local dance, choral and film programs.

For professional theater, take your pick: Asolo Rep, Florida’s state theater company, is joined by downtown Sarasota’s Florida Studio Theatre and the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre. But that’s just the beginning for the area’s talented actors and actresses, who also shine in lauded community theaters from Venice to Anna Maria.


Local musicians hit all the right notes, from the professional Sarasota Orchestra and Sarasota Opera companies to symphonies, concert bands and choral groups making beautiful music wherever you listen. We’re the home of La Musica, a chamber music festival, and Sarasota Music Festival, a renowned teaching festival. And dance, too, takes the stage—all the stages, really—be it the Sarasota Ballet or the many contemporary and experimental groups forever exploring new forms of artistic movement.

And beyond, there’s Circus Sarasota, continuing the area’s century-old circus tradition; McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, drawing laugh-out-loud stand-ups from national tours; the star-studded Sarasota Film Festival; and the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, ensuring that no matter what kind of show you’re looking for, you’ll find it on a Sarasota stage.

The popular Players Theatre made its early home in a 246-seat theater built of pecky cypress in 1936. The current theater sits on that same site.

THEATER
Asolo Repertory Theatre, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. (941) 351-8000. asolorep.org. For more than 50 years, the Asolo Rep has been presenting professional, Equity theater productions, with a rotating repertory cast and format that’s rare in North America. The season, usually offering eight or nine plays, gets under way in October or November and continues into May or June. The past few seasons have begun with blockbuster musical productions en route to Broadway, followed by a rotating repertory presenting a range of classical and contemporary works, employing professional actors who are based locally or split their time between Sarasota and New York.

Banyan Theater Company, (941) 358-5330. banyantheatercompany.com. Nearly a decade ago, the Banyan began to satisfy Sarasota’s insatiable appetite for theater by producing professional quality productions over the summer. Three shows are presented in the traditionally slower months of June, July and August, and they run the gamut from Eugene O’Neill to Chekhov to Neil LaBute, giving us plenty to talk about after the final curtain.

The FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. (941) 351-8000. Home to the professional Asolo Rep, the FSU/Asolo Conservatory of Professional Actor Training (which presents its own four-play season in the smaller Cook Theatre here), Sarasota Ballet of Florida and, in the summer, the Banyan Theater Company. Performances on two stages year-round.

Florida Studio Theatre, 1241 N. Palm Ave., Sarasota. (941) 366-9000. floridastudiotheatre.org. FST’s diverse offerings run virtually year-round on three stages in downtown Sarasota. The mainstage season at the Keating Theatre mixes drama, musical comedies and new work; a smaller, intimate cabaret stage is perfect for musical revues as well as improv comedy performances, workshops and more. The Gompertz Theatre on First Street also presents smaller-sized shows, often of a hard-hitting nature.

Golden Apple Dinner Theatre, 25 N. Pineapple Ave., Sarasota. (941) 366-5454. thegoldenapple.com. The country’s oldest continuously running professional dinner theater serves up songs and laughter in the heart of downtown Sarasota. Traditionally, the Apple has presented Broadway musical comedy standards like Evita or Cats; lately, they’ve also branched out into newer musical revues—and, yes, even drag queen bingo. The season runs virtually year-round.

Manatee Players, 102 12th St. W., Bradenton. (941) 748-0111. manateeplayers.com. This venerable community theater has been presenting a full season of plays (mostly musicals of late) for decades in its Riverfront Theatre site in downtown Bradenton. (The group is in the process of building a new facility nearby.) The quality is often well above the usual concept of community theater; strong educational programs here, too.

The Players Theatre, 838 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. (941) 365-2494. theplayers.org. The Players is the great-granddaddy of the area’s community theaters, with a stage that has been graced by Montgomery Clift and Charlton Heston. Now celebrating its 82nd season, it offers Broadway musical favorites onstage September through April. But the Players also presents a lively mix of concerts and a summer play fest, as well as occasional edgier work. There are also a popular playwriting contest and a performing arts school at the Players, where students of all ages get to hone the talents that may eventually launch them onto mainstage.

Venice Theatre, 140 W. Tampa Ave. W., Venice. (941) 488-1115. venicestage.com. Community theater presenting a blend of musical favorites, the occasional drama and a comedy or two on its mainstage. Venice Theatre’s smaller, black-box Pinkerton Theater plays host to more contemporary Stage II offerings, along with cabaret shows. Again, there’s a strong educational component to the theater’s programs, with classes for both children and adults.
Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1646 10th Way, Sarasota. (941) 366-1505. wbttroupe.org. This professional African-American theater company has been going strong for more than a decade now. WBTT has had numerous hits with its musicals, but they present the occasional drama, too, drawn from either African-American playwrights or relating to the African-American experience. The season, comprising four shows, is performed at the troupe’s new home from December to May.