- January 20, 2025
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Radio raconteur Paul Harvey famously gave you “the rest of the story.” The five plays I’ve selected do, too. Their events unfold after the big story ends. Or they’re the spark that got the big story started. Human pawns, taken off the chessboard. Dangerous books, taken off library shelves. A fractured fairy tale of what unfolds after “happily ever after.” The greatest story ever told — minus the last chapter. A winter of discontent turned to a glorious summer of reconciliation. What’s the rest of the story? Read on.
March 5-28, Florida Studio Theatre's Bowne's Lab, 1265 First St.. $29. Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.
What happens when a teenager’s reading list becomes a book-banners' hit list? Sharyn Rothstein answers that question in this Florida Studio Theatre Stage III production about a single mother’s crusade to purge “bad” books from her district’s curriculum.
As a school board member, Hannah’s got the power to do it. She wants to “protect the children.” Her daughter, Ella, doesn’t want protection. She just wants to read and make up her own mind about what’s good and bad.
Hannah’s motives for censorship seem noble. But her defiant daughter pushes back. After a few squabbles, mom’s mask drops. You finally see what’s behind her high-minded rhetoric. Hannah’s insecure, uncertain and not so noble. Control is what really drives her. “Protecting the children,” is just her excuse.
Rothstein’s play offers a witty, nuanced critique of the blunt tool of censorship. Hannah probably wouldn’t want her kid to see it. Your kid will probably love it.
March 21 to April 29, Urbanite Theatre, 1487 Second St. $39-$44. Visit UrbaniteTheatre.com.
Winter Miller’s play revolves around two female hostages trapped in a small, dark cell. They’ve got all the time in the world and nothing to do but talk. They do — and pour out their deepest hopes, dreams and fears. Words bind the women together. Words provide escape from despair.
Miller’s script digs into the psychology of captivity, the inner pain of isolation and the stubborn human need for meaning. While this play has a minimalist setting, its emotional depth is boundless. It’s an existential situation, but it isn’t a metaphor. Miller isn’t Sartre or Beckett. This is well-researched, grounded writing.
The playwright digs into the global conflicts and twisted ideologies that turn humans into hostages and leverage their pain for strategic advantage. Some playwrights have tackled hostage situations without doing their homework. Miller knows what she’s talking about. Directed by Summer Dawn Wallace.
April 1-27, FSU/Asolo Conservatory, FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail. $15-$30. Visit AsoloRep.org.
Shakespeare’s “The Winter’s Tale” is a tragicomic tale of collateral damage. The play begins with jealousy, misunderstanding and false imprisonment. King Leontes imprisons his wife, the Queen Hermione, on a false charge of infidelity. After that, he abandons their newborn daughter, Perdita, in the wilderness. Shepherds find Perdita and raise her. Complications ensue.
Sixteen years later, Leontes is wracked with remorse. He thinks his wife is dead — and it’s all his fault. But, in a magical twist, a statue of Hermione seems to come to life. No magic; she’s no statue! Hermione’s been in hiding and it’s really her. And Perdita’s alive, too! The play ends with a joyful family reunion, a laugh at human folly and the hope of healing. Directed by Jonathan Epstein.
April 10-20, The Sarasota Players, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail, Suite 1130. $34. Visit ThePlayers.org.
Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s musical picks up where the children’s books leave off. In their deconstructed fairy tale, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack (of beanstalk fame) and Rapunzel discover that actions have consequences.
They’re all on a quest through the scary, dark woods. But an angry Giantess blocks their path. Who the heck is she? Well, remember that Giant that Jack sent falling to his death after chopping down the beanstalk?
It seems that dead Giant had a wife — and that’s who she is. Needless to say, the large woman isn’t happy. And she’s out for revenge. Like it or not, the characters must get it together, deal with the fallout and make hard choices.
Is there a happy ending? They get out of the woods alive. For storybook characters, that’s happy enough. Thanks to sizzling satire and effervescent music, audiences will be happy in the real world. Directed by Brian Finnerty.
May 14 to June 15, Asolo Repertory Theatre, FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail. $35-$80. Visit AsoloRep.org.
“The passion of Jesus Christ.” It’s the greatest story ever told, right? And a very old story. In the late 1960s, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice decided to tell it in a radically new way. As a rock opera! Not the too-familiar Bible story set in ancient times.
The creators shifted the setting to Jerusalem in an alternate-reality present. The city’s locked down, under Roman occupation. And Jesus is coming to town, for a very revolutionary Passover. The man is a rock star, a superstar, a Messiah, maybe more. Above all, he’s a hit.
The under-30 crowd digs him. The square, old guys at the top don’t. Sure, he’s a great public speaker. But this Jesus is threatening the power structure. To stay in power, the Romans need to shut him up. His thousands of fans won’t make it easy.
To get to Jesus, the squares need an inside man. That’s where Judas comes in. He’s the perfect fall guy!
This rock opera cleverly frames Jesus’ story from Judas’ point of view. In the gospel according to Webber and Rice, Judas’ motives are good. He isn’t in it for the 30 pieces of silver; he’s trying to put a lid on Jesus’ cult of personality. This show combines such all-too-human insights with a savvy sensibility about the realpolitik behind the crucifixion. It has some great tunes, too. Directed by Josh Rhodes.
