Florida Studio Theatre expanding

SARASOTA, Fla. – Florida Studio Theatre breaks ground on their new $57 million McGillicuddy Arts Plaza.

The Florida Studio Theatre prides itself on high-quality shows at affordable prices for the entire community.  Their base in Sarasota continues to grow year after year.  A new project has started to support the artists and community they work with. 

What started as a touring company in the 1970s has turned into a Sarasota staple. Florida Studio Theatre broke ground this morning on the McGillicudy Arts Plaza. A new addition to continue their legacy. 

Shovels in the ground brought a vision to reality. 

“It has been an 8-year journey to get through today,” said Rebecca Hopkins, the Managing Director for Florida Studio Theatre. 

Construction will soon start on the McGillicuddy Arts Plaza. 

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It will be a building to serve the community. 

The complex will help expand FST’s campus to include a state-of-the-art main stage, two additional Cabarets, three floors of parking and on-site artist housing. 

Why you should care:

“The housing is the thing that drove the project. It started when we had a great need. We are in Sarasota where affordable workforce housing is basically non-existent,” said Hopkins. 

The housing will be open to those working with FST Theatre and to those who qualify from arts communities throughout Sarasota and Manatee Counties. 

“We bring artists in from throughout the United States, and they need to live somewhere that makes them feel good before they go on our stages. That’s where the arts start at their home,” said Hopkins. 

The total cost for the project comes in at 57 million dollars. 

Two million of which was secured through funding from the State of Florida and Representative Fiona McFarland. 

” We know Sarasota is seasonal, we know Sarasota has a rich performing arts culture, and it just makes total sense that we will have visiting artists to stay now,” said McFarland. 

What started with 72 seats in 1980 has turned into a theater open and affordable to the entire community. 

“We have built up organically based on need. This campus has been in a growth process basically since 1980. This is the final piece, this is the last piece of the puzzle,” said Hopkins. 

What’s next:

Construction should take around two years to finish. 

The Source: The information gathered for this story came from FST Theatre. 

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