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Return to Laughing Matters...2009
Cast and Creative Team
 Rebecca Langford (Head Writer) has been part of the development team for FST’s Cabaret Theatre since her arrival in Sarasota in 1998. Shows she has helped develop include: Shakespeare’s Greatest Hits, Brassy Broads, Hot and Cole, My One and Only Gershwin, GI Jive, Three Friends, Two Guitars and A Broken Tambourine, Piano Men and The Flip Side. She was the Director of Development for Laughing Matters...Too, A Vaudeville Cabaret and the original Laughing Matters. Ms. Langford is the chief operating officer for Florida Studio Theatre. She is responsible for the management of FST’s overall Administration, including the Business Office, Development, Marketing, Box Office, Front of House, Cabaret Restaurant, budgeting and maintaining the overall quality of FST’s internal management functions. In addition, Ms. Langford has 16 years of Improv experience and created FST’s award-winning Improv program. Prior to her arrival at Florida Studio Theatre, she worked as a theatre artist in Austin, Texas at the Austin Shakespeare Festival, in the box office for the Zachary Scott Theatre, and held the position of Audience Development Coordinator for the Largo Cultural Center in Florida. She is originally from Atlanta, Georgia where she attended Georgia State University and began her career in theatre as an actress.
 Stephan deGhelder (Writer) Laughing Matters fans will remember Stephan’s previous contributions such as “Customer Disservice”, “Food, Poisonous Food”, “Superstreptococous…” and others which received great audience reaction. Stephan wrote special material and lyrics to Noel and Cole, Men About Town which was produced by the Asolo; Albeit, a ten minute play; and the popular, award winning satirical musical cabaret, License to Bash which played in venues all over Sarasota including here at the FST Cabaret. With Brad Simmons, he wrote an original musical fantasy, A Kiss from Alexander, which premiered at the Bailiwick Theatre in Chicago and was nominated for four “Jefferson Awards” including “Best New Musical of the Season”. A Kiss from Alexander was awarded an Equity showcase production in New York City and has been optioned for an Off-Broadway production. They have also written the musical comedy, A Dickens of a Carol which premiered at Theatre Tuscaloosa and are currently working on two new musicals. He now lives on a mountainside in Asheville, NC dodging bears, boars, bobcats and wild turkeys.
 Jim Prosser (Pianist & Arranger, Co-Creator) This is Jim’s twelfth season in the FST Cabaret, for which he has developed and performed in numerous shows, including The British Invasion, The Flip Side, Piano Men, Three Friends, GI Jive, and Too Darn Hot. He has also worked extensively for FST’s Education programs, writing scores for the WRITE A PLAY programs, children’s shows, and most recently The Princess and the Pea. In addition, Jim enjoys playing “on the spot” for the FST Improv.
 Nick Santa Maria (Writer) got his start in improvisational comedy and has since been plying his trades for more than 30 years. He has appeared on television (The Buffalo Bill Show, BL Stryker, 2 Disney Christmas Specials), he has toured the country, and on cruise ships has seen the world doing stand up comedy. He was a writer/composer/performer with the hit off-Broadway musical, Secrets Every Smart Traveler Should Know (Soundtrack on RCA Victor); he has toured and appeared on Broadway as Vince Fontaine in Tommy Tune’s Grease!, and has appeared in every domestic company of Mel Brooks’ The Producers (including a month in Tokyo). He was also the original Genie in the $10,000,000.00 production of Disney’s Aladdin, featured at the 2000 seat Hyperion Theatre at Disney’s California Adventure. On film he can be seen in Holy Man and The Producers. At FST Nick has appeared in I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (nominee for Best actor in a musical from Sarasota Magazine), Over the River and Through the Woods (Winner for best actor, Sarasota Magazine), and as a performer/writer/composer for the original Laughing Matters.
 Chris Friday (Writer) Chris is excited to be a part this next installment of Laughing Matters, after having the pleasure of being on the writing team for FST’s Cabaret Revue Laughing Matters… Too. Earlier this year, Chris co-wrote A’ Cookin’ which won several awards including Best Picture in the National 48 Hour Film Festival. In addition to being a founding member of The FST Improv Troupe, Chris also originated and directs the critically acclaimed improv groups Lazy Fairy and Becky’s Rejects. In addition to being a writer, Chris is also a professional actor. He has been in numerous productions in the area including Dr. Sugar in American Stage’s Suddenly Last Summer, The Plexiglass Slipper at Asolo Rep, and Paralyzed for FST’s Reading Series. Chris served on staff in FST’s Education department for 7 years teaching all ages and levels, as well as acting in many numerous productions.
 W Joseph Matheson (Writer) has been involved with Laughing Matters since its inception. His credits include the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, where, as Charlie Cowell, he traded blows with Jonathan Goad’s Harold Hill in The Music Man, as first-mate Starbuck, he went head-to-head with David Ferry’s obsessed Captain Ahab in the world premiere of Moby Dick. Joe’s writing has recently taken centre stage as well, with productions of Could You Wait (written with Louise Pitre and Diane Leah) and his one-man show Hank Williams Live - 1952 across the country. Favorite roles: the Narrator in For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again, Caleb in Spitfire Grill, and Matt in Could You Wait (Grand Theatre, London); Conklin in Ragtime (LiveEnt); Cousin Kevin in The Who’s TOMMY (Mirvish Productions); Ozzie in On the Town and Henry in Counselor at Law (Shaw Festival); Czolgosz in Assassins (Eclectic Theatre, Toronto); Charlie Chamberlain in Don Messer’s Violin (Summerside Festival, PEI), Cameron in The Foursome (Drayton Ent.). Stateside: Rooster in Annie (Carousel Theatre, Ohio); Doolittle in My Fair Lady (Northern Stage, Vermont); the King in Pippin (Emelin Theater, NY); and Richard Rawe in Good Faith (LaMaMa ETC, NY).
 Adam Ratner (Writer) has been associated with Florida Studio Theatre for nearly 25 years. He began as a performer and writer for the young sketch comedy troupe, The Kids Komedy Club here at FST in the late 1980s. A Sarasota native, Adam attended Booker High School’s Visual and Performing Arts Program and is a graduate of Florida State University with a degree in acting and creative writing. Over the past 10 years he has been commissioned to write plays for FST’s Kids Classics and Teen Classics Program. He is also a teaching artist, the Young Playwrights Festival Coordinator and has had the opportunity to teach playwriting Internationally, traveling to several of Sarsota’s Sister Cities, including Tel Mond, Israel, Dunfermline, Scotland and most recently Vladimir, Russia. Adam can be seen on stage as a member of FST’s Improv and has performed in many roles for the Education Departments WRITE A PLAY Program.
 Richard Hopkins (Director) Artistic Director of Florida Studio Theatre since 1980, Richard Hopkins has guided the company from a small touring group to a professional regional theatre. Mr. Hopkins began his professional theatre career as a resident actor with Asolo State Theatre in Sarasota, Florida. In 1974 he founded the Palisades Theatre Company in Washington, DC, which subsequently moved to St. Petersburg to become American Stage. He served as its Producing Director from 1974-1980. Additional experiences include: President of the Florida Professional Theatres Association (1983-1985), Panelist for Theatre Program of Florida Arts Council, and Director/Instructor for Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus’ Clown College (1981). His many directing credits include: Metamorphoses, The Bully Pulpit, Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde, 2: Goering at Nuremberg, Six Degrees of Separation, Hi-Hat-Hattie, Agnes of God, Betrayal and Permanent Collection and numerous other plays and Cabaret projects including Sophie Tucker, Inspired Lunacy, and Shakespeare’s Greatest Hits, Over the Rainbow and Laughing Matters…Too.
Vince di Mura (Music Director) has performed on concert stages throughout North America, Canada and Latin America. Vince's new CD, "For Lost Words," and his first two commercially released CD's, "Imperfect Balance" and "A Darker Shade of Romance" are available at iTunes.com and CDBaby.com. Mr. DiMura holds fellowships from Meet the Composer, The Puffin Cultural Foundation, New Jersey State Council on the Arts and The Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation. Mr. DiMura has fulfilled commissions for Rutgers, Princeton, and Rider Universities, The Scioto Society, Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis, and a host of theatre scores for People's Light and Theatre Company. He is best known for his arrangements of My Way: A Sinatra Cabaret and I Left My Heart: A Tribute to the Music of Tony Bennett; both revues are licensed by Summer Wind Productions and have had over 300 productions nationwide since 2001.
CAST
 Jamie Day (Ensemble) is really excited to be doing her fourth show at FST! She has over 13 years of professional experience on the stage and has been in everything from “Debbie Does Dallas –The Musical” (it was a family show…get your minds out of the gutter) to “2 and ½ Men.” Over the last year, Jamie has begun her Graduate Studies and will soon be a Registered Drama Therapist and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She currently teaches Acting in the Sarasota area and has also created The Drama Discovery Program for children. Check out her website: www.actingwithintegrity.com
 Patrick Frankfort (Ensemble) Patrick is thrilled to be returning to FST for another round of Laughing Matters. He also performs all over NYC in the popular musical comic duo, Booth and Pat. He’s also part of the sketch comedy group, City Hall. Other credits include Pokemon Live! (Professor Oak), Superfudge (Peter), The Goodbye Girl (Elliot), and Mossadegh the Musical (Mossadegh).
 Stephen Hope (Ensemble and Choreographer) has performed on Broadway in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat and The Scarlet Pimpenel, Off-Broadway in Fairy Tales and Ascension, and on regional theatre stages across the country. FST audiences have seen him in more than a dozen productions including The Exonerated, Ruthless, Laughing Matters Too (which he also choreographed) and last season’s European Cabaret. As a choreographer, he most recently provided musical staging for FST productions of A Murder, A Mystery, and A Marriage and Steppin’ Out.
 Richie McCall (Ensemble) hails from New York City and was both in the Broadway and National tour of Showboat. He was also seen in the national tour of Tommy Tune’s Grand Hotel and has toured extensively throughout Europe. Richie’s regional credits include productions of Pippin, Hamlet, Porgy and Bess, Ain’t Misbehavin, Comedy of Errors and Sweet Charity, to name a few. He has appeared in several commercials and on television. Richie recently produced, wrote and starred in his one man show, “Me and Stepin” in NYC.
Production Staff
Production Manager...........................................Bruce Price
Company Manager.............................................Rob Thomas
Production Stage Manager.................................Emily C. Hayes & Genevieve Moran
Costume and Scenic Design...............................Marcella Beckwith
Lighting Designer...............................................Felicia Hall
Sound Designer..................................................Eric Stahlhammer
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