IN THIS FORUM

Moderator

Catherine Randazzo is an Associate Artist and the Literary Manager at Florida Studio Theatre. She has been a part of the Sarasota arts community since 1990 and has actively contributed to FST’s New Play Development program. As Associate Artist, Catherine serves as an in-residence director, professional actor, teaching artist, and literary manager. She has directed numerous shows mainly for FST's Winter Cabarets, New Play Workshops, Stage III, and serves as line producer for the Summer Cabaret Series. As Literary Manager, Catherine oversees FST’s literary office, collaborates with new and established playwrights, and serves as Secretary for the Executive Committee of the National New Play Network.  She leads audience outreach programs and forums, fostering community engagement and dialogue. Catherine received the 2018 Giving Challenge Prize for Best Community Event, awarded to UnidosNow and Florida Studio Theatre. This is Catherine's 10th season at FST. 

Panelists

Richard Hopkins is the Producing Artistic Director and Chief Executive Officer of Florida Studio Theatre and is directly responsible to the Board of Directors. He oversees the creation & implementation of all FST programming & fiscal planning, including Mainstage, Cabaret, Stage III, New Play Development, Education and Touring. Since his arrival at FST in 1980, Mr. Hopkins has guided the theatre from a small touring company to a nationally recognized regional theatre, which impacts over 225,000 adults & children annually. He has directed more than 40 productions in FST’s five theatres. Mr. Hopkins began his professional theatre career as a resident actor with the Asolo State Theatre in Sarasota, Florida. He was the founding director of Palisades Theatre Company in Washington, D.C., which eventually morphed into what is now American Stage in St. Petersburg, Florida and served as its Producing Director from 1974-1980. Mr. Hopkins served as the President of the Florida Professional Theatres Association from 1983-1985. Mr. Hopkins is the recipient of numerous awards including the Arts Leadership Award from the Sarasota Arts Council & the Richard G. Fallon Award for Artistic Excellence from the Florida Professional Theatre Association.

Joe Casey | FST: Take It To The Limit, Blue Suede Shoes, American Pie, Million Dollar Quartet (Johnny Cash). Regional: The Crucible (John Proctor), The Bridges Of Madison County (Robert Kincaid), Betrayal (Jerry), 9 to 5 (Franklin Hart), Honeymoon In Vegas (Tommy Korman). NYC: Allen Wilder 2.0 (Michael), The Great American Backstage Musical (Johnny Brash). TV: The Knick, American Dynasty, A Crime To Remember. FILM: Self Help, The UTI Fairy, There For All The Moments

Dr. Andrew Berish is an Associate Professor in the Humanities and Cultural Studies Department at the University of South Florida. He is the author of Lonesome Roads and Streets of Dreams: Place, Mobility, and Race in Jazz of the 1930s and ‘40s (2012) and Hating Jazz: A History of Its Disparagement, Mockery, and Other Forms of Abuse (Feb. 2025), both from the University of Chicago Press.