Our Staff

EXECUTIVE STAFF

Producing Artistic Director, CEO   |   Richard Hopkins
50+ years professional theatre experience   |   42 years at Florida Studio Theatre
Acted in and directed over two hundred plays

Mr. Hopkins is the Producing Artistic Director of Florida Studio Theatre. He has fostered the development of FST’s Mainstage and Cabaret productions. His many Mainstage directing credits include: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Honor Killing, Inspired Lunacy, The Best of Enemies, Next to Normal, Race, Ruined, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Boleros for the Disenchanted, Permanent Collection, and Metamorphoses. Mr. Hopkins has led the development of numerous FST Cabaret productions, including The Wanderers, Outlaws & Angels, Guitar Girls, Mack the Knife: The Bobby Darin Songbook, Older Than Dirt, Piano Men, and The Prima Donnettes. He also serves as FST’s Chief Executive Officer, which involves overseeing the creation and implementation of FST’s Mainstage, Cabaret, Stage III, Children’s Theatre, The FST School, FST Improv, and New Play Development programming. 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 230,000 adults and children annually. He created FST’s New Play Development program, Cabaret Series, and co-created the award-winning WRITE A PLAY program. He has also directed the design and renovation of FST’s theatres. Mr. Hopkins is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Richard G. Fallon Award for Artistic Excellence from the Florida Professional Theatres Association, and the Arts Leadership Award and 2012 Cultural Champion Award from the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County. In 2016, Richard Hopkins was awarded the Luminaire Award by the Fine Arts Society of Sarasota, honoring those who have made a significant impact on the local arts community through creativity, philanthropy, or advocacy. In 2017, he was awarded the Florida Theatre Conference Lifetime Achievement Award for contributing to the rich cultural fabric of the Sarasota community, the state of Florida, and his dedication to developing future artists, educators, and advocates.

Managing Director   |   Rebecca Hopkins
29 years professional theatre experience |   24 years at Florida Studio Theatre

Rebecca Hopkins serves as Managing Director for Florida Studio Theatre, and as such, is the Chief Operations Officer. Mrs. Hopkins is responsible for oversight of the administrative side of FST, including the Business Office, Development, Marketing, Box Office, Front of House, and Restaurant departments, as well as maintaining the overall quality of FST’s internal management. She serves on the Board of Directors for the League of Resident Theatres and for the Theatre Communications Group. She is also the former President of the National New Play Network. Mrs. Hopkins has been actively involved in the development of FST’s Cabaret productions since her arrival in 1998. Previously, she was the Lead Developer on Friends in Low Places; Light My Fire; That’s Amoré!; The Wonder Years: The Music of the Baby Boomers; Unchained Melodies; Blue Suede Shoes; Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves; Yesterday; American Pie; and Poems, Prayers, and Promises. She has been the head writer on all six Laughing Matters shows. Some of her favorite shows she helped develop include Outlaws and AngelsMack the Knife: The Bobby Darin Songbook; The Prima Donnettes; That’s Life; The Wanderers; My One and Only Gershwin; Hot and Cole; The British Invasion; and The Flip Side. In addition, she is the founder and producer of FST Improv and the Sarasota Improv Festival. In 2012, the Arts & Cultural Alliance awarded Mrs. Hopkins the Cultural Champion Award in recognition of her many years of accomplishment and growth with Florida Studio Theatre. In 2016, Mrs. Hopkins was awarded the Luminaire Award, honoring those who have made a significant impact on the local arts community through creativity, philanthropy, or advocacy.


PRODUCTION STAFF

Associate Production Manager  |  Louis Vetter Torres

Associate Production Manager / Performance Supervisor | Allison Hannon

Production Office Manager  |  Andie Cummings

Technical Director  |  Clint Wright

Associate Technical Director  |  Nathan Clark

Lead Carpenter | Casey Seiler

Production Stage Manager | Roy Johns

Costume Shop Manager  |  Mari Taylor Floyd

Costume Shop Assistant | Erin Barnett

Properties Supervisor | Danielle McKay Walsh

Sound Supervisor  |  Thom Korp

Resident Lighting Designer / Lighting Supervisor | Andrew Gray

 


ARTISTIC STAFF

Associate Director and Director of “The Recovery Project”  |  Sean Daniels

Associate Director At-Large  |  Kate Alexander

Casting and Hiring Coordinator   |  Alexa Vetter Torres

Associate Artist   |   Ellie Mooney

Associate Artist & Development Associate  |   Rachel Moulton

Associate Artist   |   Catherine Randazzo

Literary Associate  |  Helena Rankin

Assistant to the Producing Artistic Director   |   Doris Iemolo

Resident Pianist   |   Jim Prosser

Director of Improvisation   |   Will Luera

Improv Associate, Executive and Artistic Assistant to the Managing Director​  |   Sarah Durham


ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

General Manager  |  Jill Zakrzewski

Director of IT  |  Clarke Weigle

Business Manager   |   Carmen Gonzalez

Associate Business Manager   |   Orville Cordero

Business Office Associate   |  David Wallace

Director of Finance | Jacinta Kavanaugh

Executive and Artistic Assistant to the Managing Director​, Improv Associate |   Sarah Durham

General Management Associate  JT Priar

Company Manager  |  Enrico Drago

Director of Marketing |  Becca Boyd

Public Relations Manager  |   Lydia Baxter

Events Coordinator and Digital Marketing Assistant  |  Franki Arroyo

Marketing Assistant | Destiny Jackson

Director of Individual Giving  |  Melody Mora-Shihadeh

Major Gifts Officer | Jay Lockaby

Development Associate & Associate Artist |  Rachel Moulton

Development Associate  |  Bo Smith

Development Associate  |  Kristin Hartnett

Development Assistant | Claudio DeJesus Arteta

Facilities Manager | Justin Piccillo

Facilities Technician   |   Luke Johnson

Facilities Technician  | Bernardo Hernandez

Patron Services Manager   |   Kelsey Wehde Wilson

Restaurant Manager   |   Tom Curry

Asst. Restaurant Manager  |  Karen Kraster

Asst. Restaurant Manager  |  Pamela Dillon

Kitchen Manager  |  Steve Swan

Volunteer Coordinator and Receptionist  |  Joan O'Dowd

Box Office Manager   |   Gigi Eckert-Delpero

Asst. Box Office Manager  |  Bev Kippenhan 

Asst. Box Office Manager  |  Seth Hilbert

Asst. Box Office Manager |  Jordyn Davis

 


EDUCATION

Education Administrator | Pamela Smith

Director of Children's Theatre  |  Caroline Saldivar

Manager of Education & WRITE A PLAY | Shelby Lynhall

Teaching Artist | Kate Walsh

Teaching Artist | Genesis Perez-Padilla