Our Staff
EXECUTIVE STAFF
Producing Artistic Director, CEO | Richard Hopkins
50 years professional theatre experience | 40 years at Florida Studio Theatre
Acted in over one hundred plays | Directed over one hundred plays
Mr. Hopkins is the Producing Artistic Director of Florida Studio Theatre. Mr. Hopkins has fostered the development of FST’s Mainstage and Cabaret productions. His many directing Mainstage 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, among numerous other plays. Mr. Hopkins led the development of FST’s Cabaret productions of Guitar Girls, Mack the Knife: The Bobby Darin Songbook, Older Than Dirt, Piano Men, and The Prima Donnettes. Mr. Hopkins also serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Florida Studio Theatre. This includes overseeing the creation and implementation of all FST programming, 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 230,000 adults and children annually. He created the New Play Development Program, The Cabaret Series, FST’s award winning WRITE A PLAY Program, and he has directed the design and renovation of all FST’s theatres. 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 Theatres Association, and the 2012 Cultural Champion Award from the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County. In 2016, Mr. Hopkins was awarded the Luminaire Award honoring excellence in creativity, philanthropy, advocacy, and all elements that are keys to future growth of the Arts in Sarasota. In 2017, Mr. Hopkins was awarded the Florida Theatre Conference Lifetime Achievement Award for contributing to the rich cultural fabric of the Sarasota community and the state of Florida, and his dedication to developing future artists, educators, and advocates.
Managing Director | Rebecca Hopkins
27 years professional theatre experience | 22 years at Florida Studio Theatre
Mrs. Hopkins serves as Managing Director for Florida Studio Theatre, and as such, is the Chief Operations Officer. Mrs. Hopkins is responsible for oversight of FST’s Administration, including the Business Office, Development, Marketing, Box Office, Front of House, Restaurant, Budgeting, and maintaining the overall quality of FST’s internal management. Mrs. Hopkins serves on the Board of Directors for the League of Resident Theatres and for the Theatre Communications Group. She is the former President of the National New Play Network. Mrs. Hopkins has been actively involved in development of FST’s Cabaret productions since her arrival in 1998. Previously she was the Lead Developer on 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 five Laughing Matters shows. Some of her favorite shows she helped develop include: Outlaws and Angels; Mack 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 excellence in creativity, philanthropy, advocacy, and all elements that are keys to future growth of the arts in Sarasota.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Production Manager | Lizzi Nehls
Technical Director | Roland Black
Sound Supervisor | Thom Korp
ARTISTIC STAFF
Associate Director At-Large | Kate Alexander
Casting/Hiring Coordinator | Alexa Doggett
Associate Artist | Jason Cannon
Associate Artist | Catherine Randazzo
Assistant to the Producing Artistic Director | Doris Iemolo
Resident Pianist | Jim Prosser
Director of Improvisation | Will Luera
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
Asst. to the Managing Director | Sarah Durham
Facilities Manager | Joseph Goepfrich
Facilities Technician | Mark Quackenbush
Events Coordinator and General Management Assistant | JT Priar
Director of Marketing | Becca Jennings
Public Relations Associate | Lydia Baxter
Marketing Associate | Sarah Haley
Director of Individual Giving | Melody Mora-Shihadeh
Development Associate | Rachel Moulton
Company Manager | Luke Johnson
Patron Services Manager | Kelsey Wehde Wilson
Restaurant Manager | Tom Curry
Box Office Manager | Gigi Eckert-Delpero
Asst. Box Office Manager | Andie Antonik
EDUCATION
Director of Education | Josh Ford
Director of Children's Theatre | Caroline Kaiser
Lead Teaching Artist/YPF Coordinator | Adam Ratner