This past week, Asolo Repertory Theatre announced the slate for its upcoming 2025-26 season. The company’s 67th season, led by Producing Artistic Director Peter Rothstein, has expanded from seven mainstage productions in the 2024-25 year to eight. For Asolo Rep, which has established itself as one of the preeminent theatrical institutions in all of the Southeast, programming a season is all about balance.

It’s about balancing the performances that audiences crave with the stories and productions that Rothstein and his team believe are important to impress upon them. Oftentimes, the two overlap. Take for example the season’s opener, Movin’ Out, with music and lyrics by Billy Joel and conceived, directed and choreographed by Twyla Tharp. Movin’ Out originally premiered on Broadway in 2002 to universal acclaim—Asolo Rep’s production will incorporate the same music and choreography that make the musical a modern classic while infusing the production with new artistic elements that reenvision how the characters interact with the music.

The season continues with the return of Rothstein’s All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 in December, a heartfelt tale of the famed Christmas Truce on the Western Front in World War I, that is told through the actual songs and stories of the soldiers themselves. Eboni Booth’s dramatic play Primary Trust, which follows Kenneth, a 30-something African-American man who is forced to look inwards after being laid off from his bookstore job in small-town America.

Mystery lovers should check out Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d, directed by Rothstein’s predecessor Michael Donald Edwards, which follows Christie’s heroine sleuth Miss Marple as she untangles a complex web of deception when a murder happens in a quaint English village during the filming of a Hollywood movie.

February brings the U.S. premiere of Steven Moffat’s The Unfriend, a darkly comedic thriller about a suburban couple’s dangerous run-in with a house guest who overstays her welcome. In April, the beloved musical Fiddler on the Roof will make its Asolo Rep debut, followed by Marie and Rosetta, a musical about two of the most influential figures in Rock ‘n’ Roll. Rounding out the season is Lady Disdain, a new romantic comedy from Lauren Gunderson.

“I am thrilled to share this dynamic collection of stories with our community and to welcome some of the most celebrated artists of our time to create work on the Asolo stage,” says Rothstein.

Asolo Repertory Theatre, 555 N Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, 800-361-8388. 

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Members of the Medical Executive Committee at HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital recently presented a $30,000 donation to the HCA Healthcare Hope Fund. The fund is a colleague run and supported 501(c) 3 charity that supports employees and their families affected by financial hardships. Colleagues impacted by disasters, hurricanes, extended illnesses or the death of a loved one can apply for assistance. In 2004 HCA Healthcare colleagues around the country wanted to help colleagues in Florida affected by hurricanes, which sparked a movement and led to the formalizing the Hope Fund as a charitable organization in 2005. Since then $115 million has been given to 56,000 HCA Healthcare colleagues and their families. Colleagues are able to contribute to the fund as well as apply for help.  

Witness The Sarasota Ballet's long-awaited Company premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton’s full-length story ballet, Romeo and Juliet, bringing the grandeur and passion of Shakespeare’s beloved tragedy to the Sarasota stage. Choreographed in 1955 to Sergei Prokofiev’s score, the ballet brought great success for the Royal Danish Ballet. Unlike many other productions, Ashton decided to truly focus on the “intimate tragedy of two young people caught in an all-consuming passion” (David Vaughan, Frederick Ashton and his Ballets, 1977). Infused with Ashton’s musicality and penchant for heart-fluttering pas de deux, Romeo and Juliet clearly demonstrates Ashton’s choreographic genius and his ability to portray the nature of humanity through dance. The Sarasota Ballet's spectacular Romeo and Juliet performances will be held at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall from March 28 to 29, 2025, featuring Live Music by the Sarasota Orchestra 

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 After seven decades of exhibits, Sarasota’s own group of Petticoat Painters is still being seen.  The City of Sarasota will be celebrating Women’s History Month with the opening of a vibrant new exhibit by Sarasota’s Petticoat Painters. Located within the main lobby of City Hall, this exhibit will run from March 16, 2025 through March 2026 and is free and open to the public.  The Petticoat Painters is one of the oldest continuously exhibiting women’s art collaboratives in the U.S. The group was formed in 1953 to showcase the talents of female artists at a time when women  had difficulty in finding venues to show their work. An Opening Reception will be held on March 21 from 4 - 6 p.m. Speakers will include Sarasota’s Mayor Liz Alpert and Tim Jaeger, Director of Galleries and Chief Curator at Ringling College. 

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Florida Studio Theatre (FST) is honored to celebrate the extraordinary generosity of the late Mary Jo Reston, whose lasting legacy will shape the theatre for generations to come. A devoted supporter for nearly two decades, Reston’s transformative $1.25 million bequest will help sustain FST’s artistic excellence well into the future. In recognition of her incredible gift, she will be recognized as a Platinum Underwriter in perpetuity for the entirety of FST’s programming, ensuring that the productions she cherished will continue to inspire audiences for years to come. Her planned gift to FST demonstrates an enduring trust in the theatre’s mission and future. This selfless act ensures that FST will continue to educate, entertain, and inspire audiences for generations to come.  

Experience an unforgettable evening of elegance and enchantment at Wine & Roses. Set in the breathtaking Museum of Art Courtyard, this exquisite event features a lavish multi-course dinner expertly paired with fine wines, a champagne cocktail hour, and live music under the stars. While we will do our best to accommodate seating requests, we cannot guarantee specific placements unless a full table of 8 is purchased or tickets are bought together.  

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On March 29th, starting at 6pm, Neuro Challenge Foundation for Parkinson’s proudly presents "Cause 4 Hope – Legacy of Hope Gala”.Cause 4 Hope raises funds needed to provide year-round education, therapeutic and support programs and one-to-one care advising at no cost for people with Parkinson’s and their caregivers. 

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The Child Protection Center (CPC) invites you to join them for an unforgettable evening at the 12th Annual Blue Ties and Butterflies gala, celebrating 45 years of service in the prevention, intervention, and treatment of child abuse. This special night will take place during Child Abuse Prevention Month on Friday, April 4th, 2025 at The Ritz Carlton in Sarasota. The program will be filled with inspiring moments and a shared commitment to supporting the transformational healing of victims of child abuse.More than a pretty title, the event is named ‘Blue Ties and Butterflies’ to recognize the blue ribbon (a national emblem for child abuse awareness and prevention) while the transformation of the butterfly symbolizes a child abuse victim's transformational journey from victim, to survivor, to one who thrives. 

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