Artistic Director

OPPORTUNITY

Florida Studio Theatre (FST) is seeking a talented theater professional to lead the planning and execution of the organization’s core programming as Artistic Director. This newly conceived role will be part of a reimagined leadership team as FST’s long-serving Producing Artistic Director transitions into retirement and top leadership of the organization transfers to an Executive Director, a role effectively defined as a chief executive officer leading a team that includes the Artistic Director and an incoming Managing Director.

The purview of the Artistic Director will be to shape the programming for the plays and musical offerings that annually define FST’s Winter and Summer Mainstage Series (seven productions), Stage III (three productions), Children’s Theatre (four productions), and New Play Development. The Artistic Director will be skilled in creating seasons that respond to and extend FST’s mission, engaging artistic and production talent to create in full alignment with FST’s aesthetic focused in authentic and engaging storytelling that does not rely on outsized production spectacle.

The Artistic Director will participate in the artistic life of FST through their own artistic practice as a stage director, actor, designer, or other individual artistic practice, but will fully understand that the primary responsibilities of the role are to serve as the overall producer of FST’s principle theatrical offerings. Working closely with FST’s Executive Director, the Artistic Director will balance artistic ambition with responsiveness to audience needs.

Florida Studio Theatre was founded in 1973 by artist Jon Spelman as an alternative touring group, reaching out to isolated and underserved audiences in nursing homes, migrant farms, and prisons. When Richard Hopkins was named Producing Artistic Director in 1980, he founded FST's Mainstage Series with a modest 103 subscribers. Today, FST reaches over 45,000 subscribers and an annual audience of more than 225,000 across its diverse programs, making FST the largest subscription theatre in the state of Florida.

Now in its 53rd Season, FST is proud of its reach and impact across its five stages and through over 20 professional productions each year.

FST’s Mission is:

To make theatre affordable and accessible to as many people as possible.

To present theatre that challenges with as much gusto as it entertains.

To create a public forum for the issues of our day that will foster positive change in our community and beyond.

To operate within and for the public trust.

FST’s campus is currently comprised of office, rehearsal, and production spaces and the following five performance spaces:

The Gompertz Theatre, FST’s largest performance space with 237 seats used for Winter and Summer Mainstage Series

The Keating Theatre, a 173-seat space used for Winter and Summer Mainstage Series and Children’s Theatre presentations

The Court Cabaret, a 100-seat venue also providing dinner service to patrons one hour before performances in the Cabaret Series

The Goldstein Cabaret, FST’s second 100-seat venue for Cabaret Series performances also offering dinner service

Bowne’s Lab, a 100-seat venue that serves as home to FST’s Stage III and Improv Series

The Green Room is also FST’s full-service restaurant and bar open to the public for preshow dining experiences.

FST takes a service-oriented approach to live performance. The company has consistently listened to audiences in the region, taking its cue from patrons creating work that gives voice to ideas, experiences, and questions that may be present but not yet fully expressed and explored. To fully execute on their Mission, FST currently supports the following programs:

Mainstage Series. Now in its 53rd…