Florida Studio Theater Forums Series for the 2024-2025 Season

Florida Studio Theater has announced the lineup for its 2024-2025 Forums Series, featuring three panel discussions inspired by the themes explored in the theater productions of Off the Charts & 59th Street Bridge, The Heart Sellers and The Cancellation of Lauren Fein. Forum events are free to attend, but registration is required. To register, visit FloridaStudioTheater.org or call FST’s Box Office at 941.366.9000. A full list and schedule of this season’s Forums Series will follow at the end of this release.

“The themes this year are stimulating,” explains FST Associate Director At-Large Kate Alexander. “We are at a crucial moment in the public dialogue where people are polarized in their personal views and are missing opportunities for thoughtful discussion. Regardless of your political leanings, the Forums provide a place for real, meaningful dialogue – a need that is more important now than ever.”

Kicking off the Forums series is The Poetry of Our Lives: How Popular Music Brings Us to Our Humanity, inspired by Off the Charts and 59th Street Bridge. This panel discussion explores the history of popular music and its ties to social and cultural issues. This forum is moderated by Catherine Randazzo and asks: “Does art imitate life, or does life imitate art?” In this discussion you will discover that both may be true. This conversation covers everything from the anti-Vietnam War movement in the US to the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, and how music played a key role in enacting widespread change. Panelists include Richard Hopkins (FST Producing Artistic Director), Joe Casey (59th Street Bridge cast member) and Dr. Andrew Berish (associate professor of musicology at USF). This forum will take place on Thursday, December 19, 2024 at 5:00 PM in FST’s Bowne’s Lab.

The following forum is inspired by the themes presented in FST’s production of The Heart Sellers and will take place on Thursday, January 9, 2025 at 5:00 PM at the Keating Theater. This event, moderated by Kate Alexander, delves into the human stories behind immigration policies and why we fear ‘the other’. Titled Bring Me Your Poor, Your Tired, Your Hungry: The Complexity of Immigration in Today’s World, this forum sheds light on the profound impact of how the Hart-Cellar Act of 1965, which inspired the piece, fundamentally revolutionized US immigration policy. . Participants discuss the lives of immigrants, the price newcomers pay and what they bring to the country.

The fourth conversation is titled Cancel Culture: Progress or the Closing of the American Mind?, which explores the topics covered in The Cancellation of Lauren Fein. This forum, moderated by the Honorable Judge Charles E. Williams, will focus on power dynamics and their connection to issues of race, sexual orientation, and intersectionality. Prepare for a fascinating dialogue where morality is questioned, culture and ethics are canceled. This event will take place on Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 5:00 PM at FST’s Gompertz Theater.

FST’s 2024-2025 Forums Series includes three panel discussions inspired by the themes explored in the theater productions of Off the Charts & 59th Street Bridge, The Heart Sellers and The Cancellation of Lauren Fein. Forum events are free to attend, but registration is required. Go to to register FloridaStudioTheatre.org or call FST’s Box Office at 941.366.9000.

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