Cast and Creative Team Announced for Take it to the Limit

November 15, 2023 – Sarasota

Florida Studio Theatre presents Take it to the Limit, a high-energy tribute to the rebel musicians of the 1970s who helped bring Rock & Roll back to its Southern roots. Created by Richard Hopkins, Rebecca Hopkins, and Sarah Durham with Musical Arrangements by Jim Prosser, this all-new Cabaret features such songs as “When Will I Be Loved,” “Ramblin’ Man,” “Landslide,” and “Hotel California.” Take it to the Limit begins playing November 29 in FST’s Goldstein Cabaret. Tickets are now on sale at FloridaStudioTheatre.org or at 941.366.9000.

“Take it to the Limit came out of our work putting together last season’s hit Cabaret, The ‘70s: More Than A Decade,” said Rebecca Hopkins, one of the show’s developers. “When we were developing The ’70s, we were more focused on the pop songs from that era. However, all this wonderful rock music was just sitting there, unexplored. That music is what we’re diving into with this show.”

Following The British Invasion, Rock & Roll musicians in the 1970s decided to take the genre back to its origins: the American South. Artists like The Allman Brothers Band, The Eagles, and Linda Ronstadt blended elements of country, soul, R&B, and folk into their music, resulting in a distinct sound. Since then, this new sound has become synonymous with American classic rock, inspiring countless musicians over the past five decades.

Directing this new Cabaret is FST Associate Artist Catherine Randazzo, who has directed over a dozen FST original music revues, including this season’s Up on the Roof. Spiff Wiegand, who was last seen in FST’s hit Mainstage production of Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (2022), serves as the show’s Music Director.

Bringing these musical tales of hard knocks to life are four returning guest artists: Joe Casey, Sarah Hund, Ken Sandberg, and Hannah Taylor. Casey has been in seven previous productions at FST, including Friends in Low Places (2022), Blue Suede Shoes (2018), and Million Dollar Quartet(2017). Hund was last seen as Reza in FST’s production of Once (2018). She has also played The Witch in Into the Woods, Fantine in Les Misérables, and Judy Bernly in 9 to 5: The Musical.

Sandberg was last seen on FST’s stage in Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (2022), and has performed at Walnut Street Theatre, The Media Theatre, Greenbrier Valley Theatre, and Quintessence Theatre Group. Taylor returns to FST after being part of last season’s tribute to Stevie Wonder, A Place in the Sun. After that, Taylor traveled the seas playing Jane Seymour in SIX: The Musical.

Backing up these four artists is Tony Bruno on drums, who last appeared at FST in the popular 2019 Summer Cabaret, Come Together: When the ‘60s Met the ‘70s created by Carole J. Bufford. 

The production’s creative team includes Andrew Gray (Scenic and Lighting Design), Daniel Ciba (Costume Design), and Nicholas Christensen (Sound Design).

FST’s production of Take it to the Limit is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts. The production is also supported by Gulf Coast Community Foundation, Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax Revenues, the Shubert Foundation, and The Exchange. Thank you to our media sponsors, the Herald Tribune Media Group.

Take it to the Limit is part of a three-show subscription package. Also included in the Cabaret subscription package is Up on the Roof, a tribute to the legendary songwriters of the ‘50s and ‘60s who helped create the iconic “Brill Sound,” along with The Flip Side, an offbeat music revue celebrating some of the top comic songwriters of the 20^th century.Subscriptions for all three Winter Cabaret shows are on sale for as little as $49 at FloridaStudioTheatre.org or 941. 366.9000.