A long time ago in a galaxy not-so-far away, I stage managed a few shows in the Shimberg Playhouse at the Straz Center. Technically, it wasn't ideal (um, there's not really a backstage and also it's not a large space, which I love when watching a show but not when trying to deal with the off-stage accoutrements of making theater) but nevertheless, I count it among one of the best places to watch a show in Tampa Bay.
What makes it even better is the company who lives there most days: Jobsite Theater. Last week I anxiously awaited the opening of The Maids (April 27) and now I have more to anticipate.
Here's what Jobsite has in store for their coming season. And yes, all these shows (except for Lizzie, which goes on in the Jaeb at Straz) will take place in my beloved/behated Shimberg.
The season opens with Steve Martin’s The Underpants (Sep. 7 – Oct. 2), likely chosen because the last time Jobsite mounted a Steve Martin production, audiences lost their collective shit and basically jumped over one another to get tickets. Expect the same this time… in fact, if you like satire and Steve Martin, maybe think about camping out for tickets now. Essentially, it's a show about a woman whose underwear falls down during a parade. Other characters include her Vogon-esque husband and two creepers. Jobsite promises "Steve Martin’s signature zaniness, wordplay, and whimsy"; alas, they don't promise a Steve Martin appearance. Ah, well, hope springs eternal.
Too much silliness? Fear not, shit gets real next with LIZZIE (Oct. 12-Nov.6), the story of Lizzie Borden as told by… "four ferocious women" in "a savage six-piece rock band." Because the story of Lizzie Borden has also been missing more, um, girls with guitars? Actually, it sounds kind of awesome. Reminds me of an all-boy band from my college days, Shock Lizard, that played in the UCF production of The Tooth of Crime.
Here's the one I can't wait for the most: As You Like It (Jan. 11-Feb. 5, 2017) rings in the new year. Jobsite sets the stage in present-day Tampa (in 2015, they set Twelfth Night in 1926 Ybor City). This isn't a snub to 17th-century England, which certainly must have been just delightful, what with the plague and lack of central heat, so much as it is a tribute to the timelessness of Shakespeare's themes. As You Like it flips gender roles on celebrates the delights of life.
Next up, Martin McDonagh’s A Skull in Connemara (Mar. 15–Apr. 9, 2017) completes the Leenane Trilogy (The Beauty Queen of Leenane, 2003 and The Lonesome West, 2013). This show, Jobsite promises, brings "dark wit, kooky characters, onstage mayhem, and crackling dialogue" to the stage.
The season will continue with Israel Horovitz’s Gloucester Blue (May 17 – June 11, 2017). This winter's production of Lebensraum, another Horovitz play, gave audiences four powerful performances with complex subject matter. Instead of a post-Holocaust reimagined Germany this go-round, we'll meet Stumpy and Latham, Gloucester housepainters (home to Horovitz’s theater company and the setting of many of his plays). This dark comedy marks a departure from this year's heavy Lebensraum, but stays true to Horovitz's throughlines of "gentrification, economic inequality, and infidelity," according to Producing Artistic Director David M. Jenkins.
For Caryl Churchill’s Cloud 9 (Jul. 12 – Aug. 6, 2017), Jenkins describes a "zany British sex farce put into a blender with a Women and Gender Studies thesis." Really, what more can we add? Well, lots, actually, because historically, this paper has loved this show, but we'll wait until we get closer to showtime.
Season tickets, which save patrons 30%, go on sale April 29. If you feel you need reserved seating (or if you love theater just that much), you can buy a Rock Star package ($350) which includes stuff like opening night parties and VIP seating.
This article appears in Apr 14-20, 2016.