This week, artists and supporters of Florida Studio Theatre flocked to the theater for its annual fundraiser, the Denim & Diamonds Shindig, and presentation of the annual Grant Spelman Award. Named in honor of FST Founding Artistic Director John Spelman, the Spelman Award is presented to an individual or corporate sponsor who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership through philanthropic support, stewardship and service. This year’s award went to Wendy and Bob Grady for their unparalleled support of FST’s Winter Season programming and award-winning WRITE A PLAY program. Because of their generosity, FST has been able to expand its WRITE A PLAY program to Camden, New Jersey, one of the country’s most impoverished cities. Through this gift, three of FST’s top teaching artists held a week-long residency at Camden’s Holy Name School, where they taught students the fundamentals of playwriting and worked with them to craft their own plays.

And as New Play Development is the lifeblood of FST and a year-round activity, a paddle raise was also held to raise money for FST’s newest play initiative, The Playwrights Collective, in order to provide additional support to playwrights during the creative process. The money raised through this will provide actors, directors, artistic staff, and audiences with whatever they need during a play’s development process.

Florida Studio Theatre