All posts by Scott Cooper

SPC Theater BroadwayWorld Award Nominations

December 1, 2023Theater, WebApprovedScott Cooper

The Annual BroadwayWorld Tampa Awards nominations have been released, and SPC Theater has 16 nominations in 9 different categories, including Best Musical, Best Musical Direction, Best Choreography, Best Lighting, Best Costumes, Best Performer in a Musical (4 students), and Best Supporting Performer in a Musical (4 students) for their summer production of THE DROWSY CHAPERONE.

This is a great achievement, as the production is open to local high school and college students, many of whom may have had their first experience in theater being reviewed. Peter Nason from BroadwayWorld.com reviews the show each summer, and this year SPC Theater has been rewarded for their work with more nominations than ever before.

The team at SPC Theater is thrilled with the recognition and grateful for the support that allowed these students to experience theater.

You can cast your vote for SPC Theater on the BroadwayWorld website.

SPC Theater Presents “MACABARET”

October 6, 2023Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, FeaturedScott Cooper

Start your spooky season off right, and join the St. Petersburg College Theater Department as it presents MACABARET by Scott Keys and Rob Hartmann!

MACABARET is a collection of humorous story-songs that twist toward the morbid and macabre. Murderous spouses, horror films, evil cows, and the Andrew Sisters are just a few things parodied by a “Corpse de Cabaret” of the undead.

Performances take place in the Arts Auditorium at the SPC Clearwater Campus on the following dates:

Thursday, October 19 at 7:00 p.m.
Friday, October 20 at 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 21 at 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 22 at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday, October 26 at 7:00 p.m.
Friday, October 27 at 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 28 at 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 29 at 2:00 p.m.

This production is slightly different from previous SPC shows. MACABARET is a story of monsters and creatures of the night who put on a show and hopefully entertain you before the strike of midnight. One difference in this production is that the audience sits on stage cabaret-style with the monsters who roam freely among them!

Seating is limited for the show (only 50 seats a performance) and reservations are suggested. There is some mature subject matter, so the production is not recommended for children under the age of ten.

To reserve tickets for performances taking place Oct. 19–22, please visit bit.ly/MacabaretWeek1. To reserve tickets for performances taking place Oct. 26–29, please visit bit.ly/MacabaretWeek2.

If you’d like to learn more about theater at SPC, please visit www.spcollege.edu/theater. See you on stage!

Theater poster for the production of MACABARET.

SPC Theater Department update

November 29, 2022Arts, Humanities, and Design - AllScott Cooper

Vote for SPC Theater!
The 2022 Broadway World Regional Awards (Tampa Bay) has nominated The SPC Theater Department’s summer production of Sweeny Todd for two awards! The show was nominated for Best Musical, and I was nominated for Best Director. This production, with 50 students, was highly attended and well reviewed.

If you would like to vote for us, please go to: BroadwayWorld Regional Awards Tampa Bay Theater to vote for us. You will need to submit your email and can only vote once per email. We would love to have a good showing this year and hopefully let everyone know of the really great productions we do here at SPC.

The high-schoolers are coming!
On Thursday, December 1 and Friday, December 2, the Clearwater Campus will be swarming with high school theater students attending the District One-Act Festival. This annual event brings over 1000 high school students and their parents to our campus. The students are always happy to be at SPC and many decide to come to our school after this festival. So, if you see many high school students being “dramatic,” you will know what is happening! And yes, they have been told to be quiet!

Thanks for supporting our department.

Female Playwrights Highlighted

July 12, 2022Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, Performing Arts, TheaterScott Cooper

The SPC Theater Department is putting the spotlight on women playwrights! Each year, I, SPC Theater Instructor Scott Cooper, select plays that I believe will challenge not only the student actors, but also our audiences. This year, I have decided to work with only plays written by female playwrights, a group that is not well represented in the theater world and should be highlighted more often. These women have a lot to say about our world.

Fall 2022

Our Fall play will be Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap. The scene is set when a group of people snowed in at a country house discover, to their horror, that there is a murderer in their midst. Who can it be? One by one the suspicious characters reveal their sordid pasts until at the last, nerve-shredding moment, the identity and the motive are finally revealed. Auditions will be August 22-23 and are open to ALL SPC students. Auditioning actors must perform a one-minute dramatic monologue and read from the script. Performances will be October 19-23.

Spring 2023

Our spring play will be Eurydice, written by Sarah Ruhl. A 2003 recipient of the Whiting Award for Drama, this play reimagines the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine. Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice must journey to the underworld, where she reunites with her father and struggles to remember her lost love. The play is a fresh look at a timeless love story. Auditions will be the second week of the Spring semester, and performances will be March 29-April 2.

Both of these plays are presented with arrangement with Concord Theatricals.

Summer 2023

Our summer musical is TBD at this point, but it will have a female as part of the creative team. We are looking forward to presenting these plays and supporting female playwrights in the theater!

Auditions and Interviews Open for SPC Summer Theater

April 5, 2022Arts, Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, Performing Arts, TheaterAuditions, performing arts, Students, Technical Theater, theaterScott Cooper

Something sinister is brewing this summer at the St. Petersburg College Theater Department! Please join us in auditioning or interviewing to be part of our company of our summer theater show, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street. This production will continue our successful run of award winning summer musicals directed by myself, Scott Cooper, and Musical Director Latoya McCormick.

We are looking forward to telling the tale of our revenge-seeking barber and his pie-making accomplice with a cast of 30 students and a tech crew of 15. Our summer musical is open to all SPC students AND local high school and college students ages 16 and above. All students involved in this production will be required to sign up for a $120 credit or non-credit class. Scholarships are available.

Summer theater performances will be June 24-25 at 7 p.m. and June 25-26 at 2 p.m.

Audition information:

May 16-17–Open auditions (3:30 – 7 p.m.). Please prepare a song in the style of the show to sing. Bring sheet music, as an accompanist will be provided. You will be required to sign up for a time. Headshot and resume requested.

May 18–Call Backs (3:30 – 7:30 p.m.) for the main roles: Sweeney Todd, Mrs. Lovitt, Joanna, Anthony, Pirelli, Tobias, The Judge, Beadle and The Beggar Woman.

May 19–Technical Interviews (3:30-7:30 p.m.)–We are looking for three carpenters, two scenic artist, one or two prop people, three costumers, and three light and sound technicians. Please prepare a portfolio of work you have done on stage, as well as a resume. If you don’t have anything, sign up and come talk to us about what you would like to learn.

Rehearsals: May 23-27 from 3:30-7:30 p.m./ May 31-June 17 from 12-4 p.m./ June 20-23 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

Tech Schedule: May 31-June 17 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m./ June 20-23 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

For more information, contact Scott Cooper at cooper.scott@spcollege.edu.

SPC Theater announces fall 2021 auditions

August 16, 2021Arts, Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, Performing Arts, TheaterScott Cooper

Back live on stage this fall, the SPC Theater Department announces their fall auditions for PETER AND THE STAR CATCHER by Rick Elice. This play is a prequel to the classic Peter Pan story by J.M. Barrie, and it answers the questions, How did magic come to Neverland? Why does Peter fly? Why does that crocodile chase Captain Hook? How did Captain Hook lose his hand? and What is a Starcatcher? This imaginative and fun production will delight the entire family.

In a tough year for live entertainment, SPC has managed to produce two safe live productions and plans on keeping that record going this fall. SPC Theater productions are open to all SPC students. Information about the auditions is below:

Auditions: AUGUST 24-25 from 5:30-8 p.m. Arts Auditorium, Clearwater Campus.

What To Prepare: Prepare a short comic monologue and be prepared to read from the script. Possible callback on August 26 from 5:30-8 p.m. This is a play with music, so some singing will be required – we can coach you through it! If cast, students will be required to register for a 1-credit Acting Repertory class.

Casting Information: Currently seeking up to 16 actors (some will play multiple roles)…no experience necessary!

Rehearsal schedule: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30-8 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Actors must be available for all rehearsals. PETER AND THE STARCATCHER REHEARSAL SCHEDULE

Performances: October 20-23 at 7 p.m. October 23-24 at 2 p.m. Arts Auditorium, Clearwater Campus. Only 80 seats available for each performance!

Questions?: Cooper.scott@spcollege.edu

Presented through special arrangement with Musical Theatre International (MTI)

SPC Brings Music to the Summer with The World Goes ‘Round

June 17, 2021Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, WebApprovedScott Cooper

This summer, St Petersburg College‘s Theater Department is presenting the musical revue, The World Goes ‘Round, a very exciting production of the music of the famous duo of John Kander and Fred Ebb, who have written such classic musicals as Chicago, Cabaret and Steel Pier. Songs from these musicals will be featured in this great evening of musical theater entertainment.

These composers have also combined their talents with such famous singers as Barbara Streisand, Liza Minelli and Frank Sinatra, and many of songs written for these talents are also part of the production.

An acting company of 11 talented high school and college students, in combination with 14 technical theater students, will rehearse, build and light this production in four weeks as part of the college’s Summer Theater Program. All is going very well in the Arts Auditorium with the rehearsals and technical theater, as the crew hit the ground running last week. The actors are very excited to be back on a stage again, and we are thrilled to bring back our summer musical after a hiatus last summer.

This production is directed by myself, Scott Cooper, with musical direction by Latoya McCormick and choreography by Lyla Menkhaus.

Some of our past award-winning summer musicals are PIPPIN (Broadwayworld.com Top 10 production in Tampa Bay 2019) and URINETOWN (Broadwayworld.com Top 10 production in Tampa Bay 2018).

There will be three performances of this show:

July 9 at 7 p.m.
July 10 at 7 p.m.
July 11 at 2 p.m.

There is limited seating of 200 people per performance due to social distancing, so please reserve your seat ahead of time. A suggested donation of $15 will be gladly accepted at the door. This production is free for SPC students, faculty, and staff.

We hope to see you in the theater!

SPC Theater Announces Summer Musical

March 29, 2021Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, Featured, Performing Arts, TheaterScott Cooper

The time has come to announce the 2021 summer musical! After MUCH thought, we are proud to announce that the St. Petersburg College Theater department will be doing the musical revue The World Goes Round, based on the music of Kander and Ebb, this summer. The show will be directed by myself, Scott Cooper, with musical direction by Latoya McCormick and choreography by Lyla Menkhaus.

John Kander, a composer, and Fred Ebb, a lyricist, are well known for their musicals, including Cabaret and Chicago, and also for the material they wrote for artists such as Frank Sinatra and Liza Minelli. At this point in time, I think a musical will be a good way to help us remember what fun theater can be, and to help everyone escape from reality for a while.

Filled with humor, romance, drama and nonstop melody, this title is a thrilling celebration of life and the fighting spirit that keeps us all going. Five individuals find themselves careening through the world of love, babies and coffee. The nonstop hit-parade features unforgettable gems, including “Mr. Cellophane,” “Maybe This Time,” “Cabaret” and “New York, New York,” seamlessly interwoven into a passionate, harmonious, up-tempo evening of musical theatre.

This production is open to all local high school and college students between the ages of 16 and 24.

Interviews and Auditions

Students will be required to sign up for auditions and interviews – stay tuned for more information about that.

Tech Interviews: We will be interviewing for specific jobs this year. If you are interested, interviews will be held on Thursday, May 13 in the costume shop (ES103).
Auditions: On May 10 and 11, students who wish to audition will be asked to perform 16 bars of a Kander and Ebb song.
Rehearsals: Rehearsals begin on June 7. More details on that will follow later, but we will still have tech in the mornings and rehearsals 12-4 p.m.
Performances: The show will run from July 9-11.

SPC Theater is back on stage!

March 18, 2021Arts, Humanities, and Design - All, Featured, Fine Arts, HumanitiesScott Cooper

After 18 months of not performing live, SPC Theater is back on stage next week with The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (abridged)[Revised].

This 90-minute production will include the plays of William Shakespeare – all 37 of them – in a fast, funny and frantic evening of theater performed by nine SPC theater students.

Coming back to the theater has been exciting, and I decided that we couldn’t continue with Zoom, so I reached out to students, who were very excited, figured out a way to do this very safely, and here we are.

I will be co-directing this production with my former student, Betty-Jane Parks, a local professional actor and current high school theater educator at Blake High School in Tampa. With only an audience of 52 per performance in a socially distant 400-seat theater, reservations are required. All audience members will have their temperatures taken at the door. A $10 suggested donation for the general public would be greatly appreciated, as all proceeds go to supporting the theater department and theater scholarships. The production is free for all SPC students, faculty and staff.

The performances will be March 24-27 at 7 p.m. and March 28 at 2 p.m. Make a reservation here.

SPC Fall Theater Production Auditions and Information

August 11, 2020TheaterScott Cooper

Continuing with the successful online productions from the summer, the SPC Theater Department is back with another online production this fall!

On the Verge by Eric Overmyer is the story of three well-spoken Victorian women who set out to explore Terra Incognita, the last of the unknown—but, unknown to them, they are also traveling through time and witnessing the slow changes of the English language and society when they arrive in the 1950s. In the play, there is not only the wit within each palaver, but as one traveler says, “I have seen the future and it is slang.”

This play holds roles for three women and one or two men (who play the seven characters the ladies meet along the way) and will be performed online via Zoom on October 22–24 at 7:00pm and October 25 at 2:00pm.

To audition please fill out this online survey (which will open on August 21) and submit a one-minute comic monologue with the survey. Submissions will be accepted August 24–26 and the show will be cast by August 28. Auditions are open to all SPC students and would require students to sign up for TPP 2192 Acting Repertory (1 credit).

Questions? Contact Scott Cooper at cooper.scott@spcollege.edu.