SARASOTA — On Friday, the Florida Studio Theatre will open the final production of its 2024 Winter Mainstage Series with the Florida premiere of Troubadour by Janece Shaffer, with original music by Kristian Bush of Sugarland.
It’s Nashville 1951, and Billy Mason, the king of country music, is days away from his farewell concert. His only son, Joe, has the talent to continue the Mason legacy, but he struggles with the weight of those expectations. Seeking a different road, he sets his sights on his own unique sound, and country music changes forever.
There’s plenty that hangs in the balance for Joe as he tries to reconcile the past while navigating the present and the future. Along that journey he meets a Russian Jewish tailor with his own American dream of boldly bedazzled country music. Joe also meets a writer from Tuscaloosa, AL, who arrives too terrified to speak but toting a notebook of songs she’s penned for Joe. The three spend a handful of unforgettable days writing songs, building rhinestone-studded suits, and helping Joe become the man and the musician he was meant to be.
“The music of this piece is absolutely fantastic. It works like dialogue within the story, as multiple characters express themselves in ways that traditional dialogue could not,” director Kate Alexander said. “As you witness the evolution of country music, you’ll find yourself drawn into this story of people trying to make their mark on the world.”
FST is only the second theatre to produce Troubadour, following its January 2017 world premiere at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Shaffer’s hometown. Troubador runs through May 19. Click here for ticket information.
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