- April 26, 2024
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After withdrawing its request for a pre-application meeting with planners late last year, a new application for The Stage at Payne Park has been received by the city.
Received on March 20, the pre-application proposes to triple the size of the city-owned building on the edge of Payne Park from its current 8,100 square feet to 24,770 square feet and convert what is essentially a dance hall into a performing arts venue primarily for The Sarasota Players plus upwards of 16 other community performance organizations.
The Sarasota Players, formerly The Players Centre for Performing Arts, spun off The Stage at Payne Park as a subsidiary to raise funds, oversee the expansion and operate the facility.
That organization is led by CEO Brian McCarthy, who also sits on The Sarasota Players Board of Trustees. McCarthy is also CEO of The Pickleball Club LLC, which last year opened an indoor club just south of Lakewood Ranch on Sarasota Center Boulevard.
The proposed site plan has evolved since the concept was first introduced during a community workshop in September 2023. The existing building now serves more as an auxiliary structure to the performance space.
In addition to lobby and backstage areas, the existing building would also house two rehearsal halls and administrative space. The plan shows circulation leading from the current building into the new structure to a second lobby and an auditorium of approximately 300 seats. The seating would be flexible to allow for performances staged in multiple configurations.
Documents submitted to the city describe a plan to “revive the existing Payne Park Auditorium into a vibrant performing arts incubator for the Sarasota Players and other local performing arts organizations.”
According to the documents, through the schematic design phase the design team held weekly workshops with various stakeholders to identify the priorities, goals and limitations of the project. The consortium of 17 organizations includes a wide range of performing arts groups. They are:
“The flexible theatre is a multi-form space designed to host a variety of events and performances, from dance to cabaret, to fully produced dramatic theater and musical theater productions,” reads the submission. “The two rehearsal halls will be used for rehearsals, but also as performance spaces, classrooms, development and banquet spaces as well as a host of other functions. The administrative spaces include offices for personnel from The Stage, the Players and touchdown spaces and conference rooms to be used by the different theater organizations. The foyer is intended to be an open, flexible, welcoming space to host a variety of functions such as pre-function events, intermission, banquet, or simply a hangout space.”
In May 2023, the Sarasota City Commission unanimously approved entering into a 10-year lease with The Players for the auditorium with two subsequent 10-year optional renewals. The building is currently used for Parks and Recreation Department offices. The Players will pay the city $100 per year plus $1 per ticket sold for each performance. All renovation and expansion expenses, with the exception of the storm-damaged roof, will be funded by The Stage.
That lease will not be executed until The Payers and The Stage at Payne Park receive site plan approval.
The Stage at Payne Park, has chosen Fleischman Garcia Maslowski Architecture of Sarasota and Tampa to design the renovation and expansion. It has also contracted with Stages Consultants of Highland Park, New Jersey, to serve as the project’s theater, AV and acoustics consultant.
