TAMPA, Fla. — There is a new theater company in Tampa that’s not afraid to think outside the box when it comes to putting on a show.
During the day, it looks like a regular hair salon, but after hours Drew Eberhard transforms the space into a rehearsal stage for his brand new company, Vivid Theater Productions.
“When we first walked in the first night we were here I actually said to Drew, ‘it smells like somebody got a perm in here,’” said actress Tynan Pruett.
Starting from scratch no one is just going to give you a theater so Eberhard and his cast have improvised.
“I wanted to make a stamp on the theater scene in Tampa and do something that is not normally done,” said Eberhard.
The company’s first play, God of Carnage, runs September 6 to 15 at Stage Works Theater in downtown Tampa.
“He’s looked at plays, some of them I’ve never even heard of, but they are going to be so amazing for the roles that they are going to allow women to play,” said Pruett.
Eberhard has a specific theme for his inaugural season: empowering women.
“I find that stories of women and the struggles and things that they may go through in life, they are not told as often as they should be,” said Eberhard.
The goal is for the audience, especially the women, is to connect personally with the characters.
“Even this show, the women are very different, very powerful, and it just shows the uniqueness of what women bring to a role and what they bring to the world,” said Pruett.
