About

 
 
 

THE FRENZIE PERFORMANCE FACTORY (formerly known as The Frenzie – Life Theatre) was founded in 2007 by Michael and Beverly Mercer.

Beverly & Michael Mercer

Michael and Beverly met in 1978 at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama where both were pursuingĀ  degrees in Speech and Dramatic Arts. They moved to California and married in 1985. After living in Nashville for several years, Michael and Beverly moved to Valrico, FL in 1998, when Michael was presented with an offer to teach Theatre Arts at Bloomingdale Sr. High School. Even though Michael had a history of piano performance and professional musical direction, he felt his students deserved a well-rounded education in “straight” theatre, and therefore mounted non-musical comedic and dramatic productions for the first several years at BSHS. With an established program, he later added musical productions to the school’s roster, which opened the thriving Drama department to musicians and singers. Unfortunately, the full-time Drama position was dissolved in 2006 and Michael resigned from teaching at that time.

The cast of Edges: A Song Cycle.

The Frenzie – a non-profit community theatre based in the Brandon/Valrico area – made its debut in 2008 with Edges: A Song Cycle by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul at the Barn Theatre at Winthrop. Since that inaugural production, the Frenzie has become a staple of the East Hillsborough theatre community, having staged over fifteen full productions – plays and musicals, large and small scale – over the course of four years. The company is the proud recipient of over fifty MONTI Community Theatre Awards, including two for Best Musical (2009, Reefer Madness; 2010, I Love You Because) and three for Best Play (2010, Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead; 2011, Doubt: A Parable; 2012, The Children’s Hour). The Frenzie is also a proud member of The American Association of Community Theatres

 

 

MICHAEL M. MERCER
President, Artistic Director, Lighting and Sound Chairman

BEVERLY MERCER
Vice President, Treasurer, Asset Management Chairman

PEDRO AMARAL
Graphic Design Chairman, Secretary, Webmaster

DONI HOLMES
Box Office Manager & Bookkeeper

SUSAN WEBER
Concessions & Merchandise Chairman

JUSTIN BATTEN
Marketing & Public Relations Co-Chairman

AMBER MCCOLLUM
Marketing & Public Relations Co-Chairman