The Florida Playwrights Festival will be held at the Florida Studio Theatre (FST) the first three weeks of August. The festival continues the Sarasota Festival of New Plays, which started in May.

Featured in the Playwrights Fest is Michael McKeever's The Velveteen Undertow. McKeever's 37 Postcards was the centerpiece of the festival last year. Artistic director Richard Hopkins said in a statement that McKeever is, "a rare playwright who knows how to find humor in truth and truth in humor."

The Velveteen Undertow is a modern day look at love, faith and business. Sam Templar, a businessman, and Max Love, a Christian recording artist, are trapped at a motel together. Max's mother and Sam's would-be love, Nonnie, acts as a mother figure, seductress, and referee. Chaos takes over though, when Auntie La, the founder of the Faith Now Cable Network, joins the group.

The cast includes Kim Crows (Auntie La); John Jacobsen (Sam Templar); Monica Kennedy (Nonnie Love); Steve Mountan (Jerome); and Adam Ratner (Max Love). Gail Garrison is the director. The technical staff includes John Jacobsen (line producer), Melissa Kiger (production stage manager), and David Krugh (technical director).

McKeever's other full length plays include The Sound You Hear, Don't Tell the Tsar and the New Orleans Story. He won the Carbonell Award for his war drama, The Garden of Hannah List. It was produced at the Hypothetical Theatre company in New York. He also has done work as an actor, graphic artists and set designer. The Velveteen Undertow will have performances on Aug. 5 and Aug. 21. Tickets can be ordered by calling the box office at 941-366 9000. More information can be found at the Florida Studio Theatre website, at www.fst2000.org.

-- by Daniel Fischer