In 1988, a musical version of Stephen King’s novel “Carrie” quickly became one of Broadway’s biggest and most expensive flops. The show, about a much-bullied high school girl with telekinetic powers living with an overly religious and protective mother, lasted just five performances on Broadway. The devastated creative team reportedly refused to allow another professional production to be staged.

But 24 years later, writer Lawrence D. Cohen (who also wrote the screenplay for the 1976 film), composer Michael Gore and lyricist Dean Pitchford got back together to revisit the show. The result was a new, more intimate version that may not have won over critics but has developed a growing fan base across the country since it opened off Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club in 2012.

Audiences in the Sarasota area now have an opportunity to see that version in two separate productions at roughly the same time. “Carrie: The Musical” will be presented at Rise Above Performing Arts in Sarasota (Oct. 8-18) and by the Manatee Players at the Manatee Performing Arts Center (Oct. 15-Nov. 1).

That means a lot of blood will be spilt on two stages for a key prom night sequence.

Young theater kids have discovered the musical and flocked to auditions for the two productions.

“Not only do they know the show, it was the number one show they wanted to do,” said director Jacob Ruscoe, the founder of Rise Above, a youth performance and training program. “It was far and away the top show. For theater kids, it’s one of those cultish type of shows that they just love.”

His theater previously presented the show in October 2020, as theaters were still trying to reopen after the COVID pandemic. “It ended up being one of my favorite shows,” Ruscoe said.

Turnout for auditions was “massive, fortunately and unfortunately. We really restricted our cast size. We wanted it in the low 20s to have that true student feel,” he said. “That precludes more than a medium-sized cast and there were people who really wanted to be in it that didn’t make the cut.”

The same thing happened at the Manatee Players, which conducted simultaneous auditions for four different shows several months ago, including “Dear Evan Hansen,” another musical with a mostly young cast.

“The turnout was significantly higher than average,” said director Neal Addison. “I don’t want to say it was all for ‘Carrie’ but it had a great response from our younger talent pool. It was a tough one to cast because there were strong contenders for almost every role.”

Addison said he was only slightly surprised by how many people were familiar with the musical even if they hadn’t seen it.

“Some of them knew it from the cast recording, as I did, and said they loved the music. They thought it was so cool,” he said. “And some thought the content was so relatable, maybe not the telekinesis aspect, but the bullying and social ostracism.”

In the story, Carrie has long been an outcast among her classmates, taunted for how she acts and what she wears, and she must deal with an oppressive relationship with her mother, Margaret, who has strong views on religion and how Carrie should be raised.

“I don’t think of Mrs. White as being this over-the-top Jason Voorhees type monster,” Addison said. “She’s a human being, dealing with a severe mental illness. That’s not to justify how she treats Carrie, but in her way, she’s trying to do what she thinks is right consistent with her beliefs.”

And he describes Carrie as a “tough role. You have to have both that really strong, powerhouse belt and rock star energy when she comes into her own with her powers and taking on ownership of the show. But she also has to be a vulnerable kid who is bullied by her classmatest and in this contentious relationship with her mother.”

Addison cast veteran actor Suzanne Marshner as Margaret opposite Allie McLaughlin as Carrie. 

At Rise Above, Riverview High School sophomore Tayla Wright will play Carrie. Ruscoe said she “did a great job in the audition on multiple levels.” Meadow Flagg, who is relatively new to Rise Above, will play Margaret White.

Both directors said the show is relatable to the mostly young performers and to audiences who may have experienced their own issues with bullying.

“At its core, it is a story about how we treat other people,” Ruscoe said. “Carrie is repeatedly bullied, has a mother who is a bit zealous with her beliefs but with a desire to protect her and keep her safe from the world.”

The show features contrasting attitudes, with the bullying Chris Hargenson and her boyfriend Billy Nolan, and the sweeter Sue Snell, who encourages her boyfriend, Tommy, to take Carrie to the prom that will transform all their lives.

At Manatee, Marshner’s own daughters are playing polar opposite characters. Alexia Mattes plays Sue opposite her sister Juliana Mattes as Chris. Grant Raymond is Tommy and Evan Buttle is Billy (the role John Travolta played in the film).

At Rise Above with Taylor McCormack plays Sue, with Ben Savwoir as Tommy, Alexandra Mahiquez as Chris and Chris Boisvert as Billy.

Addison said the young cast members clearly relate to aspects involving “not fitting in with your peer group or having a complicated relationship with your parents. It’s all within the context of growing up, and when you merge that with music that is exciting and lively and content and subject matter that is more contemporary and exciting than most things that are produced, that’s a strong combination.”

The Rise Above production is presented in its new space at the Crossings at Siesta Key shopping center. The company traded one former restaurant space for another. It had operated for about six years in a former Naples Flatbread restaurant at the southern end of the mall next to CineBistro. Beginning in April, it started transforming the former Bravo restaurant in the middle of the mall, into its new space.

Ruscoe said the previous theater could accommodate 162 people, while the new venue can go up to 200, but it is starting smaller. It features a larger stage, with the ability to expand it on both sides as needed.

“Carrie: The Musical” runs Oct. 8-18 at Rise Above Performing Arts, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail (at the Crossings at Siesta Key Shopping Center). Tickets are $27. riseabovearts.com; 941-702-4747. A separate production runs Oct. Oct-15-Nov. 1 at the Manatee Performing Arts Center, 502 Third Ave., West, Bradenton. Tickets are $32.50. manateeperformingartscenter.com; 941-748-5875