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SENIOR EDITOR

      Gil Kaan, a former Managing Editor of the now-defunct Genre magazine, has had the privilege of photographing and interviewing some major divas of film, television, and stage in his career; including Ann-Margret, Chita Rivera, Diana Ross, Faye Dunaway, Carol Channing, Shirley MacLaine, Catherine Deneuve, Liza Minnelli, Audra McDonald, Sandra Bernhard, Glenn Close, Anna Nicole Smith, Margaret Cho, and three Catwomen — Eartha Kitt, Lee Meriwether and Julie Newmar. He had the fortuitous opportunity to conduct Lily Tomlin’s coming out interview. Gil has since reviewed movies and theatre for a number of local Los Angeles and national outlets. 
 

Amanda currently writes as a drama critic for Broadway World and Discover Hollywood Magazine, covering live theatre in Los Angeles. Her focus is on connecting arts and culture with the vibrant local community. She is a passionate theatre evangelist, hoping to inspire everyone to discover the kind of intimate, indispensable storytelling and luminous magic that can take place in person. 

An award-winning writer, Amanda’s work on arts, culture, music, travel, and parenthood has been published on many platforms including Hollywood Revealed, The Tour Guy, Parenthood Adventures, and Lickhouse Worldwide. She has worked as a storyteller in film, podcasts, books, and by engaging diverse digital audiences.

Amanda’s films have played, and won awards, in Vienna, Lisbon, Belfast, Iran, Scotland, Mexico, Australia, Bolivia, Capri, Palm Beach, and Los Angeles. She has done science writing for NASA, reconstructed Egyptian papyri, worked as a sushi chef, and played a nervous elf bride on a sitcom.

Drawing from her literary and film background Amanda brings an eye for cultural criticism and relevance to her discussion of theatre and its unique and vital pleasures. She is particularly interested in engaging children and new audiences in the connection of immersive live storytelling, exploring theatre for the first time, digging into the rich, elevating pleasures of the classics, and discovering a bold new work they never thought they would enjoy. Amanda has a B.A. from UC San Diego and an M.Phil from the University of Cambridge in classical literature, art, philosophy, and drama.

Andrew is a multimedia artist who has worked regularly as a director, animator, performer, and designer. His writing focuses on the complete arts ecosystem. He has been a guest artist at Emerson College, New England Conservatory, New York University, Clark University, Massassoit Community College, and more, and has been quoted in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, LA Times, Boston Globe, and others. You can hear him on the Broadway Podcast Network interviewing acclaimed artists, scholars, and historians for 50 Key Stage Musicals: The Podcast, or you can read his chapter on The Merry Widow in Routledge Press' 50 Key Stage Musicals.

Evan Henerson is a longtime arts and features writer who lives in Southern California. He is the former theater critic for the Los Angeles Daily News and has written for such publications as American Theatre, Playbill Online, Stage Directions and Backstage.

Harker Jones has worked in publishing as a writer, editor, and critic for 15 years. He was managing editor of Out magazine for seven years and has written two novels (including the best-selling love story Until September) and ten screenplays. His short thrillers Cole & Colette and One-Hit Wonder have been accepted into more than 60 film festivals, winning several awards. He has a double-major in telecommunications and film and written communication and a minor in literature from Eastern Michigan University, is a member of the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle, and is a card-carrying member of Mensa.

Melissa Heckscher is a freelance writer and mother of three living in Los Angeles. A former daily news and features reporter, she is the author of 10 nonfiction books and has written for newspapers, magazines, and television stations across the country including The Los Angeles Daily News, the Orange County Register, and NY1 News (New York City). She wishes more than anything that she could sing, dance and act—even karaoke-caliber would do—but is fine watching the professionals do it on stage.  

A So. Cal. Contributing Editor since 2009, Michael Lawrence Quintos is a talented, mild-mannered Senior Designer by day. But as night falls, he regularly performs on various stages everywhere as a Countertenor soloist, actor, and dancer for OC's MenAlive Chorus since 2002. He sings everything from Broadway, Jazz, R&B, Classical, Gospel and Pop, and has shared the stage with Bernadette Peters, Debbie Reynolds, Michael Feinstein, and Liza Minnelli. In June 2019, he made his soloist debut at the Hollywood Bowl in front of 17,000 concertgoers. His musical theater roots started early, performing in various stage productions and a couple of nationally-televised competition programs. The performing bug eventually brought him a brief championship run in the Philippines' version of "Star Search" before moving to Las Vegas at age 11. College brought him out to Orange County, California, where he earned a BFA in Graphic Design and a BA in Film Screenwriting. He has spent several years as a designer and art director for various media companies, while spending his free time going to Disneyland, binge-watching shows, or performing in or watching live shows. Follow Michael on TwitterX or Instagram @cre8iveMLQ.

Shari Barrett, a Los Angeles native, has been active in the theater world since the age of six - acting, singing, and dancing her way across the boards all over town. After teaching in secondary schools, working in marketing for several studios, writing, directing, producing, and performing in productions for several non-profit theaters, Shari now dedicates her time and focuses her skills as a theater reviewer, entertainment columnist, and publicist to "get the word out" about theaters of all sizes throughout the Los Angeles area.

As a 20-year member of the Board of Directors for Kentwood Players at the Westchester Playhouse, one of the thriving community theater groups in Los Angeles, as well as writing for Broadway World LA, Stage and Cineme, and as the Stage Page columnist with Lan Newspapers, Shari is dedicated to promoting theaters of all sizes in the city. Shari has received recognition from the City of Los Angeles for her dedication of heart and hand to the needs of friends, neighbors and fellow members of society for her devotion of service to the people of Los Angeles, and is honored to serve the theater world in her hometown.

Tracey Paleo is a Los Angeles Theater Critic, and the Awards Co-Chair of the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle.  She is also the Producer of the 2024 LADCC Streaming Awards Show. Tracey is the Publisher, Editor-n-Chief, and personality of the arts & culture site Gia On The Move  (since 2009). Her former bylines include FootLights Publishing (Managing Editor, Social Media Director, News Desk, Features), Discover Hollywood Magazine, The Tolucan Times, and WEHO News. Tracey has been a Contributor to Broadway World Los Angeles since 2021. As a former actor, she is widely known for her principle role as Darlene, in Martin Scorsese's, Oscar-Winning film, "The Departed".