Kalinda Gray

The OCTG Theatre Awards unveils its list of nominees, including productions of 'Ride the Cyclone,' 'A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder,' 'Clybourne Park,' 'Yellow Face,' and 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.'

Curtis Theatre & Southgate Productions Present A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO LOVE & MURDER. Directed by Jonathan Infante and Tara Pitt with music direction by Stephen Hulsey and choreography by Kelsey Blackwell.

Nominees for the inaugural OC Theatre Awards were announced on Saturday, January 22, 2022 during OC Theatre Guild’s annual membership meeting. The awards ceremony has been scheduled for the evening of Tuesday, April 26, 2022 at the outdoor amphitheater of the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton.

This Spotlight focuses on Kalinda Gray, an actor I first encountered onstage playing Marilyn Monroe all the way to Magenta in the a?oeRocky Horror Picture Showa?? at the Maverick Theatre, a place close to her heart. Away from the stage, but still very much a part of the world of theatre magic, Kalinda's company Wishing Well Entertainment and Parties creates high-quality, professional character and artist event entertainment with a wide array of genres and themes for both adults and children, and she moonlights as an independent Salem 'witch' trials researcher and historian. So how is she dealing with the shutdown of a?oeThe Cruciblea?? in which she was featured as Elizabeth Proctor?

A major theme running throughout THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW musical is transvestism which, according to O'Brien, was not originally meant to be as prominent as it ended up being after its original London production starring the cross-dressing, incredibly sexy Tim Curry as Frank-n-Furter. Brilliantly continuing in that tradition since the Maverick Theater's first production in 2007 is Dennis Tong, who absolutely inhabits the iconic role with every ounce of his being. From the moment he appears atop the bar in the theater and throws back his cape to reveal Frank-n-Furter's scantily dressed sexy self, you know this is going to be a night of theater you will never forget. In fact, the entire cast creates each and every character purely from their hearts.

Lead Effect Productions has announced the world premiere comedy Big Shot by Joe Napoli Jr. and John Scacco at the Dorie Theatre at The Complex in Hollywood. Directed by Stan Zimmerman, there will be one preview performance on March 2 at 8pm and opening is set for Saturday, March 3, at 8pm. The limited engagement will run through March 17 only.     

In their inaugural collaboration with Clifton's Cafeteria, Creating Arts Studios has produced THE CLIFTON'S CANTEEN, a fitting and entertaining tribute to and for our servicemen and servicewomen during Memorial Weekend. Patterned after a USO show, each member of the troupe played a famous celebrity of the 1940s (save for the vocally gifted Lee Marshall and Jason Cichon as Army Guy Lee and Army Guy Jason).

GOODBYE MARILYN: A LOVE LETTER explores the last night of Marilyn Monroe's life. Essentially, the world premiere play written and directed by Michael Phillips, is a love letter to Marilyn, attempting to show her not as a celebrity, but as a person dealing with scattered memories from her life as the pills and booze overwhelm her senses just prior to her final moments on Earth.

As expected (thankfully) 2012 provided Southern California audiences--specifically here in Orange County and nearby Los Angeles and San Diego--a season full of outstanding, remarkable theater offerings from touring companies, impressive regional productions, and even some tiny black box theaters. And, of course, as is the common practice during the ushering of a new year, the enjoyable past-time of putting together a year-end 'best of' list is something contributor Michael Lawrence Quintos truly looks forward to doing, especially when there's a plethora of great work to choose from--many of which he had the pleasure of reviewing exclusively for BroadwayWorld.