This Spotlight focuses on Phil Olson who was born and raised in Edina, Minnesota before he moved to Los Angeles. He has won over 30 playwriting and theatre awards with his 16 published plays that have had over 400 productions in seven countries around the world, with ten of his plays published by Samuel French/Concord Theatricals. … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Los Angeles-Based Playwright Phil Olson
Registered Critic: Shari Barrett


Spotlight Series: Meet Shelley Fisher, “The Hebrew Hillbilly”
This Spotlight focuses on Shelley Fisher, a down home diva better known as The Hebrew Hillbilly, her persona in her solo music play which is the longest running in the USA. Believing that music is the universal language which brings healing and encouragement to everyone, performing her show fuels the flames of creativity and hope for … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Shelley Fisher, “The Hebrew Hillbilly”


Spotlight Series: Cindy and Perry Shields
This Spotlight focuses on popular South Bay entertainers Cindy Shields and Perry Shields who met in 1980 when they were both performing in Guys and Dolls at El Camino College and have been entertaining audiences around Los Angeles and the South Bay for over 40 years! Perry Shields discovered acting in Kindergarten when he realized how much … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Cindy and Perry Shields


Spotlight Series: Lyndsay and Jeremy Palmer
This Spotlight focuses on Lyndsay and Jeremy Palmer who met in a theater as teenagers, reconnected in college, then married and have done over 20 productions together in Los Angeles and Denver. But now with the shutdown, everything is on hold for both of them regarding their future production plans, so here is a bit of … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Lyndsay and Jeremy Palmer


Spotlight Series: Meet Kelly Brighton, an Actor, Singer, Composer/Lyricist, Producer/Arranger and Writer
This Spotlight focuses on Kelly Brighton, an Actor, Singer, Composer/Lyricist, Producer/Arranger and Writer who has appeared in theatrical productions his entire life. As a member of DOMA Theatre, Kelly has received accolades for his roles in several company productions. He is also preparing to take a new musical he has written to the stage, and … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Kelly Brighton, an Actor, Singer, Composer/Lyricist, Producer/Arranger and Writer


Spotlight Series: Meet Bill Brochtrup Who Rose to Fame on NYPD Blue, L.A. Stages, and is now the Artistic Director of the Antaeus Theatre Company
This Spotlight focuses on Bill Brochtrup who rose to TV stardom as PAA John Irvin on the ABC television drama NYPD Blue and continues to dazzle audiences as an actor, most recently in the Ovation Award-wining Daniel's Husband at the Fountain Theatre, and planning programming for the Antaeus Theatre Company in Glendale as its Artistic Director. … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Bill Brochtrup Who Rose to Fame on NYPD Blue, L.A. Stages, and is now the Artistic Director of the Antaeus Theatre Company


Spotlight Series: Meet Scott Jackson Who Discovered His Love of Acting After College
This Spotlight shines on Scott Jackson who discovered his love of acting after college and now graces stages in the City of Angels. He had just wrapped portraying George Deever in a sold-out production of All My Sons at Pacific Resident Theatre in Venice when the entire theatre world was forced to shut down. Shari Barrett … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Scott Jackson Who Discovered His Love of Acting After College


Spotlight Series: Meet Jessica Lynn Johnson, Founder and CEO of Soaring Solo
This Spotlight focuses on Jessica Lynn Johnson, proud founder and CEO of Soaring Solo LLC, a company dedicated solely to the direction and development of one person plays who has collaborated on well over 100 solo shows and is still going strong despite the current shutdown. And now she is offering free classes on ZOOM until … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Jessica Lynn Johnson, Founder and CEO of Soaring Solo


Spotlight Series: Meet Michael Mullen, An Award-Winning Costume Designer and Actor
This Spotlight focuses on Michael Mullen, an award-winning and always busy costume designer, writer and actor who often steps onstage in a variety of roles, both male and female. Shari Barrett (SB): What would you like readers to know about your theatrical background? Michael Mullen (MM): I’m a costume designer, actor, and writer who lives in Hollywood with … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Michael Mullen, An Award-Winning Costume Designer and Actor


Spotlight Series: Meet Amanda Conlon - Actor, Singer and Director Who Created Bucket List Theatre
This Spotlight focuses on Amanda Conlon, the actor, singer and director who created Bucket List Theatre after relocating to Los Angeles from NYC. As the company’s Artistic Director, her talents as an actor, singer, writer and director enhance every production in which she appears or organizes for her company of equally talented, triple-threat performers. Amanda recently … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Amanda Conlon - Actor, Singer and Director Who Created Bucket List Theatre


Spotlight Series: Meet Kalinda Gray, An Actor and Fantasy Party Organizer Who Moonlights as a Salem Witch Trials Researcher and Historian
This Spotlight focuses on Kalinda Gray, an actor I first encountered onstage playing Marilyn Monroe all the way to Magenta in the Rocky Horror Picture Show 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 … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Kalinda Gray, An Actor and Fantasy Party Organizer Who Moonlights as a Salem Witch Trials Researcher and Historian


Spotlight Series: Meet Actor and Writer Barry Brisco
This Spotlight focuses on Barry Brisco, an actor who has traveled the world touring with shows and had just started working on his first TV series when the shutdown forced the production to close down. The delay has also put a damper on his plans to produce a play he wrote for this year’s Hollywood Fringe Festival. … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Actor and Writer Barry Brisco


Spotlight Series: Meet Writer / Producer / Actor Mykell Barlow From the L.A. Premiere of “Dessa Rose”
This Spotlight shines on writer/producer and actor Mykell Barlow, who I first saw onstage in the Los Angeles premiere of "Dessa Rose" at the Chromolume Theatre. His next big production is his wedding planned for 6/13/2020, which he hopes can go on as planned. Shari Barrett (SB): What would you like readers to know about your … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Writer / Producer / Actor Mykell Barlow From the L.A. Premiere of “Dessa Rose”


Spotlight Series: Meet Barbara Keegan, an Emmy Award-winning Actress
This Spotlight focuses on Barbara “Bobbie” Keegan, an Emmy Award-winning actress who always says “yes” to the Santa Monica Playhouse and Theatre 68 who always travels with her adopted son, good luck charm and alter- ego, “Smitty the Magical Flying Purple Turtle.” I first met both of them during the second Hollywood Fringe Festival when Keegan … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Barbara Keegan, an Emmy Award-winning Actress


Spotlight Series: Meet Kiki Yeung - producer, comedian, actress, and organizer of 'Crazy Woke Asians'
This Spotlight shines on Kiki Yeung, a producer, comedian, actress and organizer of the Crazy Woke Asians (CWA) Solo Performance Festival at the Santa Monica Playhouse and Crazy Woke Asians comedy show at The Comedy Store in Hollywood. Shari Barrett (SB): What would you like readers to know about your theatrical background? Kiki Yeung (Kiki): … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Kiki Yeung - producer, comedian, actress, and organizer of 'Crazy Woke Asians'


Spotlight Series: Meet Actor Rob Nagle from 'Human Interest Story' at the Fountain Theatre
This Spotlight focuses on Rob Nagle, a proud member of the Antaeus Theatre Company and the Troubadour Theater Company, who was in the fourth week of performances of the world premiere of Human Interest Story at the Fountain Theatre when the production was forced to postpone the run. Shari Barrett (SB): What would you like readers … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Actor Rob Nagle from 'Human Interest Story' at the Fountain Theatre


Spotlight Series: Phil Brickey – Actor, Director, Rock Musician, and an Elementary Theatre Teacher
This Spotlight focuses on Phil Brickey, an actor, director, rock musician, and Elementary School Theatre teacher who was one of the first directors for whom I produced a 2006 show for Kentwood Players at the Westchester Playhouse. That show was George Washington Slept Here which required a double level set to be constructed as the home … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Phil Brickey – Actor, Director, Rock Musician, and an Elementary Theatre Teacher


Spotlight Series: Meet Tanya Alexander – Spoken Word Artist and Lead Actor in 'HUMAN INTEREST STORY' at the Fountain Theatre
This Spotlight focuses on Tanya Alexander, a spoken word artist and writer of poetry and music, who I recently reviewed in her leading role in Human Interest Story at the Fountain Theatre in Hollywood, in which she played Jane Doe, an anonymous homeless woman plucked from a park bench and made a media celebrity. Shari Barrett (SB): … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Tanya Alexander – Spoken Word Artist and Lead Actor in 'HUMAN INTEREST STORY' at the Fountain Theatre


Spotlight Series: Meet Ronnie Marmo – An Actor, Director, Producer, Playwright, and Artistic Director of Theatre 68 in NoHo
This Spotlight focuses on Ronnie Marmo, an actor, director, producer, playwright, and Artistic Director of Theatre 68 who has been touring the country with his dynamic solo show I’m Not A Comedian...I’m Lenny Bruce. I attended the show more than once and was excited to hear the news of its New York City and Chicago production … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Ronnie Marmo – An Actor, Director, Producer, Playwright, and Artistic Director of Theatre 68 in NoHo


Spotlight Series: Meet Peter Miller – a Musical Theater and Voiceover Actor Who Spends Time as a Theme Park Carnival Barker
This Spotlight focuses on Peter Miller, a Musical Theater and Voiceover Actor Who Spends Time as a Theme Park Carnival Barker. Shari Barrett (SB): What would you like readers to know about your own theatrical background? Peter Miller (PM): I've been doing local theater in LA County since 1984. I've also dabbled in stand-up comedy … Continue reading Spotlight Series: Meet Peter Miller – a Musical Theater and Voiceover Actor Who Spends Time as a Theme Park Carnival Barker