Cast

Alicia Robinson Stranded on an island, dressed to the nines and followed around by cameras. It sounds more like a reality show than a vacation, but for Glenn and Mindy Stearns, it was both. The Pelican Hill couple spent most of September shooting "The Real Gilligan's Island," a reality show that will premiere Nov. 30 on the TBS network. On the show, two casts representing characters from the 1960s "Gilligan's Island" sitcom complete challenges in an effort to win spots in the final cast of seven.

The Green Day-based musical "American Idiot" held its closing performance Sunday at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, and a surprise guest made an appearance: Green Day's lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong.  According to the "American Idiot" Twitter page , "Costa Mesa  had some of our best audiences yet,  and quite possibly our favorite audience member: [Billie Joe Armstrong]. " Armstrong posed for pictures with the cast after the show. Did you see "American Idiot" while it was in town?

The cable reality series ?The Real Housewives of Orange County? is tossing a Newport Coast resident into the mix for season five of the hit series. Alexis Bellino, 32, will join cast members Tamra Barney, Lynn Curtin, Vicki Gunvalson, Jeana Keough and Gretchen Rossi. Married to entrepreneur Jim Bellino, Alexis Bellino is a stay-at-home mom to 3-year-old son James and 20-month-old twins Melania and Mackenna. A news release announcing the addition to the cast describes Alexis Bellino as ?

There have been a few shows (“Noises Off” comes to mind) in which one gag is piled onto another and the cast quickly establishes and sustains an atmosphere of perpetual pandemonium. One such play, which curiously has seen little attention locally, is George Furth’s early 1980s howler “The Supporting Cast.” It’s now holding forth (as a replacement vehicle) at the Newport Theater Arts Center under the inspired direction of Michael Ross. Furth wove some sure-fire location chuckles into his mix. Four of the five characters are New Yorkers transplanted briefly to the Malibu beachfront in the midst of California’s fire and earthquake seasons.

He saw something in me — a 17-year-old Costa Mesa High School senior — that I couldn’t see myself. Don Miller cast me as a lead in our 1962 spring musical. “You were an introvert,” Miller conceded as we ate breakfast together the other morning. It had been 47 years since we’d last seen each other. He’d spied my column in this space a couple of weeks back and gave me a call. “But, I loved your spirit, and you were willing to take risks.

The artist and his ongoing creation began their relationship several years ago. Alrik Yuill was sitting in his old studio in Laguna Beach, sketching the earliest outlines of her form while listening to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. "I wasn't thinking about sculpture or painting, or even what my hand my was doing while I drew it," he recalled in a video describing the project that has consumed him since January, when he finally started the...

The one-act play is alive and well at Orange Coast College. A dozen of them will be unveiled this weekend only at OCC's Drama Lab Studio Theater. Billed as "original and published one-act plays for mature audiences," the program, which opened Thursday, continues Friday night, Saturday and Sunday. Curtain is 8 p.m. for the evening performances Friday and Saturday, 2:30 p.m. for the Saturday and Sunday matinees and 7 p.m. for the Sunday evening session. In Series A, which will be presented Saturday afternoon and evening, OCC student Shawn Greenfield kicks things off with "The Mediation," a play he wrote and directs, focusing on a divorced couple.

Play: "The Wizard of Oz" School: Andersen Elementary School Story line: The adventures of Dorothy, Tinman, Cowardly Lion and Scarecrow in the wonderful land of Oz Producers: Jennifer Spindler, Jenny Tomlin Costumes: Vicki Brown Set designer: Gina Frisbee Cast: All of the roles are double cast, with the exception of Toto, which will be performed by four actors. The red cast is comprised of Cari Levine, Jenna Morris, Ford Noe, Stephanie Brown, Holly VanHiel, Ryan Hultman, Anna Fletcher, Kate Gritsch, Megan Splindler, Michelle Atkins, Haley Prickett, Taylor Canale, Julianne Piggot, Hailey McCarter, Chelsea Giger, Quinn Kawata and Melissa Hohl.

"After all of those years being stuck on a page, Did you ever imagine you'd see me onstage? Now I'm here, there's no telling what may ensue!" - The Cat in the Hat, "Seussical" * The Broadway darling and family favorite "Seussical" will run over the next two weekends at South Coast Repertory. Performed by SCR's Summer Players, the massive musical features characters fromDr. Seuss' most beloved stories, including "The Cat in the Hat,""The Lorax,""Horton Hears a Who" and "Green Eggs and Ham. " The overarching theme is the value of friendship and the notion that even the smallest person has value.

Ten years ago, Huntington Beach resident Temre Vouga’s 5-day-old grandchild underwent heart surgery at the Children’s Hospital of Orange County. She was just one of the estimated 200,000 children who step, are carried or wheeled through its doors every year, regardless of their family’s ability to pay. This undertaking by CHOC, a nonprofit, comes courtesy of a variety of fundraisers, partnerships and community support. One of the county’s favorite fundraisers for the organization, the CHOC Follies, is celebrating its 13th anniversary this year with its campy, uproarious production of “The Wizard of OC.” Vouga is celebrating her 10th anniversary as a performer in the annual revue, following those harrowing days that her first grandchild spent in the hospital.

Say you're an educator and you had an opportunity to save money, do something beneficial for the environment and provide an excellent teaching opportunity for students. It would be a no-brainer, right? So why isn't every school district in California racing to imitate Irvine Unified's successful solar panel project? The answer is that too few school districts are run like IUSD. That is, they lack the vision, flexibility and willingness to experiment, and the entrepreneurial framework.

Looking dapper with his slicked-back hair and gray vest, Sawyer Stahl was all the part of George Bailey, the well-meaning banker of Bedford Falls whose frustrations nearly end him before he realizes that his is a wonderful life indeed. But while some may turn to Frank Capra's iconic 1946 film for inspiration, the 17-year-old Newport Harbor High School senior - who's playing the lead role for his school's production "It's a Wonderful Life" - isn't going to. "I don't want to want watch the movie until I've done the show because I don't want to act like Jimmy Stewart," Sawyer said.

Voting in the Newport-Mesa area Tuesday? Here's some information you might need: Newport Beach residents will vote on Measure EE, which would make 38 amendments to the city's charter, ranging from a ban on class-action lawsuits to correcting typos. They can also vote for City Council members in districts 2, 5 and 7. Although the city is divided into districts, Newport has an at-large voting system, wherein any resident can vote for any candidate - regardless of whether or not they live in the candidate's district.

Promos are everywhere for the new fall TV shows, with their big stars (Matthew Perry, Kevin Bacon!) and amazing supporting casts (Ellen Barkin, Bill Pullman!). But what happens when a cast isn't helping the star of the show, but instead contributing to his or her downfall? That's the story of addiction. Every addict has his or her supporting cast, each of whom unwittingly acts out an all-too familiar role in the sad drama — until something forces a change. September is National Recovery Month, a time when we celebrate those individuals who have reclaimed their lives.

South Coast Repertory's Summer Players, the cream of the theater's conservatory crop, are the professional actors of tomorrow and, judging by their marvelous production of "Seussical," tomorrow may not be too far away. These are actors from 9 to 22 years old, all students in or graduates of SCR's Theater Conservatory. Their "term paper" each year is a full-scale musical production under the tutelage of Hisa Takakuwa, director of the conservatory program. By choosing "Seussical," a popular musical by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens and based on the writings of children's guru Dr. Seuss, Takakuwa has given her 27-member ensemble an opportunity to shine both individually and collectively.

"After all of those years being stuck on a page, Did you ever imagine you'd see me onstage? Now I'm here, there's no telling what may ensue!" - The Cat in the Hat, "Seussical" * The Broadway darling and family favorite "Seussical" will run over the next two weekends at South Coast Repertory. Performed by SCR's Summer Players, the massive musical features characters fromDr. Seuss' most beloved stories, including "The Cat in the Hat,""The Lorax,""Horton Hears a Who" and "Green Eggs and Ham. " The overarching theme is the value of friendship and the notion that even the smallest person has value.

The artist and his ongoing creation began their relationship several years ago. Alrik Yuill was sitting in his old studio in Laguna Beach, sketching the earliest outlines of her form while listening to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. "I wasn't thinking about sculpture or painting, or even what my hand my was doing while I drew it," he recalled in a video describing the project that has consumed him since January, when he finally started the...

Newport Beach and Costa Mesa residents will go to the polls Tuesday, selecting two of three state Assembly candidates to move forward to a November runoff as well as deciding two countywide measures. California's open primary creates an unusual situation because voters can send two members of the same political party to face each other in November. Two Republicans, Assemblyman Allan Mansoor (R-Costa Mesa) and Newport Beach Councilwoman Leslie Daigle, are on the ballot with Democrat Bob Rush, a Newport businessman.

The Green Day-based musical "American Idiot" held its closing performance Sunday at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, and a surprise guest made an appearance: Green Day's lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong.  According to the "American Idiot" Twitter page , "Costa Mesa  had some of our best audiences yet,  and quite possibly our favorite audience member: [Billie Joe Armstrong]. " Armstrong posed for pictures with the cast after the show. Did you see "American Idiot" while it was in town?

Costa Mesa City Clerk Julie Folcik was repeatedly reminded by election officials of the deadline to get a proposed city charter initiative on the June ballot, emails show. The exchanges, obtained by the Daily Pilot through a California Public Records Act request, could cast doubt on the claim that Folcik was merely mixed up about the 5 p.m. March 9 deadline — an argument she made in a failed attempt last week to put the initiative on June's ballot even though she missed the deadline.