Cast
BRIAN STANTON (Oliver Whelan) is a Los Angeles-based theatre artist, most known for his original, award-winning solo play BLANK, telling the true story of his adoption. After a decade of performing BLANK all over North America, Stanton followed with another original piece, his film @ghostkingdom (pronounced “at ghost kingdom”) garnering Best Actor & Best Screenwriter awards from the 2021 LOVE International Film Festival and a Jury Award for Innovation from the 2021 Awareness Film Festival. @ghostkingdom is currently available on Vimeo for on-demand viewing. Other notable credits: most recently the World Premiere of Final Interview at the Pico Playhouse in LA, ART and Charley’s Aunt at International City Theatre in Long Beach, The Glass Menagerie and Greater Tuna at Mammoth Lakes Rep, The Foreigner and No Sex Please, We’re British at the Norris Theatre, BAAL with Yale Cabaret, The Illusion and Venus & Adonis with Lone Star Ensemble and his award-winning performance as Charlie Chaplin in The Consul, The Tramp & America’s Sweetheart at Theatre40. Degrees: MFA from California Institute of the Arts & BFA from Texas Christian University. Instagram @thebrianstanton & @atghostkingdom and Facebook as Brian Stanton.
SAMARA FRAME (Elle) Samara’s 25-year career as a theater maker spans from the stage to administration. As an AEA and SAG/AFTRA actor, she’s worked in Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles and Madison, WI in theater, film and television, notably as a core company member at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum in LA for ten years and as a member of Forward Theater Company. She graduated with a theater degree from Northwestern University and now claims Madison, WI as home, where she continues to perform and serve in arts administration and education at UW-Madison’s Division of the Arts.
GABRIEL OLIVA (Ben, Ronald Reagan) Not the average Spaniard, Gabriel Oliva grew up half in San Diego, and half in Seville, Spain. His first words were a “me gusta” and then shortly after “juice”. After being confused for a short while (so he’s told) he decided to stick to English primarily. After hitting puberty he was quickly brandished with the moniker “Drama Geek” for which he was banned to Los Angeles forever more. So he then decided to donate some money and time, but mostly money, to USC where he graduated from their Acting program. Gabriel can be seen in the Oscar winning film Promising Young Woman and the Emmy winning series The Dropout, amongst others. www.GabrielOliva.com
ALAN BLUMENFELD (Bellows, Ted Geisel) A Noise Within, Resident Artist: CHRISTMAS CAROL, ARGONAUTIKA, UBU ROI, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, SCHOOL FOR WIVES, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, A FLEA IN HER EAR, TAMING OF THE SHREW, AWAKE AND SING, THE ILLUSION, THE BEAUX’ STRATAGEM, AH, WILDERNESS (Best Supporting Actor, Revival) FIGARO, ROMEO AND JULIET.: Company Member Theatricum Botanicum MERRY WIVES (Best Actor), TALLEY’S FOLLY, TONE CLUSTERS GIN GAME (all with his wife Katherine James); among others; Sierra Madre Playhouse, GIN GAME (again with his wife, Katherine James); Fountain Theater, THE CHOSEN (Best Supporting Actor), HOUSE NOT MEANT TO STAND; South Coast Repertory; Oregon Shakespearean Festival; PCPA in Santa Maria; Broadway and First National Tour LAUGHTER ON THE 23RD FLOOR; Film/TV more than 300 guest star roles including; Space Force Netflix, The Patient, Hunters, Fresh off the Boat, Arrested Development, Heroes (recurring as the Nightmare Man) Righteous Kill, In Her Shoes, The Ring, Heartbreakers, Bob Buss in 2gether on MTV, Tin Men and many more. https://www.alanblumenfeld.com/
KATHERINE JAMES (Shelly) has been working as an actor since the age of 5. Favorite stage roles over the past 10 years include Amanda in THE GLASS MENAGERIE, Emily in TONE CLUSTERS, Fonsia Dorsey in THE GIN GAME. Favorite television show was PICKET FENCES and favorite film was THE RIGHT STUFF. Her favorite podcast is this one! She enjoys writing for the theatre as well as directing shows by playwrights both living and dead. A proud member of Equity and SAGAFTRA you can learn more about her at katherinejamesplays.com
JAMES COYLE (Miller) has had a varied career for over 45 years. He’s appeared on Broadway, Off Broadway, regional theatre, television and film. Favorite stage appearances include Uncle Vanya with Sir Derek Jacobi, the American premiere of Kenneth Branagh’s “Public Enemy” at the Irish Arts Center, as well as the premiere of Dusan Kovacovich’s “The Professional.” He’s been seen on television on Law & Order, Rescue Me and virtually all the soaps that were produced in New York City.
DANTE ALEXANDER (Toes) is born and raised from Harlem, NYC. He currently resides in Los Angeles. Theatre Includes: Lobby Hero (Florida Rep), Grand Horizons (People’s Light), King James (Mark Taper Forum), Yellowman (Chance Theater) in which he received a nomination for Outstanding Lead in a Performance by the Orange County Theatre Guild, Mrs. K (Royal Family), Faith On A Tuesday (Second Stage Uptown) & The Confession (Manhattan Repertory Theatre). Television Includes: The Shrink Next Door, The Young and the Restless, Inside Amy Schumer & The Following. He is a proud member of The Actors Center. Website: www.danteacts.com, Instagram: @dante.alexander
ROBBIE TROMBETTA (Lois, Bet) was delighted to voice Lois, providing an opportunity to channel her tough-as-nails/heart-of-gold grandmother. Robbie attended Santa Clara University where she and Chris Bomba met and acted together in The Skin of Our Teeth, Under Milkwood and Romeo and Juliet. (FYI, neither Chris nor Robbie were Romeo or Juliet, but they did fall in love and have been married for 47 years.) Robbie taught classroom music for twenty-two years at Crossroads Elementary School in Santa Monica. Currently, she gives private music lessons and is a member of the Los Angeles Recorder Orchestra.
CHRIS COTE (Patrick Whelan) is a forty-five-year member of the Screen Actors Guild. His most noteworthy acting credits include guest starring work on Dynasty, Magnum PI, Matlock and Days of Our Lives. But like many actors, he also wanted to write and direct. Happily, with his partner, Dayle Kerry, he has spent the last decade writing and directing and acting in audio dramas, which they also produce. First came Red House Rising, a four-season, twenty-one episode podcast and audiobook – a romantic adventure set in the Pacific, China and Japan during World War II. And soon-to-be released, My Russian Clementine, a ten-episode limited series, based on a true story about an American actress who adopts a little girl in Russian in 1994.
MARY BOMBA (Host, Ollie’s Mother, Joan Leslie) A native of Los Angeles and graduate of UCLA, Mary Bomba performed in Equity waiver theater before becoming a motion picture story analyst. After ten years of reading for Orion and other studios, she went back to school and became a hospital chaplain. Most recently she worked at Providence Saint John’s Health Center, applying her theater skills to chapel services and her story analyst skills to patient care. Now retired, Mary serves as an adviser and fundraiser for OPICA Adult Day Program and Counseling Center for people with dementia. She also volunteers for the Westwood Greenway, helping to weed out invasive plants along the bioswale between Overland and Westwood Blvds. Mary plays trumpet in the Santa Monica College Wind Ensemble. She is the sister of Chris Bomba.
ZANE ACORD (Flight Instructor, Hancock, Conductor, Michael Curtiz, Canteen Soldier #1) is an up-and-coming voice actor and filmmaker. He has had experience on the stage, in front of the camera, and behind the mic. Since 2018, he has been teaching the art of cinema to students in Texas. He is also a musician. He began with classical violin at the tender age of seven. When he entered his late teens, he began to play Irish folk music, and has now taught it since 2021. In 2022, Zane started the TTRPG actual play podcast Dungeons and Don’t Worry About It. Not only did he star in and edit the podcast, but he also fully composed the soundtrack. He has now released two albums under the moniker Ragaire.
JONAH WEILAND (Marine #2, Bernard Vorhaus, Assistant Director #1, Canteen Soldier #2) is an actor, producer and voice actor. A Los Angeles native, Jonah grew up around Hollywood, first as a producer in radio working with the likes of Phil Hendrie, Dr. Laura Schlessinger and others, then as the owner/operator of the most trusted comics culture news source, Comic Book Resources (CBR.com), selling it in 2016. In 2019, Jonah joined the executive team at Warner Bros./DC Comics as the VP of Marketing, overseeing a record breaking year of comic sales for the company. After a year, he returned to his true love, dedicating himself full time to acting/voice over. Jonah is currently producing I’LL SEE YOU IN A MINUTE by Natalie Grove this June at the Hollywood Fringel, producing and starring in the short film THE ARRANGER with writer Christopher Long, the short film POLARIS with writer/director Seth Sherwood and producing/starring in the upcoming scripted podcast BEHIND THE HERO with writer/director Joe Casey.
MYK PRICE (Porter, Stump, Joe Louis) has been a musician, actor, vocalist, and voice artist for more than four decades. Myk recorded voice tracks for various Disney Television projects, provided voice characters for promotional videos, was a newscaster for local Los Angeles radio stations, and the co-host, along with the late Scott Greene, on the “Greene-Price Tag” morning radio show. Myk was also a singer and co-director of the San Fernando Valley Master Chorale, instrumentalist and associate director of the New Valley Symphony Orchestra, and co-creator of the Celtic music group, Sheer Pandemonium. These days, Myk can be seen performing with the Los Angeles Recorder Orchestra, under the direction of Tom Axworthy, and during the Holiday Season, Myk is a Local and National performing Santa Claus. (Says Myk, “I was so excited to be asked to be a part of the ‘On The Tinsel Front’ cast, and I can’t wait to be a part of the next Chris Bomba project!”)
JOHN KATONA (Marine #1, Propman Soldier, Assistant Director #2, Canteen Guard) was born in Staten Island, New York and raised in Golden, Colorado. He always dreamed of being a professional actor, and treated his life like a comic book character training to be a superhero. He trained by doing everything that was available to him, improv and acting classes, school plays and musicals, working at Haunted Houses, mascot work, student films, community theater, television, film, and voice over. John was living in Los Angeles pursuing his dream career when the Covid pandemic hit; he lost all of his jobs because of it, and moved back to Colorado to help his parents through the pandemic. John is still pursuing his dream by auditioning for everything he can and creating his own film.
CALEB A. FIELDS (Flirting Soldier #1, Spoons) Within a year of being transplanted from Houston, TX to Los Angeles, Caleb Ashton has been a brand ambassador for SafeApp, been featured in music videos and worked with several production companies. With his participation in stage, film, voice over productions and workshops across the country, Ashton is currently enjoying and embracing the grind of an actor and playwright. He has completed formal training in Acting at the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts as well as Ball State University, but enjoys a workshop every now and then when his time (& bank account) permits. He was recently featured in DIAVOLO Dance Company Veterans Project at Musco Center for the Arts in Orange, California and In Ice Cold Blood on Oxygen. Ashton is ready to embark on this ride with Full Spectrum Productions and can’t wait to let the audience into their world. His goal is to continuously broaden his acting experience and audience through various means of storytelling.
SUFYAN MAHMUD (Willy Boy) A budding actor hailing from Seattle, Washington, Sufyan Mahmud has honed his craft through training at prestigious institutions such as the William Esper Studio in NYC and the Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles. He takes pride in his work and is eager to learn new acting skills to take him to new places in his roles and meet new people along the way.
TOM O’CONNOR (Sipriani, Chaplain) is a retiree who puts his theatrical skills to work as a docent at Hollyhock House, The Petersen Automotive Museum and Virginia Robinson Gardens. He also assists the archives staff at The Petersen Museum cataloguing their growing collection of donated auto-related material. He enjoyed participating in readers’ theater productions as an undergraduate (Animal Farm, The World of Don Camillo and The Great Gatsby). A longtime member and volunteer for the Los Angeles Conservancy, Tom is pleased to help preserve the history of wartime Los Angeles by participating in On the Tinsel Front.