COMPANY BIOGRAPHIES

Ellen Prince has been involved in the dance world for many years and in many capacities.  She earned her degree from the University of California at Irvine with a major in Dance. She has both performed and choreographed. Ms. Prince danced professionally on both the East and West Coasts.  She danced with the Norman Walker Dance Company in New York, the Ben Howard Company in Los Angeles and has danced in the ensemble of many musicals. She has choreographed in academia and professionally for over twenty years. Ms. Prince has spent most of her choreographic career in California.  Some of her credits include original shows at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium and at the Tiffany Theater in Los Angeles. Ellen has been, and still is, choreographing for the Laguna Playhouse spanning over thirteen seasons where she has had the privilege of choreographing The Secret Garden, The Wizard of Oz, among others.  She also choreographed both the pilot and all four seasons of  “The Great Pretenders” for Fox Network in Hollywood. Ellen has choreographed for many Civic Light Opera Companies, such as Saddleback Civic Light Opera. She has served as the resident choreographer for South Coast Musical Theater and for Irvine Civic Light Opera where she choreographed numerous shows including A Chorus Line, Company, Evita, The Music Man, Cabaret, and won the Los Angeles Dramalogue award for choreography for the production of Pacific Overtures.

Ron Abel is a multi-award winning composer, producer, arranger, orchestrator, conductor and musical director.  The scope of his music mastery includes film, television, Broadway, recording, as well as live, special events. As arranger/conductor, Ron has appeared live onstage with Bette Midler, Johnny Mathis, Liza Minnelli, Mandy Patinkin, Patti LuPone, Michele Lee, Jason Alexander, David Hyde Pierce, Rita Wilson, Loretta Devine Lucie Arnaz, Craig Bierko, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Nancy Dussault, Shirley Jones, Valerie Pettiford, Tim Curry, Donna McKechnie, Sarah Brightman, Joe Williams and never last, l'opera diva Julia Migenes. Film and television credits include: Musical direction for I Love Lucy’s 50^TH Anniversary TV Special (CBS); Composing the television theme songs for Animal Court (Animal Planet) and the late night talk show, Nitecap (ABC).  Ron was featured as the on-camera musical director for Nitecap, as well as the syndicated musical TV game show, Name That Tune.  His film work includes composing, arranging and/or orchestrating for both Michelle Pfeiffer and Kim Basiner; and for a TV special for Lily Tomlin; and work for Bea Arthur and Carol Burnett. Most recently he produced and arranged albums for Deborah Gibson (Colored Lights: The Broadway Album) and Valerie Petitford (Hear My Soul). Ron is the co-creator and arranger of the Broadway musical, Blame it on the Movies.   As a leading composer, Ron’s own score for the musical, Twist of Fate, was awarded both the Los Angeles Drama Critic's Circle and L.A Weekly Theatre Awards, for "Best Musical of the Year".  His other musicals produced in Los Angeles include, Is This Your Life?...a musical comedy exposé; Rockwell: Life on a Palette;  and To Sir, With Love.