Legendary character actor Allan Rich talks about his extraordinary life in film and television, and his new book A Leap from the Method.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights the Los Angeles opening of distinguished composer Michele Brourman and cabaret sensation Pat Whiteman at Sterling’s Upstairs at The Federal and the evening’s charitable beneficiary Hope-Net (www.hopenetla.org).  Sterling reviews the Los Angeles premiere of

Billy Elliot the Musical at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.   Musical Theatre star Daniel Tatar is interviewed about his participation in The Company Men, one of the hottest, new concert acts sweeping the country.  Rich and Tatar reveal embarrassing career moments. 

Broadway ‘s Roger Bart (The Producers, Young Frankenstein) and Kim Huber (Disney’s Beauty and the Beast) join Sterling & Stroili for a frothy, fast moving hour.  Bart discusses his career and his starring role in celebrated playwright Yasmina Reza’s Art at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, CA.  Sterling gives a mini review of It’s a Wonderful Life at the Glendale Centre Theatre in Glendale, CA; and announces “Tutu Day” (February 2nd) on behalf of Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre and the upcoming west coast premiere engagement of Broadway’s Billy Elliot The Musical.  Huber also elaborates on her career, and taking on the iconic role  of “Maria Von Trapp” in 3D Theatricals’ extravagant production of The Sound of Music at the historic Plummer Auditorium in Fullerton, CA.

Back in full form for the New Year, Sterling and Stroili welcome film star and Emmy Award-winning actor Leslie Jordan (The Help; Will & Grace); and Michael Orland - Associate Musial Director/Pianist/Arranger for American Idol.  The Live Arts Calendar features Zanna Don’t, a hip musical fairytale at Theater Theatre in Los Angeles, and the 2009 Tony Award winning comedy God of Carnage at International City Theatre in Long Beach, CA.   Jordan and Orland share fun moments during live performances. 

TV heartthrob James Denton (Desperate Housewives) and uber talented recording artist and television actress Caitlin Crosby (MTV’s The Hard Times of RJ Berger) discuss their roles in Karaoke Man, the new, critically acclaimed feature film collecting distinguished awards at top festivals throughout the country.   The live arts calendar spotlights The Playground, a new musical inspired by true stories of LA’s homeless youth at Hollywood’s Met Theatre.  Sterling reviews the U.S. National Tour opening of Bring it On: The Musical (based on the film of the same name) at the Ahmanson Theatre downtown Los Angeles.   Crosby and Denton share awkward moments while performing live on stage.

Obie and Peabody Award winning actor/writer Roger Guenveur Smith (A Huey P. Newton Story) discusses his latest work Juan and John at the Los Angeles Theatre Center in downtown Los Angeles. Sterling coerces Stroili to talk about his weekend road trip to Arizona and a close encounter of the fudge kind. Popular radio show host Sheena Metal (LA Talk Radio.com) is interviewed about her co-starring role in Last Summer at Bluefish Cove and its reopening at the Lounge Theatre in Los Angeles. The Live Arts Calendar highlights the Blank Theatre Company’s hilarious holiday offering of The Santaland Diaries. Sterling reviews A Sentimental Journey, The Story of Doris Day at the historic El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood. Smith and Metal divulge awkward on stage moments.

Four-time Emmy Award winning actress Ms. Michael Learned (The Waltons) and critically acclaimed Southland theatre director Robert Marra (Seven Brides…A Chorus Line, Chess, Oklahoma) share the hour with Sterling and Stroili who open the show with banter about the correct pronunciation of Italian food dishes and the hazards of driving in the rain.  Learned discusses her co-starring role in the romantic comedy Southern Comforts on stage at the Falcon Theatre in Toluca Lake, CA; while Marra talks about a fresh, “more edgy” revival of Sweet Charity at the Knightsbridge Theatre in Los Angeles.   The Live Arts Calendar highlights I Love Lucy … Live on Stage at the Greenway Court Theatre in LA, and the world premiere comedy of Centre Theatre Group’s Poor Behavior at the Mark Taper Forum in downtown Los Angeles.  An embarrassing tongue-twisting, on-stage story is revealed by one of the guests.

Sterling and Stroili welcome notable stage and television actors Ian Vogt and Dale Morris - both of whom are associated with SeaGlass Theatre’s production of Kvetch at the Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks, CA.  Vogt talks about directing the hilarious Steven Berkoff comedy which not only features Morris, but State of the Arts co-host Paul Stroili.  Random callers phone in with their own “kvetches” causing hysteria in the studio. The Live Arts Calendar features reviews of Israeli superstar Mike Burstyn in Jolson Live at the Winter Garden on stage at North Hollywood’s historic El Portal Theatre; Kritzerland Records’  salute to the music of Frank Loesser at the Gardenia Restaurant in Hollywood; and The Unauthorized Afterlife of Eugene O’Neill at the Pasadena Playhouse’s Carrie Hamilton Theatre.   Vogt and Morris share embarrassing performance moments.

Daytime television star Judith Chapman (The Young and the Restless) joins Sterling & Stroili to discuss her career in television and theatre, including her critically acclaimed performance as Vivien Leigh in Vivien for Rogue Machine Theatre Co. and Troubadours of Daytime at Theater Theatre in Los Angeles.  Israeli superstar and Broadway performer Mike Burstyn discusses his theatrical history and his one man concert Jolson at the Winter Garden at North Hollywood’s El Portal Theatre.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights the Los Angeles Stage Alliance’s “Ovation Recommended” production of Dysnomia at the Lounge Theatre in Hollywood.  Sterling reviews the James Sherman comedy Beau Jest at the Glendale Centre Theatre.  Chapman and Burstyn recall unusual moments during their performances. 

Ana Gasteyer from Broadway’s Wicked and TV’s Saturday Night Live… joins Tony Award winner Daisy Eagan (The Secret Garden) for an hour of daffy, goofy fun and laughs with Sterling and Stroili.  Gasteyer discusses her west coast cabaret concert debut in Elegant Songs from a Handsome Woman at Hollywood’s Catalina Bar and Grill; while Eagan talks about her return to musical theatre in The Real Love:  A New Musical at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium; JERSEY SHORESical  at LA’s Bootleg Theatre, and Ghostlight at New York’s Musical Theatre Festival.  Sterling does mini reviews of Hairspray at the Hollywood Bowl, and Kritzerland’s salute to the music of Broadway composers Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones at the Gardenia Restaurant in Hollywood.  Gasteyer and Eagan share their most embarrassing moments on stage. 

Marion Ramsey, co-star of the classic Police Academy comedy series of movies; and Bart Braverman, a regular from the former, longtime hit TV series Vega$ starring Robert Urich, join Sterling and Stroili for an hour of tomfoolery.  Ramsey and Braverman discuss their careers and their return to the stage in the world premiere of Countermen at the Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks, CA.  The Live Arts Calendar singles out Hairspray, the Hollywood Bowl’s annual summer, star-driven Broadway spectacular; and global phenomenon Ennio starring Ennio Marchetto - The Living Paper Cartoon at the Pasadena Playhouse.  Ramsey and Braverman recall some of their worst career moments. 

On this very musical Monday, stage and television stars Lisa Marinacci and Will Collyer sit shot gun as Sterling and Stroili gear up for another wild ride on the air waves.  A discussion about Ms. Marinacci’s career also features musical selections from her new rock musical The Devil and Daisy Jane at Hollywood’s Terrace Theatre.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights On Golden Pond with Hal Linden and Christina Pickles at the Colony Theatre in Burbank, CA; and Stroili’s review of Caught at LA’s Zephyr Theatre.  Will Collyer talks about his career and debut with Kritzerland at the Gardenia:  The Schmidt and Jones Album.  Tunes from Collyer are also played.  Marinacci and Collyer are inducted into MESM (Most Embarrassing Stage Moments).

Broadway and television stars Mary Jo Catlett (Hello Dolly; Glee; Diff’rent Strokes) and Derek Keeling (Grease; NBC’s Grease: You’re the One I Want) find themselves in the fast lane with Sterling & Stroili as they talk birthdays and martinis, LA’s “Carmageddon” and auto mishaps.  Catlett and Keeling discuss their careers, and their co-starring roles in The Wedding Singer at Musical Theatre West in Long Beach, CA.  The Live Arts Calendar spotlights Come Together – A Beatles Cabaret at the Attic Theatre in Hollywood.  Sterling reviews Shrek The Musical at Hollywood’s historic Pantages Theatre.  Catlett and Keeling share embarrassing moments during live performances.

Television stars Denise Crosby (Trekkies 1 and 2; Star Trek: The Next Generation, Key West) and Jamie Rose (Falcon Crest, Lady Blue) join Sterling and Stroili for a rousing conversation about cell phones and driving; and mistaken celebrity identities.  Crosby and Rose are interviewed about their personal and professional lives; and their co-starring roles in the world premiere of Kari Floren’s Revisting Wildfire at the Odyssey Theatre in west Los Angeles.   Steven Dietz’s contemporary masterpiece Fiction at The Underground Theatre in Hollywood, highlights the Live Arts Calendar.  Sterling reviews Kritzerland at the Gardenia – An Evening of Kander and Ebb; the west coast premieres of Twist the Musical at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, CA and Shrek at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre are promoted.  Stroili reviews 1776 the musical at the Glendale Centre Theatre in Glendale, CA; Crosby and Rose share their most embarrassing moments on stage.

Regional SoCal actors Victoria Strong and Peter Husmann, co-stars of 1776 The Musical at the Glendale Centre Theatre in Glendale, CA, celebrate Independence Day with Sterling & Stroili.  The two musical theatre veterans (who portray history’s John Adams and Abigail Adams) are interviewed about the uniqueness of the Tony Award winning musical and its setting in the beautiful 400 seat Glendale theatre in-the-round, now in its 64th year as the longest, continuously running theatre in the U.S.  The Live Arts Calendar features reviews of War Horse on Broadway at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre in New York; and the west coast premiere of Twist at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, CA.  Strong and Husmann are inducted into Sterling & Stroili’s Hall of Shame by revealing their most embarrassing on stage moments. 

In this repeat airing of State of the Arts’ Premiere Broadcast from May 31, 2010, Sterling and Stroili share a little about themselves and their goals for State of the Arts. Six productions are featured in the Live Arts Calendar, along with a star-studded benefit to assist in covering medical expenses for local musical theatre enthusiast and lymphoma cancer patient, Ana Adame.  Tony Award nominee and Broadway legend Carol Lawrence who created the role of “Maria” in the musical theatre masterpiece West Side Story, is interviewed about her life and career. 

Father’s Day, Family, and a Booze Cruise (that’s right, a Booze Cruise) are discussed by Sterling & Stroili.   Bonnie McMahan, Artistic Director and Founder of Musical Theatre of Los Angeles (MTLA) is interviewed.   The Live Arts Calendar features 1776 The Musical at Glendale Centre Theatre in in Glendale, CA.  Sterling reviews Good, Bad but Beautiful at the Comedy Store in Hollywood; and Cabaret star Harold Sanditen’s Thoughts ‘Round Midnight, a west coast debut at Hollywood’s M Bar.  Award-winning theatre and television actor Eduardo Enrikez is also interviewed.  McMahan and Enrikez share their most embarrassing moments on stage. 

It’s a laugh-a-minute as Sterling and Stroili welcome Broadway and television stars Jenny O’Hara (Promises, Promises; My Sister Sam) and Nick Ullett (Me and My Girl; Loot).  The foursome discuss the 65th Annual Tony Awards Broadcast.  O’Hara and Ullett are interviewed about their marriage, their careers, and their co-starring roles in Steven Sachs’ world premiere comedy Bakersfield Mist at the Fountain Theatre in Hollywood, CA.  The Live Arts Calendar features the Pasadena Playhouse’s west coast premiere of Twist, An American Musical directed by Debbie Allen; and the Long Beach Opera’s presentation of The Difficulty of Crossing a Field at the Terrace Theatre in California’s Long Beach Performing Arts Center.  O’Hara and Ullett recant their most embarrassing moments on stage.

Sterling is joined by LA Talk Radio Network personality Sheena Metal who sits in for host Paul Stroili.  Former, successful U.K. theatre producer Harold Sanditen talks about his new career as a cabaret performer.   The Live Arts calendar features The Rat Pack Revisited at Fullerton Civic Light Opera’s Skyroom in Fullerton, CA; and Douglas Carter’s showbiz comedy The Little Dog Laughed at LA’s El Centro Theatre in Hollywood.  Sterling reviews Kritzerland Record’s musical salute to Broadway composer Cy Coleman at the Gardenia Restaurant in Hollywood; and iGhost, a new, contemporary musical based on Oscar Wilde’s The Canterville Ghost at the Lyric Theatre in LA.  Disney TV teen star Jennifer Stone (Wizards of Waverly Place) is interviewed about her career and participation in the Young Playwright’s Festival produced by the LA’s Blank Theatre Company.  Stone shares her most embarrassing career moment.

Sterling recounts for Stroili a colorful cast of characters, though not from any play.  Funny man Christopher Meehan (TV’s Last Comic Standing) talks about the opening of his upcoming, self-penned play If Church Walls Could Talk... An Evening of Catholic Comedy at the Miles Theatre in Santa Monica, CA.   Just Imagine, starring Tim Piper as John Lennon at the Hayworth Theatre in West Los Angeles, and 100 Saints You Should Know at Hollywood’s Elephant Theatre Company highlight the Live Arts Calendar.  Daytime television star Marie Wilson (As the World Turns and Port Charles) is interviewed about her upcoming, co-starring role in A Flea in Her Ear at the Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica, CA.  Wilson and Meehan exchange most embarrassing on stage moments.

Something’s rotten in Denmark!  Sterling and Stroili discuss a seasonal mystery scent emanating from the back seat of Paul’s Camry.   Distinguished Broadway, film and television star Alan Blumenfeld (NBC’s hit series Heroes) talks about his association with the prestigious Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga Canyon, CA.  Fernando Richardson’s Treacherous Brain at Hollywood’s Openfist Theatre, and Kritzerland Record’s Salute to the Music of Cy Coleman at the Gardenia Restaurant in Hollywood… highlight this week’s Live Arts Calendar.  Doug Kaback (Director/Actor/Playwright and Professor of Theatre at Cal State University at Northridge, CA) discusses directing the classic farce A Flea in Her Ear at the Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica, CA.  Blumenfeld and Kaback relive their worst moments in theatre. 

Sterling takes one last bite of Meat Loaf on the Donald’s Celebrity Apprentice.  Stroili injects a botoxicating headline from the news of the day.  Multi-talented Broadway star Leenya Rideout (from the current 2011 Tony Award nominated play War Horse and Broadway productions of Company, Cabaret and Cyrano De Bergerac )is interviewed.  LA’s SeaGlass Theatre highlights the Live Arts Calendar.  Sterling reviews the West Coast Theatre Ensemble’s production of Gypsy (Stripped) … the Arthur Laurents, Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim classic musical at Hollywood’s Theatre of Arts Arena Stage; and Jason Graae in Perfect Hermany:  The Songs of Jerry Herman at the Colony Theatre in Burbank, CA.   Award-winning star tenor of the New York City, San Francisco, and Los Angeles Opera Companies Dennis McNeil is interviewed about his career and cabaret concert debut in Los Angeles.  McNeil gets inducted into the State of the Arts Hall of Horror when recalling his most embarrassing career moments. 

Grammy, Emmy, Tony and Webbie Award nominee/winner Allee Willis joins Sterling and Stroili for an discussion about her career as a composer of some of the most iconic pop songs ever written (September, Neutron Dance, I’ll Be There for You); her success on the Broadway stage with the musical version of The Color Purple; and her lifestyle as one of LA’s most fascinating residents.   The Live Arts Calendar highlights the annual emerging arts Hollywood Fringe Festival; and the world premiere of The Chinese Massacre (Annotated) presented by Circle X Theatre at the Atwater Village Theatre.  Sterling reviews An Evening with Shirley MacLaine at the Valley Performing Arts Center in Northridge, CA; and the world premiere musical The Next Fairy Tale at the Celebration Theatre in Hollywood.  Willis shares a worst career memory. 

An earful and an eyeful rub Stroili the wrong way; while Sterling gets tongue tied with names in the news.   Broadway star Ron Orbach (Chicago and Laughter on the 23rd Floor) returns to State of the Arts for the hour, as does stage and television star Dan Frischman (Head of the Class and Kenan and Kel).  Stroili reviews The Crucible at Theatre Banshee in Burbank, CA.   Sterling discusses Musical Theatre of Los Angeles and their annual fundraising benefit; followed by a review of the U.S. National Tour/dance and song spectacle Burn the Floor at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre.  Frischman and Orbach reminisce about their most embarrassing moments on stage.

A conversation about how Sterling and Stroili spent their respective Easter holiday, begs such questions as:  Is life just a bowl of cherries or a bowl of 240? Is high flying adored or just plane crazy?  Distinguished musical theatre director Dan Mojica discusses his diverse career on Broadway and in California.  The Live Arts Calendar features Let Me Down Easy on the Lyceum Stage at San Diego Repertory Theatre in San Diego, CA; and Cirque du Soleil’s U.S. arena touring show Quidam.  Sterling reviews Musical Theatre Guild of Los Angeles’ presentation of Little Me at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, CA.  Stage, television actor, and respected theatre critic Dink O’Neal is interviewed about his dual life on both sides of the footlights.  O’Neal and Mojica recall worst memories during a performance.

Tony Award nominee John Tartaglia (Avenue Q) and stage and television star JD Cullum (Wizards of Waverly Place) join Sterling and Stroili to discuss their careers and respective LA theatre projects (The Tempermentals/Blank Theatre Co., and The Malcontent/Anteaus Theatre Co).  Sterling and Stroili engage the group in a humorous exchange on reality TV shows.  The Live Arts Calendar features George Gershwin Alone at the Pasadena Playhouse; and God of Carnage at the Ahmanson Theatre/Los Angeles.  Tartaglia speaks of an eye-popping incident during a performance, while Cullum recounts a noxious on stage intrusion. 

Tales of lotion and men in motion are told by Sterling and Stroili.  Television, film and stage actor Scott Lowell (Showtime’s Queer as Folk) discusses his appearance in the upcoming motion picture The Chicago 8.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights Arthur Miller’s The Crucible at Theatre Banshee in Burbank, CA; and The Blank Theatre Company’s production of Jon Marans’ The Temperamentals at Hollywood’s Second Stage Theatre.  Award winning theatre director Richard Israel discusses his endeavors with the hit musical Having it All at the NoHo Arts Center in North Hollywood, and the classic Broadway musical Gypsy (Stripped) for West Coast Ensemble at Hollywood’s Egyptian Arena Stage. Lowell and Israel share embarrassing moments in theatre. 

Sterling and Stroili’s discussion of Meat Loaf (not your mother’s, but the rock singer also known as Michael Aday on Donald Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice 2011) opens this edition of State of the Arts.  Broadway stars David Engel and Larry Raben discuss their distinguished individual and collective careers, as well as their co-starring roles in Cabrillo Music Theatre’s presentation of The Producers at the Kavli Theatre in Thousand Oaks, CA.  The Live Arts Calendar features the popular hit musical Forever Plaid at the Costa Mesa Playhouse in Costa Mesa, CA, and Pulitzer Prize winner Lanford Wilson’s Burn This at the Center Theatre Group’s Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.  Engel and Raben recall their most embarrassing moments on stage. 

Tiny Bubbles?  Or Tea for Two?  Sterling and Stroili speculate Boba, a popular Southeast Asian beverage sweeping the U.S.   Guests include Judy Norton and Mary McDonough (respectively known as “Mary Ellen Walton” and “Erin Walton”) from The Waltons… one of the most renowned television series of all time. Ms. Norton discusses a diverse career as an actress, writer, director, and musical theatre star.  Ms. McDonough talks about her new book of memoirs Lessons from the Mountain:  What I Learned from Erin Walton; overcoming personal challenges; her dedication to women’s health issues; and her work as a life coach.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights Faith Healer at the Madison Street Theatre in Oak Park, IL., and  Layers of Love, a musical theatre fundraising event for children afflicted with HIV/AIDS at the M Bar in Hollywood, CA.   Ms. Norton and Ms. McDonough share their embarrassing moments on stage.  

Sterling & Stroili forego their usual comedic opening to acknowledge the recent Tsunami/Earthquake disaster in Japan.
7-time Emmy Award winning, legendary actor Ed Asner (The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Lou Grant) is interviewed about FDR, his one man tour de force now in its third year of touring the U.S.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights The Loft Ensemble’s 100 Days, a world premiere comedy by Weiko Lin.  A new State of the Arts (SOTA) segment titled Regional Spotlight is introduced with a review by SOTA fan Carrie Bashak of New York.  Bashak reviews Louden Wainwright III and Shawn Colvin at Tarrytown Music Hall in Tarrytown, NY.   Robert Bucker, Executive Director of the all new Valley Performing Arts Center at California State University at Northridge, joins Sterling & Stroili to discuss the spectacular $125 million dollar venue’s diverse 2011 season. 

Former teen heartthrob/pop recording artist and film and television star Rex Smith talks about his life and career in Los Angeles theatre and on Broadway.  Musical theatre star, singer/comedian Perry Lambert shares celebrity impressions and discusses his touring nightclub act.  Stroili gives a toe-by-toe accounting of his first mani/pedi.  The foursome vow not to acknowledge the now so-fired, not-so-winning Charlie Sheen.   The Live Arts Calendar features Tony Award winner Lee Hall’s (Billy Elliot) commedia dell’arte, signed and voiced adaptation of The Adventures of Pinocchio produced by the nationally distinguished Deaf West Theatre of North Hollywood.  Reviews include the comedy Play Date at Hollywood’s Theatre Asylum, and the U.S. National tour stop of the multi-Tony Award winning musical Avenue Q at the Pantages Theatre, also in Hollywood.  Lambert and Smith divulge a few of their most embarrassing moments on stage.

Sterling and Stroili exchange quips with actor Jim J. Bullock as their sole guest for the hour.   Best known for his unique sense of comedy and his co-starring role on the 80’s iconic hit TV series Too Close for Comfort … a regular celebrity player on Hollywood Squares … and his former syndicated talk show Jim J. and Tammy Faye (Tammy Faye (Baker) Messner) in 1996 , Bullock discusses his career in television and film, as well as the musical side of his life on Broadway and throughout the country.  The Live Arts Calendar features An Evening with Rita Rudner at the Balboa Theatre in San Diego, CA;  the Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards in Palm Springs, CA; and The Insomnia Play at the Lyric Hyperian Theatre in Silverlake, CA.  Sterling reviews The Blank Theatre Co.’s The Cradle Will Rock at the Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood and Betty Buckley and Marvin Hamlisch in concert at the new Valley Performing Arts Center in Northridge, CA.  Bullock shares his worst moment during a performance.    

Sterling and Stroili welcome actress/comedienne Maripat Donovan, star and co-author of Late Night Catechism; the hilarious, critically acclaimed series of stage productions that have toured the U.S., Canada and the British Isles.  Donovan is interviewed about her role as “Sister” in the series’ latest incarnation - Late Night Catechism 3: ‘Till Death Do Us Part at the Pasadena Playhouse’s Carrie Hamilton Theatre.   Sterling, Stroili and Donovan discuss everything from theatre presented at Hollywood Forever Memorial Park, a legendary celebrity cemetery; to some still-living legends and their performances on this year’s Grammy Awards.   The Live Arts Calendar highlights The Mercy Seat, playwright Neil LaBute’s caustically funny examination of opportunism in the wake of tragedy at “Inside” the Ford Theatre in the Hollywood Hills.  Sterling reviews the U.S. National Tour’s LA engagement of Rock of Ages at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.  Miss Donovan recounts her worst nightmare while performing. 

It’s not all hearts and roses, or what it’s “cracked” up to be.  Sterling and Stroili discuss the tainting of Valentine’s Day.   Legendary Broadway star Davis Gaines (Phantom of the Opera) discusses his illustrious career.  Broadway, television, film star and theatre director Ron Orbach (Room Service) is also interviewed.   Sterling reviews the 8-time, 2007 Tony Award winning U.S. Tour production of Spring Awakening at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.  Co-Director Bjorn Johnson (Room Service) joins the group via telephone.  Gaines and Orbach tell of unusual situations experienced during live performance.

Does eating a bag of chips during a theatre performance qualify as audience participation?  Sterling and Stroili sound-off on the don’ts and don’ts of theatre etiquette.   Broadway Tony Award winner Michael Rupert (Sweet Charity, Legally Blonde, Ragtime, City of Angels, Pippin) and Megan McGinnis (Les Miserables, Little Women, Beauty and the Beast) discuss their co-starring roles in the new musical and west coast premiere of Dangerous Beauty at the Pasadena Playhouse.  The Live Arts Calendar acknowledges the U.S. Tour of Spring Awakening at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre.  Stroili reviews Shawn Colvin and Louden Wainwright III, the inaugural performance of the Valley Performing Arts Center at Cal State University, Northridge; and Room Service at the Open Fist Theatre Company in Los Angeles.   Sterling reviews The Sherman Brothers Album, part of a of live (monthly) concert series presented by Kritzerland Records at the Gardenia Restaurant in Hollywood.  Rupert and McGinnis divulge awkward moments while performing. 

Is it Super Bowl or … Super Bowl?  Something’s afoot, as Sterling and Stroili discuss the difference.  Broadway star David Burnham talks about his career from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, to Wicked and The Light in the Piazza.  Burnham’s stunning rendition of Flight by composer Craig Carnelia is featured from his current, self-titled CD.  The Drowsy Chaperone presented by 3-D Theatricals at Plummer Auditorium in Fullerton, CA, and Cats presented by Musical Theatre West at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA are highlighted in the Live Arts Calendar.   Burnham recalls a dangerously amusing moment during a performance.

Sterling and Stroili talk high and low tech about computers and the internet.  Top TV producer/writer Maxine Lapiduss (Roseanne, Home Improvement, Foxworthy, Ellen, Dharma & Greg) is interviewed about her love of singing and stand-up comedy, and her return to performing.  The Live Arts Calendar features the hysterical and stirring adventure Cyrano at the Ruskin Group Theatre in Santa Monica, CA. and Traces, an acrobatic spectacle of circus, physical theatre, music and dance at the Ricardo Montalban Theatre in Hollywood.  Sterling reviews Louis Van Amstel’s Ballroom with a Twist at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood.  Successful television actor Blair Hickey discusses his entrepreneurial skills as the co-founder of CastingAbout.com, and gives proactive advice to actors about how to promote themselves during TV “pilot” season.  Lapiduss and Hickey their reveal worst career experiences.   

Shtick around for the jokes…  Is art really in the eye of the beholder?  Sterling and Stroili cite some questionable examples.   Broadway star Jason Graae (A Grand Night for Singing, Falsettos), and television’s Jim O’Heir, co-star of the hit NBC series Parks and Recreation, are not only interviewed about their careers, but partake in the day’s order of funny business.  The live Arts Calendar singles out Caught at Hollywood’s Zephyr Theatre - which examines America’s contentious debate over same sex marriage; and Hoboken to Hollywood at the Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica, CA - the critically-acclaimed, new, big band musical about Sinatra during the early years.  Sterling reviews the world premiere comedy Amy and Elliot at Hollywood’s Stella Adler Gilbert Stage- starring, written and directed by Ryan Eggold of the hit CW TV series Beverly Hills 90210.  Stroili reviews Rogue Machine’s The Sunset Limited at Theatre Theater in Los Angeles.  Graae and O’Heir recall their worst moments while performing.

Right this way, your laughs are waiting.  Sterling and Stroili announce unusual news items involving human consumption and human kindness.   Concert star, musical theatre star, and recording artist Nita Whitaker is interviewed about her diverse career from Grand Champion of Star Search to working with legendary record producer David Foster.   LA Ovation nominated comedienne, singer/actress Cissy Connor arrives at State of the Arts with Cher and Katherine Hepburn; and discusses Bare Sole, her chic, Studio City, CA shoe boutique.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights the classic farce Room Service at Hollywood’s Open Fist Theatre; and the critically acclaimed west coast premiere of Dan Via’s humorous and provocative Off Broadway hit Daddy starring CSI’s Gerald McCullough at the Hudson Theatre in Hollywood.   Miss Whitaker and Miss Connor tell of their worst moments on stage.

Back to kick off the New Year with a feel-good goal, Sterling & Stroili converse about the hilarious realities of attending the Annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, CA.  Veteran nightclub star and recording artist Jeanie Brandes charms the husk right off of the corn as the year’s first in-studio guest; along with Broadway and television star Dean Butler who discusses his multi-faceted career from theatre to television’s iconic hit series Little House on the Prairie, and his award-winning film company Legacy Documentaries.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights the world premiere of TV star Ryan Eggold’s Amy and Elliot at the Stella Adler-Gilbert Stage in Hollywood; and Sunset Limited presented by Rogue Machine at Theatre Theater in Los Angeles.  Brandes and Butler recall worst moments during live performance.  Miss Brandes’ latest CD Jeanie Brandes Kisses You Awake is also featured.

Stroili flies alone, while Sterling stays home with a holiday cold.  Stroili makes an (unannounced) on-air singing debut.  Ryan Eggold and Gillian Zinser, co-stars of the CW’s iconic, revitalized hit TV series Beverly Hills 90210, guest in-studio to discuss their roles in Amy and Elliot,  a world premiere comedy (written and directed by Eggold) opening at the Stella Adler-Gilbert Stage in Hollywood.  The Live Arts Calendar highlights New Year’s Eve with Broadway star Kristen Chenoweth at the Walt Disney Concert Hall downtown Los Angeles; and the Jim Henson puppets with guest comics in Stuffed and Unstrung at the Irvine Barclay Theatre at the University of Irvine, CA.   Sterling makes a surprise phone call into the program.  Eggold and Zinser are coerced into sharing their worst moments during a performance.

‘Tis the season to be jolly.  Stroili recites The Nightmare Before Martha (Stewart),a self-penned parody of The Night Before Christmas), while Sterling and guests James Roday (star of USA Network’s hit TV series Psych), and Brad Raider (TV and film actor and Co-Artistic Director of LA’s Red Squadron Theatre Company) provide backup vocals to underscore the reading.  Roday and Raider are interviewed about their friendship and careers, Red Squadron’s history, and its west coast premiere of Karl Gajdusek’s comedy/drama greedy at Hollywood’s El Centro Theatre.  The Live Arts Calendar highlight’s The Nutcracker’s Journey from the Arts in Review Repertory Players at LA radio station KPFK (90.7 FM).  Sterling reviews the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles and Comfort and Joy, their annual holiday extravaganza at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, CA.  Roday and Raider relive their worst moments in theatre.  Crooner Antony Field’s latest CD You and Me on Christmas Eve is also highlighted.

Sterling recalls smoky memories of a long ago Christmas, while Stroili reports stranger-than-strange medical news from a British tabloid.  Legendary motion picture star Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange) talks about his 40 year career and his reading of Dylan Thomas’ A Child’s Christmas in Wales for the Intimate Opera Company of Pasadena, CA at the Pasadena Playhouse. The Live Arts Calendar highlights holiday performances by the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles with special guests Sheryl Lee Ralph and LeAnn Rimes at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, CA; and recording star Andy Williams with the Pacific Symphony Pops Orchestra at Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa, CA.  Sterling reviews the nightclub acts of musical theatre star Leslie Margherita and recording artist Antony Field.  Television star Gerald McCullouch (CSI) discusses his starring role in the west coast premiere of Daddy at Hollywood’s Hudson Theatre.  McDowell and McCullouch account for their embarrassing career moments.

Sterling & Stroili recall unusually odd memories of Christmas past.  Stars of the U.S. National Tour of West Side Story, Ali Ewoldt (“Maria”) and Kyle Harris (“Tony”), are interviewed about their roles in the classic musical on stage at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.  Pacific Symphony’s Nutcracker for Kids at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa, CA; and the U.S. tour of The Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring the Rockettes at Anaheim’s Honda Center and LA’s Nokia Theatre, highlights this week’s Live Arts Calendar.   Los Angeles productions of Next to Normal, Harps and Angels, and West Side Story are reviewed.  Nightclub star and recording artist Antony Field discusses his newest CD for the holidays You and Me on Christmas Eve,  and his annual concert with Chip Smith at Sterling’s Upstairs at Vitello’s in Studio City, CA.  Field recalls an awkward on-stage moment.

Sterling & Stroili talk turkey.  George Chakiris (recipient of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor/West Side Story); and Best Supporting Actor/Oscar nominee Russ Tamblyn (Peyton Place) – respectively discuss their roles as “Bernardo” (leader of the Sharks) and “Riff” (leader of the Jets) in the historic 1961 movie musical West Side Story, winner of 10 Academy Awards. The Live Arts Calendar highlights The Color Purple at the San Diego Civic Theatre in San Diego, CA, and the U.S. National Tour of West Side Story at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.  Sterling & Stroili induct Chakiris and Tamblyn into the State of the Arts Hall of Shame (the sharing of their most embarrassing career moments). 

Broadway/television and film stars Vicki Lewis (NewsRadio) and John Lloyd Young (Tony Award Winner – Jersey Boys) join Sterling & Stroili to promote for their 26th edition of State of the Arts.  The foursome discusses pre-holiday travel security making the day’s headlines: Scanner-proof Undies Keep Passenger’s Secrets.  Lewis and Young are interviewed about their multi-dimensional careers.  Composer Randy Newman’s new musical Harps and Angels at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles is featured in the Live Arts Calendar; as  is Broadway Rocks Anaheim in benefit of the Anaheim Performing Arts Center Foundation.  Guest critic Don Grigware expounds on Tony and Emmy Award winner Leslie Uggams in Uptown, Downtown  at the Pasadena Playhouse.  Lewis and Young recall their worst moments while performing.

Sterling  & Stroili exchange quips about facial expressions while looking at one’s self in a mirror; then go head-to-head with their own (and their guests’) respective crowns of glory.  Leslie Ishii of East West Players (EWP), the nation’s premiere Asian American theatre company, is interviewed about Beth Henley’s Crimes of the Heart and Ishii’s directorial debut of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play at EWP’s David Henry Hwang Theatre in Los Angeles.  The weekly Live Arts Calendar highlights two productions.  Insanity erupts from stand-up comedian, television and theatre actor Christopher (stick around for the jokes, folks) Meehan who engages the group in non-stop hilarity.   Ishii and Meehan are initiated into State of the Arts’ worst, must-tell theatre moments.

Sterling and Stroili, along with guest Dan Frischman (“Arvid Engen” of the hit ABC TV series Head of the Class; and “Chris Potter” in Nickelodeon’s Kenan & Kel ), crank up the volume with hilarious memories of their mothers strange and unusual antics.  Frischman discusses his early life and career as a kid magician, a stand-up comedian, working in television; and his current turn as author of the new comedic action/adventure novel  Jackson and Jenks Master Magicians (J.J. Ross Books).  The weekly Live Arts Calendar is highlighted by a review of nightclub star Barbara Van Orden’s debut at Sterling’s Upstairs at Vitello’s in Studio City, CA.  Frischman share’s his most embarrassing (if not “hottest”) moment on stage.

The day after Halloween prompts Paul to recall creative costumes from the past.  Olympic Champion and figure skating legend Scott Hamilton discusses his 11th annual fundraising gala benefit for the Scott Hamilton CARES Initiative at the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Center.  Sterling reviews Barefoot in the Park presented by The Group Rep at the Lonny Chapman Theatre in North Hollywood, CA; and Musical Theatre West’s production of Annie starring Andrea McArdle at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA.  Nightclub star Barbara Van Orden is interviewed about her multi-faceted career in New York, Las Vegas and Hollywood.  Hamilton and Van Orden share never-to-be-forgotten performance moments.

Sterling and Stroili discuss unique to weird marketing approaches for the performing arts in the U.S. and abroad.  Film and television star Stephanie Zimbalist (TV’s hit series Remington Steele) is interviewed about her stage career and starring role as Katherine Hepburn in Matthew Lombardo’s Tea at Five at the Falcon Theatre in Los Angeles; the weekly live Arts Calendar is read; Lewis Wilkenfeld, Artistic Director for Cabrillo Music Theatre housed at the Fred Kavli Theatre in the Bank of America Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza in Thousand Oaks, CA - is interviewed about Cabrillo’s 2010/2011 season.   Both Zimbalist and Wilkenfeld share their most embarrassing moments in theatre. 

Double the pleasure, double the fun as Sterling & Stroili interview Andrea McArdle, Broadway’s original title star of Annie the musical; and former teen heartthrob - turned distinguished television, film and Broadway star Richard Chamberlain.  McArdle and Chamberlain relive their worst moments on stage.  The Live Arts Calendar is read.  LA musical theatre star Callie Carson’s debut at Sterling’s Upstairs at Vitello’s in Studio City, CA  is highlighted; Paul Stroili reviews the west coast premiere of Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughter House Five  (featuring Lily Vonnegut) presented by Action Theatre Company at Studio Stage Theatre in Los Angeles.

Location:  Supper Club.  Question: What’s up with dressing down?   Stroili and Sterling humorously discuss the lack of good taste in  clothes when going out on the town.  Television and theatre stars Mike Farrell (M*A*S*H), and Jim Parrack (HBO’s True Blood) are interviewed about their careers and starring together in famed fiction writer Edmund White’s hit drama Terre Haute at Hollywood’s Blank Theatre Company.   The weekly live Arts Calendar highlights three productions.   Sterling reviews recording artist Roslyn Kind in concert at Catalina’s Bar and Grill in Hollywood.  Farrell and Parrack reveal their most embarrassing theatrical moments.

How do you keep the music playing? The incomparable Roslyn Kind answers that question, and more, as she talks about her life on Broadway, in nightclubs, and as a popular recording artist.  It’s another “No Pants Monday” as Sterling & Stroili share tales of tails.  The live Arts Calendar for the week is read; followed by reviews of 19 year old musical theatre star Derek Klena’s headlining concert debut at Sterling’s Upstairs at Vitello’s in Studio City; and the world premiere of the New York bound Leap of Faith at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, starring Broadway sensation Raul Esparza and Brooke Shields.  Critically acclaimed Los Angeles TV, film and stage actor Ian Vogt talks about his role in SeaGlass Theatre’s hit comedy Of Grapes and Nuts at the Victory Theatre Center in Burbank, CA.  Senses are tested as Vogt and Kind share their most embarrassing moments on stage. 

Record-breaking fall temperatures in Los Angeles vs. the cold of winter in Chicago and New York, spark hilarious stories between Sterling & Stroili.  Broadway’s legendary, Tony Award winning dancer/singer/actress Donna McKechnie (A Chorus Line) is interviewed.  This week’s Live Arts Calendar is followed by brief reviews of film icon and nightclub star Debbie Reynolds at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood, CA; and up-and- coming musical theatre star Taylor Tracey at Sterling’s Upstairs at Vitello’s in Studio City, CA.  SeaGlass Theatre’s critically acclaimed production Of Grapes and Nuts at the Victory Theatre Center in Burbank, CA is congratulated.  Sterling & Stroili converse with distinguished stage and television star Scott Lowell (Showtime’s Queer as Folk).  Embarrassing moments in theatre are shared by all.

It’s a musical Monday when Sterling & Stroili interview Grammy and Emmy Award-winning composer Charles Fox (Roberta Flack’s Killing Me Softly, Jim Croce’s I Got a Name, the TV theme songs for Happy Days, Love American Style, the Love Boat and many more.)  “Driving in your car” stories are exchanged.  The weekly Live Arts Calendar is read.  Reviews of former Jersey Boys star Erich Bergen’s new nightclub act, and SeaGlass Theatre’s west coast premiere Of Grapes and Nuts are featured.  Former Broadway dancer/choreographer (turned director) Stan Mazin discusses his career on Broadway, in musical variety television (The Carol Burnett Show), and directing for North Hollywood, CA’s Group Rep Theatre Company.

A festive episode celebrates State of the Arts’ 16th week on the air, and the ?? something birthday of Co-Host Michael Sterling.  Sterling & Stroili exchange stories about unusual restaurant experiences. Hilarity ensues with Erich Bergen, recording artist (The Vegas Sessions) and co-star of the Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and U.S. National Tour productions of Jersey Boys.  The weekly live Arts Calendar is featured.  Kimberly Van Luin, actress and Artistic Director of LA’s prestigious SeaGlass Theatre, talks about the company’s newest endeavor Of Grapes and Nuts, a satirical parody of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men.  Bergen and Van Luin are initiated into what has become a State of the Arts tradition: the recounting of one's worst career moments in live theatre.

Sterling & Stroili entertain while the rest of the country takes a day off.  An exchange of Stroili’s bizarre trip to a local library, and Sterling’s chance meeting with a celebrity in a nearby restaurant… kick off this Labor Day show.  World Champion Figure Skating legend Tai Babilonia shares a few spins through her well-documented life.  The weekly Arts Calendar is announced.  Michael Orland gives insight to his nearly ten-year position as Associate Musical Director, Pianist and Arranger for TV’s reality/variety, mega hit series: American Idol. 

Following talk between Sterling & Stroili about over-endowed body parts, longtime television star Suzanne Whang (HGTV’s House Hunters) discusses her multi-faceted career as a TV host, a working actress, published author, and equally successful, politically incorrect stand-up comedienne.   The weekly performing arts calendar is revealed, followed by an interview with Tim Dang, actor and Producing Artistic Director of East West Players – the nation’s premier Asian American theatre company at the David Henry Hwang Theatre in Los Angeles.  Dang shares highlights of the company’s 45th - 2010/11 anniversary season including its opening production Mysterious Skin, a searing adult drama based on the 1996 novel which later became a motion picture (2004.)

Sterling shares tales about the joys (or not) of moving; while Stroili talks of his mother’s move… a slightly different “tail” which ends up in smoke.  Film icon and best-selling author Tab Hunter is interviewed about life during the 50’s as Warner Brothers #1 Box Office star; co-starring on Broadway with Tallulah Bankhead; working on television; and his best selling book  Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star.  Child star Blake McIver Ewing reminisces about own experiences on TV as a Star Search winner and series regular on ABC’s beloved Full House. 

Elvis and a comeback tour (75 years later) is discussed by Sterling & Stroili.  Skylar Astin, (Broadway co-star of the 8-time Tony Award-winning musical Spring Awakening,) is interviewed about his career and his co-starring role in the Hollywood Bowl’s production of Rent directed by Neil Patrick Harris.  This week’s Live Arts Calendar is announced; followed by a review of Funny Girl at the Sacramento Music Circus, courtesy of BroadwayWorld.com’s west coast critic Don Grigware.  Sterling & Stroili interview Producer/Writer/Actress A’da Alison Woolfolk of Breakdown Services’ innovative, multi-channel - Virtual Channel Network

Sterling & Stroili share stories of public awkwardness; specifically, Stroili being verbally abused by the homeless.  In-studio guests include filmmaker, Broadway star, and television star Dean Butler (Little House on the Prairie); and musical theatre star Ryan Castellino - original cast member and co-star of the Los Angeles mega hit musical Life Could be a Dream.  The weekly Arts Calendar is featured.  Butler and Castellino are prompted to share their most embarrassing moments on stage.   

Sterling & Stroili share more nightmares as actors.  Broadway star Danny Bolero (co-star of the In the Heights U.S. National Tour) is interviewed.  This week’s Live Arts Calendar sponsored by PerformingArtsLIVE.com is featured.  Sterling reviews Guys and Dolls at the West Valley Playhouse in Canoga Park, CA.  Actor Kevin Farrell talks about his latest role as America’s #1 Sales Star for Tupperware. 

Sterling & Stroili share some past audition nightmares.  Broadway and television star Linda Purl (Happy Days) discusses her career as an actress, a vocalist, and Director of the 2010 California International Theatre Festival; The weekly Arts Calendar reveals diverse productions and events in New York and Los Angeles;  Paul reviews Center Theatre Group’s presentation of The Lieutenant of Inishmore at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles;  French dancer, aerialist, acrobat artist, choreographer, producer and director Aurelein Roulin converses about his all new cabaret spectacular Beyond at the historic El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood, CA.

Sterling and Stroili salute "Actors as Entrepreneurs." In studio Guests: Blair Hickey and Brian Wold discuss the formation of CastingAbout.com, an online service for actors, with offices in Los Angeles and New York.  This week’s live Arts Calendar is highlighted by top productions in Southern California and Chicago. Tony Award winner Alan Cumming’s cabaret concert – Alan Cumming: Uncut  at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica, CA is reviewed.  Los Angeles Ovation-nominated actress/singer/comedienne and impressionist Cissy Conner discusses her career and highly successful shoe business, Bare Sole (BareSole.com)

Sterling and Stroili recall their week and the July 4th holiday before being joined by celebrated Broadway and television stars Sally Struthers (All in the Family) and Ilene Graff (Mr. Belvedere).    Six Los Angeles productions are featured in the Live Arts Calendar.  Michael and Paul review the National tour of Broadway’s 2008 Tony and Grammy Award winning musical In The Heights at Hollywood’s legendary Pantages Theatre.

Sterling and Stroili interview Tom Viola,2010 Tony Award Honoree andExecutive Director of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS in New York.  They are also joined in-studio by celebrated actor, author and musicianTucker Smallwood, co-star of Tracerspresented by LA’s LOFT Ensemble.  Weekly reviews include All My Sons at The Raven Playhouse in North Hollywood, CA and CHIPS: The Musical presented by the Troubadour Theatre Company at The Falcon Theatre in Toluca Lake, CA.

Sterling and Stroili interview TV icon and Broadway star Florence Henderson.  This week’s Live Arts Calendar is announced, along with reviews of Oklahoma presented by Musical Theatre of Los Angeles; and the World Premiere musical Daddy Long Legs at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica, CA.  The bi-monthly State of the Actor informational series is also featured.

Sterling & Stroili are joined in-studio by Terence McFarland – Executive Director of LA Stage Alliance, and successful singer/songwriter/recording artist Jeff Phillips, co-host of “LAGenX” on LATalkRadio.com.  Insightful discussion is had about the work of the LA Stage Alliance, McFarland’s academic and professional history, the arts in Los Angeles, and the failure of the arts-related “Measure E” on the June 8, Los Angeles, California ballot.  This week’s live Arts Calendar, and a colorful review of the 64th Annual Tony Awards held June 13 at Radio City Music Hall in New York are also included.

Sterling and Stroili interview three-time Tony Award-winning Broadway legend Carol Channing.  Also featured: The State of the Actor, an ongoing, bi-weekly informational series; this week’s Live Arts Calendar; Reviews of the Loft Ensemble'sTracers  at LA’s Fringe Theatre, The Will Rogers Follies at the Glendale Centre Theatre, and the National Tour presentation of South Pacific at the Center Theatre Group’s Ahmanson Theatre.  Actor and teacher Jill Holden guests to discuss “Measure E” and its effect on the performing arts in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Premiere Broadcast: Sterling & Stroili share a little about themselves and their goals for State of the Arts (SOTA), including non-profit arts organizations LA Stage Alliance and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS which will benefit from the show.
Six new productions are featured in the Live Arts Calendar, along with a star-studded benefit to assist in covering medical expenses for local musical theatre enthusiast and lymphoma cancer patient, Ana Adame.
In-Studio Guest: Broadway legend Carol Lawrence who created the role of “Maria” in the musical theatre masterpiece… West Side Story.