Highlands Little Theatre

P.O. Box 691 Sebring Florida USA 33871 Tel: 863-382-2525

Paul Ferrell - Dedicated Actor
By: Roy Riedy

Paul Ferrell's name appears for the first time in an HLT playbill when he was billed as "Tenorio, A Muleteer" in Richard Oehring's November,1988, production of Man of La Mancha. The following January he was on the Stage Crew of Director Tena Conyer's Harvey and again in April for Frank Oberhausen's first presentation of The King and I, and a third time in June for Peter Pollard's Sweet Charity. Paul returned to the stage in August as Stefanowski in Janelou Buck's tenth anniversary reprise of the durable comedy, Mister Roberts. And so ended Paul Ferrell's first season at Highlands Little Theatre.

Marian Dunham's musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown opened the Sixteenth Season at HLT and Paul was in the cast as Molly's brother, Patrick Tobin. In March he played Jamie, the 4th Cockney, and Zoltan Karpathy in Frank Oberhausen's revival of My Fair Lady, and was on the Stage Crew of Janelou Buck's June production of Hello Dolly.

Jet Hansen's Oklahoma! opened the Seventeenth Season and Paul scared the audience in his role of the troubled Jud Fry, a role that brought him a nomination at the Zenon Awards that year for a Best Actor in a Supporting Role. At Christmas time he was the producer of Jim Lanier's Christmas Dreams, a four day "extra" show.

The Eighteenth Season opened with Jet Hansen's Mame and Marian Dunham playing the lady with the trumpet, Paul was part of the Stage Crew. Carol Thurow's A Christmas Salute to the 40's followed for a weekend in December and Paul sang in the chorus. Funny Girl was directed by Frank Oberhausen in April and Paul was again on the Stage Crew. In June, Janelou Buck presented Inherit The Wind with Paul playing the Rev. Jeremiah Brown calling down the wrath of God on all evolutionists. Paul received another nomination for Best Supporting Actor for this role at the Seventh Annual Zenon Awards the following October.

In January,1994, Paul was seen again, this time in Peter H. Pollard's production of Neil Simon's The Odd Couple (Female Version) in which Paul played Manolo Costazuela, a linguistically challenged Latin suitor, another role that won him a nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Ninth Annual Zenon Awards the following October. In June he was part of the Stage Crew for Tammie Pollard's delightful Lend Me a Tenor.

The Twenty-first Season opened with Jim Lanier's well received Gypsy with Paul playing the part of Mr. Goldstone; he followed this appearance by working on the Production Staff of Roy Riedy's "Extra" Christmas time weekend offering of Kander and Ebb's evening of songs And the World Goes 'Round. In January, 1995, he was on the Stage Crew of Pete Pollard's "Fats" Waller musical Ain't Misbehavin'; and in March in Frank Oberhausen's handsome production of 1776, Paul became Benjamin Franklin in this production and his perfect impersonation won him his first Zenon as Best Supporting Actor at the Tenth Annual Zenons in October.

Same Time Next Year was Tena Conyer and Andy Conyer's production in June and Paul did the Video for that show. In August during Marian Dunham's Gigi, Paul was found working in Anthony's Lounge.

Paul worked in Anthony's Lounge during Peter Pollard's The Goodbye Girl, the Twenty-second Season's opener and was backstage as the Stage Crew in Roy Riedy's Off Broadway comedy, The Foreigner. He returned to Anthony's Lounge during Frank Oberhausen's revival of Fiddler on the Roof, but was sighted on stage again when he presented The Best Female Actress in a Supporting Role award at the Eleventh Annual Zenon Awards Ceremonies in October of 1996.

Paul worked in Anthony's Lounge during Jet Hansen's Forever Plaid; Melanie Boulay's To Kill a Mockingbird; and Frank Oberhausen's La Cage aux folles. He returned to the stage as Sam in Beverly Brando Gillilan's Paint Your Wagon, and was part of the Stage Crew for Melanie Boulay's famous The Wizard of Oz and Unity in the Community's Project Sounds of the Season. Frank Oberhausen cast Paul as Herr Zeller in his reprise of The Sound of Music in April, 1999, and he was part of Jet Hansen's Stage Crew in his rib tickling comedy Noises Off.

During the Twenty-sixth Season Paul was associated with two plays. He played Scanlon in John Lovelette's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and received a Zenon nomination at the end of the year ceremonies for his fine job, and was part of the Stage Crew for Frank Oberhausen's revival of Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun.

Paul was associated with six plays the Twenty-seventh Season. He was part of the Kitchen Staff during Jet Hansen's revival of On Golden Pond; part of Mac Byron's Stage Crew for his Tuna Christmas; did brilliant acting as the Kralahome in Frank Oberhausen's reprise of The King and I, for which he again received a nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role; he returned to the Kitchen Staff during Jim McCollum's Best Little Whorehouse in Texas; Steve McDaniel's production of Moon Over Buffalo; and Tammie Pollard's run of West Side Story.

Last season Mr. Ferrell was seen in Frank Oberhausen's Guys and Dolls as one of the gamblers; on the Kitchen Line during Pete Pollard's Foxfire. He played Asher, one of Joseph's brothers, and the Pharaoh's butler in Joe Willis' dazzling Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat which nominated him yet again for a Zenon for Best Supporting Actor; and finished out the season on the Kitchen Line during Mike Logsdon's Move Over Mrs. Markham, and Melanie Boulay's Peter Pan. In October, at the Seventeenth Annual Zenon Awards Ceremony Paul received his second Zenon, a Board Service Award, for his outstanding achievement as a General Service Volunteer.

This season Paul has already been seen in Frank Oberhausen's inspiring production of Man of La Mancha, as Pedro, the head muleteer. Fourteen years ago Mr. Ferrell was first seen on the stage of Highlands Little Theatre in the very same play, but since then he has been promoted, for Frank made him the head muleteer this time around.

Statistically Paul has been in 44 plays at HLT since he joined HLT, 14 years ago. He has been nominated for Zenons 6 times at Awards Ceremonies and won twice. He has been in three Christmas programs, 1 Firstnighter program, 41 local newspaper articles, and been mentioned in 27 HLT Newsletters, for a grand total of 123 citations. We all thank you Paul for your many years of dedicated service to HLT.