About Us - One More Productions

Seussical
Book by Lynn Ahrens; Stephen Flaherty
Music by Stephen Flaherty
Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens

July 17 - August 17, 2008

Auditions:
May 19-20, 2008
at 7:00pm

Gem Theatre
12852 Main Street
Garden Grove, CA 92840 Click here for a map.

Click here for more information about Seussical.

Click here to download a PDF of the audition breakdown for this show. (Adobe Reader required)

One More Productions is proud to offer a unique opportunity for all who are involved. Not only will One More Productions be producing full-scale musicals, fully-mounted plays, staged readings, and original works, it will have a partnership with school districts in both Los Angeles and Orange Counties, offering educational performances for both students as well as faculty.

One More Productions will offer industrial performances and musical reviews for tradeshows, rotaries, country clubs and civic events. Master classes will be taught in their latest art forms of film, commercial acting, and theatre technique, hosted by some of the top names and schools in Southern California, for both children and adults. Another great opportunity offered by One More Productions, will be a children's theatre at an affordable cost and with educational value.

The Founders

Damien Lorton
Damien has had a passion for the arts since he can remember, both onstage as a performer, as well as offstage by dreaming of his own production company. The thought of producing was never far from sight, and although the idea had been kicked around a few times over the years, it had never taken flight until now, when Damien found Nicole Cassesso to possess the same passion for the arts as himself.

Damien grew up on stage becoming a seasoned performer while touring the United States, Canada, and Europe as a child. He learned at a young age to love the audience and his craft, yet he felt something was missing. He continued his studies privately with the late Richard Dastrup, and was then introduced to more intensive studies at the Orange County High School of the Arts. While working along side such classmates as Susan Egan (original Belle on Broadway's "Beauty and the Beast"), Stephanie Block (starring opposite of Hugh Jackman in "The Boy From Oz"), Becca Ayers (Off-Broadway's "Sarah, Plain and Tall" and "The Third Person"), Kamilah Martin (Broadway's "Rent" and "Hairspray"), and Terron Brooks (Broadway's "Hairspray" and "The Lion King") he honed in on his art and began a love affair with directing.

Studying under such great artists as Laura Freed and Cherie Hodgeson Armstrong, in addition to master classes with Uta Hagen, Bebe Neuwirth, and Seth Green, he dramatically sharpened his skills. Damien went on to share the stage with such icons as Bob Hope, Art Linkletter, Gwen Verdon, Wayne Newton, John Candy, Phyllis Diller, Nathan Lane, and Carroll O'Connor just to name a few.

He performed in San Francisco to sold out houses for over three years, headlining in the Knott Hole's La Cage Review, until the news of an ailing parent brought Damien back home to Orange County, California.

Upon his father's recovery, Damien became active in a local community theatre. His first role was starting out as an usher, but within three years Damien was running the Costa Mesa Civic Playhouse as an Artistic Director. While taking the Playhouse to new heights, winning both critical acclaim and personal triumphs, Tom Titus in 2001 named Damien "Man of the Year" in theatre. He was also voted one of the top 101 most influential people in Costa Mesa/Newport Beach for two consecutive years on behalf of his work in the arts. During his tenure at the Costa Mesa Civic Playhouse, Damien turned out more than twenty-five full-scale plays and musicals, co-founded the Multi Cultural Children's Outreach Program, and brought the arts to more than fifty thousand audience members.

Since his first full-scale musical in 1998, Damien has directed and/or musically directed over 50 productions throughout Southern California, winning rave reviews and significant acclamations from the press. Some of his most favorite mountings have been:

Fiddler on the Roof (Show of the Year, Daily Pilot 1999)
Gypsy! (Show of the Year, Daily Pilot 2000)
Into the Woods (One of the Top 10 Best Shows in Orange County, O.C. Register 2001)
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (One of the Top 10 Best Shows in Orange County, O.C. Register 2001)
A Chorus Line (One of the top 10 best shows in Orange County, O.C. Register 2002)
A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Forum
She Loves Me!
Grease
Smile
Bye Bye Birdie
Damn Yankees
Sound of Music
Once Upon A Mattress
Nunsense
Rags
Bells are Ringing
You're A Good Man Charlie Brown

Damien continues his vocal studies with voice teacher Jill Grande-Goodsell.

Nicole Cassesso
Nicole developed a love for theater at an early age and began performing on stage at three-years-old. Since then, she has gone on to perform all over Southern California, most notably taking home the 2002 Macy Awards for Best Actress and Best Comedienne in a musical for her portrayal of Adelaide in “Guys and Dolls.” Other favorite roles include Ursula in “Bye Bye Birdie”, Chiffon in “Little Shop of Horrors”, Sally Brown in “You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown”, Mona Kent in “Dames At Sea”, Judy Turner in “A Chorus Line”, Robin in “Smile”, TiMoune in “Once On This Island”, and Patty Simcox in “Grease.” She can also be seen as the lead in the award-winning Scenarios USA short, “Lipstick” directed by Academy Award winner, Michael Apted (Nell, Gorillas in the Midst, The Coal Miners Daughter).

Nicole continues to study voice, acting, and dance and hone her skills specifically at South Coast Repertory and with renowned commercial and theatrical coach Stuart K. Robinson. She also currently studies voice with Jill Goodsell at the Grande-Goodsell Institute for the Arts and Humanities.

When not on stage, Nicole has found a love for working behind the scenes as Production Director for One More Productions. It is a dream come true to be creating and producing quality theater and Nicole is dedicated to bringing her passion and love for the arts to the community, especially children. Knowing the importance of theatre for children, not only as an outlet, but also as an educational tool she has incorporated a children's division into One More Productions. Nicole had the great opportunity to write an original script and co-Direct "Peter Pan" with Damien Lorton for the Multi-Cultural Outreach Program during the summer of 2003. Again in March of 2004, One More Productions mounted a cutting of "Seussical," which was edited and directed by the team in celebration of 100 Years of Dr. Seuss.

Outside of theater, Nicole is working toward her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications with an emphasis in Entertainment Studies from California State University Fullerton. She also devotes her time to volunteer work, knowing the importance of giving back to the community. Nicole is a past member of the Assistance League of Newport-Mesa working with them for over four years as well as working with such groups as Habitat for Humanity, the Special Olympics, Orangewood Children’s Foundation, and Race for the Cure, which she continues to participate in every year. Although a native of Newport Beach, Nicole has adopted Garden Grove as a second home and is thrilled and honored to be at the Gem Theater and is grateful for all the love and support of One More Productions. She looks forward to seeing you at the theater!