Theater Scene
Written By Matthew Russell Hendrickson
Kevin Health, Limelight Actor’s Theater
I
f you have ever been to Limelight Actors Theater in
Downtown Gilroy, surely you have met Kevin Heath.
And if you have been there more than once, you have
most likely seen him perform on stage.
Although he has been performing on stage in the South Bay
since 2001, his career began in Sydney, New York, playing the
part of the Partridge in the Pear Tree for a Christmas show in
First Grade. He was bitten by the Theater Bug and stayed with
it all the way through college. His first “adult” role was as the
Jester in “Pippin.” It was a summer youth show in Wilton,
Connecticut. The cut-off age was 19, but he was 23. So he lied
about his age. Only the director knew, although the parents
were surprised that he lived alone at such a “young age.”
After his experience in “Pippin” he realized that being on
stage performing was helping him in other aspects of his life,
such as public speaking and work-related presentations and he
felt those engagements were like mini performances for a some-
what more focused audience. As the reality and responsibility
of living life as a young adult set in, theater became a family
for him. As Kevin put it, “The people I met, the respect for the
craft, the fun...it was something I didn’t want to live without.
It was a big part of who I was, and when I found out I could
make people laugh…I knew it was a lifelong gig.”
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GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
Kevin estimates that he has
been in about 80 productions
over the years, and he has
directed or produced about
40 productions. He has worked on both coasts, at theaters
including: Tri Town Theater (NY), Candlelight Players (CT),
Newtown Players (CT), Wilton Playhouse (CT), Comedy
Theater (Boston), Brewster Players (NY), South Valley Civic
Theater (CA), Pintello Comedy Theater (CA), and Limelight
Actors Theater (CA).
Kevin moved to Gilroy in 2001 to live with his partner
Alan Obata. It was then that Kevin decided to look into the
theater scene in Gilroy and Morgan Hill. He heard from a
friend that South Valley Civic Theater was holding auditions
for “The Foreigner” and decided to try out. If nothing else,
he would be able to meet people involved in local theater. He
was cast as Reverend David Marshall Lee and from there he
immersed himself in the local theater scene. In 2010 he and
Alan got married.
That same year, Kevin was approached by Gary Walton,
who owned the Lizarran restaurant inside Old City Hall in
Gilroy. Walton asked him to put together a play and have it
performed in the banquet area in the upstairs of the building.
JULY/AUGUST 2017
gmhtoday.com
Bit by the Theater Bug