Scott Lynch
THEATER scene
Scott Lynch has been involved in local community theater for over
10 years and has performed with SVCT & Limelight. He lives in Gil-
roy, attended Gilroy schools, and graduated from Stanford University
with BS and MS degrees in Industrial Engineering. He is currently
the president of South Valley Civic Theatre.
Limelight Actors Theater
SHARING
THE LIMELIGHT
There has been a wonderful light in
Gilroy for almost a decade—ema-
nating from a small building at the
southern tip of downtown—a lime-
light for actors and a beacon for
theater-goers from far and wide.
I
n spite of the theater’s success,
Limelight Actors Theater owners
Kevin Heath and Alan Obata
recently announced their intention
to close the intimate venue. Located
at Seventh and Monterey Streets,
within Gilroy’s Center for the Arts, this
special jewel has, since its inception,
delighted audiences with drama,
comedy, and even a couple of musical
revues. Hopefully, you caught one of
the performances of their last show,
Hallelujah Girls, which ran the month
of November.
Limelight has been a featured
attraction at the Arts Center, but
originally it was more of a means to an
end. In 2011, with Kevin Heath serving
as an Arts Alliance Board member, the
Board’s brainstorming resulted in the
proposal for a theater as a way to draw
a larger audience to the newly-opened
Gilroy Center for the Arts. Founded
and run by Kevin and Alan, Limelight
has successfully provided entertain-
74
ment to its patrons while giving greater
exposure to the beautiful art being
created within our community.
Their first production, The
Outrageous Adventures of Sheldon and
Mrs. Levine, opened in January 2011
and was followed by a combination of
dramas, boutique musicals, and more
comedies. Over the years, Kevin and
Alan found three elements to be key to
their success: presenting a mixture of
shows that included audience favorites
as well as works new to South County
residents, hand-picking actors from
the pool of local talent, and carefully
selecting scripts and directors. Patrons
found the intimate, cabaret-style venue
with the bring-your-own dinner-and-
wine option an enjoyable aspect. Of
course, the personal greeting by Kevin
and Alan when patrons walked through
the door was simply icing on the cake.
Audience reactions and return visits
by patrons have been highlights for
Kevin and Alan, along with working
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
WINTER 2020
with some of the strongest actors in
South County and San Jose. Among
their favorite shows have been The
Outgoing Tide, Other Desert Cities,
Always…Patsy Cline, The Velocity of
Autumn and The 39 Steps.
So after nine seasons marked by
consistently sold-out shows, why close
the doors? Kevin said: “We always said
we would know when the time was
right to exit while we were on top. We
talked about closing at the end of 2020
(we even planned the season), but the
universe has a way of telling you when
it is time. A number of positive things
lined up in our family and we realized
the time was now. So, like the TV show
Seinfeld, we chose to end on top, at the
end of season nine, while ticket sales
are strong and audiences are loving
what we do.”
According to Kevin, the phone hasn’t
stopped ringing since they first made
their announcement. People have called
and shown up at their home to wish
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