A So. Cal. Contributing Editor since 2009, Michael Lawrence Quintos is a talented, mild-mannered Senior Designer by day. But as night falls, he regularly performs on various stages everywhere as a Countertenor soloist, actor, and dancer for OC's MenAlive Chorus since 2002. He sings everything from Broadway, Jazz, R&B, Classical, Gospel and Pop, and has shared the stage with Bernadette Peters, Debbie Reynolds, Michael Feinstein, and Liza Minnelli. In June 2019, he made his soloist debut at the Hollywood Bowl in front of 17,000 concertgoers. His musical theater roots started early, performing in various stage productions and a couple of nationally-televised competition programs. The performing bug eventually brought him a brief championship run in the Philippines' version of "Star Search" before moving to Las Vegas at age 11. College brought him out to Orange County, California, where he earned a BFA in Graphic Design and a BA in Film Screenwriting. He has spent several years as a designer and art director for various media companies, while spending his free time going to Disneyland, binge-watching shows, or performing in or watching live shows. Follow Michael on TwitterX or Instagram @cre8iveMLQ.
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First Show:
The first show I ever saw on Broadway was the 2013 Revival of PIPPIN (my first time in NYC!)Favorite Show:
1. RAGTIME 2. WEST SIDE STORY 3. SPRING AWAKENING4. WICKED 5. CAROUSEL 6. HAMILTON 7. FOLLIES8. DREAMGIRLS 9. A CHORUS LINE 10. HAIRSPRAYFavorite Stories:
- BWW Interview: Lily Tomlin (2013) - The resulting article from my almost 4-hour-plus conversation with Ms. Tomlin is still one of my favorite early pieces as a BroadwayWorld contributor. Our candid talk felt less like an interview and more like a casual chat with a living legend, who was mentoring and giving a detailed overview of a storied career to a fan. By the end of our talk, she even joked "well, you can probably write my biography at this point, I've told you so much!"
- World of Color - Opening Night Coverage (2010) - Some of my early assignments for BWW (before doing mostly show reviews) involved covering the press line at red carpets on Opening Nights of shows. As a Disney fan, getting to cover the opening of WORLD OF COLOR at Disney California Adventure on the *blue* carpet was so much fun! I wish I had the bandwidth to cover more of these kinds of events nowadays.
- BWW Reviews: All-Star RENT at the Hollywood Bowl (2010) - I celebrated my 1-Year Anniversary as a correspondent for BWW by reviewing (not just attending) the Hollywood Bowl's annual all-star summer musical, which in 2010 was Jonathan Larson's RENT, directed by Neil Patrick Harris. It was the night the world and I discovered ex-Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger needed to do more musicals.
- BWW Reviews: CAMBODIAN ROCK BAND (2018) - Though I admittedly enjoy musicals far more than straight plays, once in a while I get to see some of the most extraordinary productions that don't involve people randomly bursting into song. This world premiere at South Coast Repertory in 2018 (which *does* have music) still sits in my brain and my heart, particularly because as I enter my 15th year covering local OC theater, it make me hopeful and encouraged by the increasing diverse voices I see in new works being staged (see also my review of SCR's 2023 World Premiere of COLEMAN '72).
- BWW Interview: ALAN CUMMING (2009) - Everything has a beginning... and this article marked my first ever interview with a celeb after just a month of writing for BroadwayWorld. I still have this Tony winner's text saved (well a screenshot anyway) of him texting me to call him back because he was in an elevator when I originally called him to chat LOL.
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