Creativity in Captivity

Reminiscing with former Tonight Show producer and President of The Carson Entertainment Group and magical variety acts about The King of Late Night, Johnny Carson, on his 100th birthday.

A 25 year veteran actor, director, producer and writer who is from Brooklyn, NY / Woodbridge, NJ. Ronnie wrote and starred in I’m Not A Comedian… I’m Lenny Bruce, Directed by Joe Mantegna. The play ran for over 412 performances between Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and the National Tour. He is also known for his television work on CBS’ Criminal Minds, FOX’s Lethal Weapon as well as a 150 episode arc as Detective Ronnie Dimestico on General Hospital. As an actor, Marmo starred in more than 70 feature films includingDeuces Wild and  Back in the Day. He has directed over 50 stage plays, films and TV series. Ronnie has also produced 12 films and 110 plays/musicals in LA, NYC and CHI. Marmo has been the proud Artistic Director of Theatre 68 in LA and NYC for the last 22 years.

An Emmy & Golden Globe winning writer who contributed to the success of Hacks, Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Saturday Night Live, Modern Family & The Larry Sanders Show. 

Mandy Gonzalez is an accomplished film, TV, stage actor. Her Broadway debut was in the musical Aida. Then Mandy brought her talent to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s, In the Heights, where she originated the role of Nina Rosario in the Tony Award-winning show on Broadway, where she received a Drama Desk Award. As a proud Latina-American, the story of Nina resonated deeply.  Mandy then soared as Elphaba in Wicked and left an indelible mark in the megahit Hamilton, where she starred as Angelica Schuyler for 6 years. Mandy garnered  an OBIE Award for her performance in the Off-Broadway production of Eli’s Comin’. Mandy has been seen in recurring TV roles on such shows as Madam Secretary, BULL, Quantico, Only Murders in the Building. On the big screen, Mandy appeared in Across the Universe, Man on a Ledge, and she can be heard as the voices of Mei in Disney’s Mulan 2 and Mother Rose on Disney series Alice’s Wonderland Bakery. Mandy has performed with the New York Pops, Boston Pops, The National Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra to name a few. Mandy released her debut album FEARLESS, with Warner Music East/West, which debuted in the top 20 of iTunes pop charts. In her quest to create positive change, Mandy is the proud founder of #FearlessSquad—a social media movement for inclusiveness and positivity. Mandy is also an accomplished author who recently published her Young Adult series, FEARLESS -- a 4-book middle-grade series that follows young thespians whose brushes with the supernatural teach them about theater, friendship and themselves. Mandy serves on the boards of BCRF (Breast Cancer Research Foundation) and BCEFA (Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS), where she actively promotes awareness and fundraising efforts. Mandy is fresh off her guest-starring role as Norma Desmond in Sunset Blvd. and headed back to Carnegie Hall with world-premiere of Everything I Know, a dynamic production that pairs Gonzalez’s powerhouse voice and emotive prowess with a full accompaniment, creating an unforgettable celebration of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s iconic works. 

Widely considered the greatest magician of the past century with 10 appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson as well as Letterman, Craig Ferguson and The View.

An impressive Latina comedian with the #1 Dry Bar Comedy Special of 2024.  Monique is more than a comic, she is a cultural translator, a relationship whisperer and a fearless truth teller.

A Las Vegas based comedian, musical satirist and songwriter who regularly opened for Rodney Dangerfield, George Carlin, The Beach Boys, Tom Jones and Barry Manilow. 

A professional voice-over artist best known as the voice of Jimmy Neutron with hundreds of appearances in movies, cartoons, video games, TV shows, anime shows, amusement park rides and toys. 

Wil has made over 50 TV appearances with David Letterman, Jay Leno, Bill Maher and Johnny Carson and has shared the stage with the likes of Joan Rivers, Jerry Seinfeld, Jeff Foxworthy, Kevin Nealon, Loretta Lynn, Tom Jones, John Denver, Tony Bennett and Jay Leno.  Shriner co-stared opposite Joan Allen in the Academy Award nominated Peggy Sue Got Married, and made many appearances on television shows like HBO's Dream On, NBC's Search and Rescue and Amazing Stories.  Over the years, Shriner has hosted hundreds of hours of television, including his own Emmy-nominated talk show, The Wil Shriner Show. In addition to his five years of work on the Emmy-winning sitcom Frasier, Shriner has also directed episodes of, Everybody Loves Raymond, and The Gilmore Girls. 

A film director, actor and renowned acting coach who trained with Stella Adler and Uta Hagen. Michelle has directed and acted in over thirty plays and musicals in New York and Los Angeles. She has coach A-List Actors privately and on set including Gerard Butler, Chris Rock, Jamie Lynn Sigler, Penelope Cruz, Michael Pena, Isla Fisher, Common, Salma Hayek, Brian McKnight, James Franco, Marcia Cross, Christian Slater, Catherine Bell, Zooey Deschanel, Gabrielle Union, Justine Wadell, Rob Estes, Rick Fox, among others. The Michelle Danner Los Angeles Acting School’s philosophy is that artists can draw upon all different  acting techniques from Meisner, Strasberg, Adler, Hagen, Chekhov, & the Stanislavsky Technique and form a toolbox of their own, their very own Golden Box.