BUYER & CELLAR

[NoHo Arts District, CA] – After award-winning runs at The Laguna Playhouse and Coyote Stageworks in Palm Springs, The 6th Act will present Emerson Collins’ brilliant and hilarious performance in Jonathan Tolin’s BUYER & CELLAR, directed by Larry Raben at the Whitefire Theatre. 

About the Show

BUYER & CELLAR is the fictional story of Alex More, a struggling actor in L.A. who takes a job working in the Malibu basement of beloved megastar Barbra Streisand. One day, the lady herself comes downstairs to play. It feels like real bonding in the basement, but will their relationship ever make it upstairs? BUYER & CELLAR is an outrageous comedy about the price of fame, the cost of things, and the oddest of odd jobs.

About the Cast and Team

EMERSON COLLINS (Alex More) is a producer, director, writer and actor best known for four seasons as a series regular on BRAVO’s The People’s Couch and the live musical RENT on FOX as Steve, singing Will I? in the AIDS support group.  He produced and starred in Del Shores’ Sordid Lives sequel, A Very Sordid Wedding which opened in 60 cities nationwide. He produced and starred in the film adaptation of Southern Baptist Sissies, which won 15 film festival awards including nine Audience Awards and one for Emerson as Best Actor in a Feature Film from the Red Dirt International Film Festival. Emerson produced and starred in Sordid Lives: The Series for LOGO, and a national tour of Sordid Lives and Southern Baptist Sissies on stage. Emerson won the Desert Theatre League Award for Best Actor in a Comedy for his performance in the Regional Theatre Premiere of Buyer & Cellar with Coyote Stageworks in Palm Springs and then reprised the role with the Laguna Playhouse. Emerson won the 2023 LA Robby Award for Best Actor for the world premiere of Jiggs Burgess’s The Red Suitcase and starred in the world premieres of Matthew Leavitt’s The Boomerang Effect and The $5 Shakespeare Company. www.emersoncollins.com

LARRY RABEN (Director) is thrilled to once again take this journey with Emerson Collins into a storied basement in Malibu after first directing him in Buyer & Cellar at Coyote Stageworks (Desert Star Award-Best Direction) and Laguna Playhouse.  He just directed the world premiere of Tony-winning playwright, Joe DiPietro’s newest play, An Old Fashioned Family Murder at New Theatre starring Sally Struthers.  Previously he directed another world premiere of Joe’s Off-Broadway,  Falling For Eve (York Theatre). He received the LA Ovation Award for Best Direction of Singin’ in the Rain (Cabrillo Musical Theatre). Recent shows include Beautiful, the Carole King musical, Clue, and  Murder on the Orient Express (Gateway Playhouse),  Tootsie (Ogunquit-IRNE nom Best Direction), School Of Rock (Tuacahn), Jersey Boys (Phoenix Theatre Company), Kinky Boots (Patchogue Theatre), Plaid Tidings (Walnut Street Theatre), Titanic, Newsies (Moonlight Amphitheatre), Catch Me if You Can, Sunset Blvd. (Musical Theatre West), Young Frankenstein (SDMT – Craig Noel nominee),Tru (Coyote StageWorks – Desert Star Award Best Direction), and 7 Brides For 7 Brothers (MTWichita) plus dozens of others. He is the artistic director of Welk Resort Theatre in San Diego and is the author of Ibby Makes A Wish.

DAVID ENGEL (Production Design) A six-time LA Ovation Award winner, Mr. Engel has created projections for numerous theatrical productions countrywide, has directed multiple commercials and documentaries, and served as Film Sequence Director for two different MGM Musical celebrations at Carnegie Hall, and one honoring Judy Garland as well. In addition, he created all the video content for Minnelli on Minnelli at the Palace Theatre on Broadway, as well as An Evening with Liza Minnelli with Michael Feinstein.  He directed The Busby Berkley Suite for John Williams and the Boston Pops, and for decades has created multiple suites for Michael Feinstein and the Pasadena Pops.  Mr. Engel also created the opening graphic fanfare that headed every video release on MGM/UA Home Video and produced and directed the documentary That’s Entertainment III: Behind the Screen.