Photo credit: Diana M. Robles

Written by Diana M. Robles

After tireless work and plenty of theatrics, everything boiled down to the Orange County Theater Guild awards held at Segerstrom Center for the Arts’ Samueli Theater.

The show was the guild’s 4th annual ceremony acknowledging Orange County theater. It welcomed back Brooke Aston Harper as its host for a third consecutive year, which turned out to be a wise choice.

Brooke Aston Harper, Host of the 2025 OCTG Award Show. Photo by Francis Gacad

Aston Harper, a prominent member of the OC theater community, had a light approach to her role as host. It seemed to come naturally to her, as it surely does after having done this gig twice. Still, no host goes without some rocky moments, which this show certainly had. Regardless, it was a night to celebrate for Orange County’s company of actors and production crews. We certainly saw the enthusiasm in some eccentric looks on the carpet, but glamour was the most popular theme of the night.

Most memorable was Sadie Alexander’s glitzy, old-Hollywood hairdo, which paired well with her gold floor-length giselle gown from Meshki. In a simpler look, Maddie Breanne Young stunned in a frilly hot pink dress.

Sadie Alexander in a Giselle gown from Meshki 2025 OCTG Awards Photo credit: Cynthia Espinoa

Maddie Breanne Young – On the left. 2025 OCTG Awards Photo photo by Francis Gacad

Some words were more popular than others on Monday night. Among the most frequently used were profanity, courtesy of Wayward Artist’s The Motherfucker with the Hat. Wayward’s LatinX-fronted show was the top winner of the night, taking home six awards with four wins in major categories– outstanding lead performance by an actor in a play (DX Machina), outstanding direction of a play (Michael Martinez Hamilton), outstanding production of a play, and outstanding ensemble.

From Left to Right: D.X. Machina, Oscar Emmanuel Fabela, Marta Portillo, Sydney Raquel, and Marci Alberti from The Wayward Artist’s Production of “The MotherF*cker With The Hat” celebrating their win for Outstanding Production of a Play at the 2025 OCTG Award Show. Photo by Francis Gacad

Without even having seen the show, the cast’s chemistry and camaraderie were on full display, which must explain its great success this award season.

It was also a big night for Chance Theater, which was the most awarded establishment on Monday, taking home 11 awards for their shows Jane Austen’s Emma, The Musical, Tiny Beautiful Things, Sweeney Todd, Gloria, and Alma.

The cast, crew, creative team, and supporters of Chance Theater’s production of Jane Austen’s Emma, The Musical celebrate their win for Outstanding Production of a Musical at the 2025 OCTG Awards. Photo by Francis Gacad.

Naturally, the night turned musical more than once with performances by various groups. Perhaps the best of the night was the short performance by the cast of Wayward’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

The most memorable moment of the night has to be attributed to properties-master Jim Lowe, who landed a win for Alchemy Theatre Company in his category alongside his daughter-in-law Kelsey, who got big laughs by claiming his work was made possible by AI– Alchemy Ingenuity.

To wrap things up, Aston Harper sang her rendition of everyone’s favorite song from last year, Die with a Smile by Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga, which triumphed as an exit song. Dressed to the nines, the OC theater community seemed relieved to have a night out to celebrate their successes, even amid some of their tech weeks.