The Ramona Pageant
Encyclopedia
The Ramona Outdoor Play, formerly known as (and still commonly called) the Ramona Pageant is an outdoor play staged annually at Hemet, California
since 1923. The script is adapted from the 1884 novel Ramona
by Helen Hunt Jackson
. It is held over three consecutive weekends in April and May in the Ramona Bowl, a natural amphitheater in the foothills above Hemet in Riverside County
. The production features cast of more than 300, made up largely of local residents and amateur actors. In the past such professional actors as Jean Inness, Raquel Welch
, Anne Archer
, Karen Grant Thomas (daughter of actress Betta St. John), Onslow Stevens
, Jeffrey Meek
, Victor Jory
, Crist Thomas, Henry Brandon
, Jeff Griggs (aka porn star Tony Sinatra), and Maurice Jara have portrayed the romantic leading roles of Ramona and her Indian lover Alessandro.
The Ramona Pageant is the largest and longest running outdoor play in the United States and it is the official state play of the State of California.
Hemet, California
Hemet is a city in the San Jacinto Valley in Riverside County, California, United States. It covers a total area of , about half of the valley, which it shares with the neighboring city of San Jacinto. The population was 78,657 at the 2010 census....
since 1923. The script is adapted from the 1884 novel Ramona
Ramona
Ramona is a 1884 United States historical novel written by Helen Hunt Jackson. It is the story of a Scots-Native American orphan girl in Southern California, who suffers racial discrimination and hardship. Originally serialized in the Christian Union on a weekly basis, the novel became immensely...
by Helen Hunt Jackson
Helen Hunt Jackson
Helen Maria Hunt Jackson, born Helen Fiske , was a United States writer who became an activist on behalf of improved treatment of Native Americans by the U.S. government. She detailed the adverse effects of government actions in her history A Century of Dishonor...
. It is held over three consecutive weekends in April and May in the Ramona Bowl, a natural amphitheater in the foothills above Hemet in Riverside County
Riverside County, California
Riverside County is a county in the U.S. state of California. One of 58 California counties, it covers in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside,...
. The production features cast of more than 300, made up largely of local residents and amateur actors. In the past such professional actors as Jean Inness, Raquel Welch
Raquel Welch
Jo Raquel Tejada , better known as Raquel Welch, is an American actress, author and sex symbol. Welch came to attention as a "new-star" on the 20th Century-Fox lot in the mid-1960s. She posed iconically in a animal skin bikini for the British-release One Million Years B.C. , for which she may be...
, Anne Archer
Anne Archer
Anne Archer is an American actress who has performed in feature films, television, and stage and was named Miss Golden Globe in 1971. Among her best known roles is that of Beth Gallagher in the 1987 movie Fatal Attraction, for which she received a nomination for an Academy Award.-Career:Archer's...
, Karen Grant Thomas (daughter of actress Betta St. John), Onslow Stevens
Onslow Stevens
Onslow Stevens was an American stage, television and film actor.-Career:Born Onslow Ford Stevenson in Los Angeles, California, he was the son of character actor Housley Stevenson...
, Jeffrey Meek
Jeffrey Meek
Jeffrey William Meek is an American actor. Meek and his family moved often; as a child, Meek lived in Zweibrücken, Germany, Michigan, and San Francisco....
, Victor Jory
Victor Jory
Victor Jory was a Canadian actor.-Biography:Born in Dawson City, Yukon, Jory was the boxing and wrestling champion of the Coast Guard during his military service, and he kept his burly physique. He toured with theater troupes and appeared on Broadway, before making his Hollywood debut in 1930...
, Crist Thomas, Henry Brandon
Henry Brandon
Henry Brandon was an American character actor in over 100 films, famous for playing Indian, Arab, Persian, Turkish, Native American and East Asian roles, usually villains....
, Jeff Griggs (aka porn star Tony Sinatra), and Maurice Jara have portrayed the romantic leading roles of Ramona and her Indian lover Alessandro.
The Ramona Pageant is the largest and longest running outdoor play in the United States and it is the official state play of the State of California.
Sources
- New York Times: "'Ramona' Country", April 19, 1953, accessed February 14, 2011