Dressing the Part

The event: STOP-GAP’s Halloween Gala, a costume party that attracted a wild cast of characters. Friday’s masquerade took place at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim and raised money for STOP-GAP’s educational and therapeutic drama programs.

Monster bash: Most of the 200 guests wore costumes, inspired by the invitation to be a kid again. Event chairwoman Sophia Hall Cripe came as Alice in Wonderland in a blue dress with a white apron: “I look like a maid on a cruise ship,” she joked.

Sharon Esterley played her childhood hero, a firefighter: “I borrowed the jacket. It’s been in real fires, so I smell like smoke,” said Esterley, who carried a toy cat she’d “saved” from a blaze.

Her husband, board member Ron Rubino, played a bandaged fire survivor. “She went for the cat first,” he said. They won the prize for best couple’s costume.

Quote: “Because we’re a theater company, having a Halloween party makes a lot of sense. We all love to play dress-up,” said Don Laffoon, STOP-GAP co-founder and executive director.

Bottom line: The $175-per-person dinner was expected to net more than $50,000 for STOP-GAP. The Santa Ana-based theater company will use the proceeds to stage classroom dramas about issues such as diversity, date-rape prevention, teen pregnancy and substance abuse. The troupe also performs for seniors, abused women

and children, homeless youth, recovering substance abusers, the developmentally disabled and other groups.

Unmasked: The guest list included honorary chairmen Paul Pressler and Bob Magnuson; Victoria Bryan, STOP-GAP co-founder and managing director; Bill Wood, board president (sporting a childish propeller hat); N. Douglas Mazza; Christopher Sheldon; Steven Moreau; Larry Cripe; Lisa Fujimoto; Christie McDaniel; Mary McIntyre Hamilton; Pamela Rainey; Frank Simon; Cindy Beyl; Ann Crane; and William and Tamara Tate.

What’s ahead: STOP-GAP will soon open an institute to train others in drama therapy. For information about classes or STOP-GAP programs, call (714) 979-7061.