Playing roles from an effervescent cigar roller to a power-hungry, lovestruck noble, here are the 2025 Orlando Sentinel honorees for best featured actor in a drama, as selected by theater critic Matthew J. Palm.

Although it’s impossible for one person to see every local production, as the Orlando Sentinel’s theater critic, each year I see a broad array of dramas, comedies and musicals. The individuals selected for this 2025 theatrical honor roll, presented here alphabetically, elevated Central Florida’s theatrical arts. Go to OrlandoSentinel.com/entertainment to see the honorees in other categories, and check back on Dec. 22 to learn the Critic’s Pick in this category.

Patrece Bloomfield, as Lady in Green, in the Theater West End production of “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf.” (Courtesy Mike Kitaif via Theater West End)

Patrece Bloomfield

‘For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide…’ Theater West End

In September: Patrece Bloomfield, as the Lady in Green, wrung the emotional truth out of every line of “All of My Stuff,” deftly using different inflections to shade the meanings. It was a first-rate performance of the monologue that demands the return of more than mere trinkets from an erstwhile love. Bloomfield was also honored in 2022 for her starring role in “Trav’lin: A 1930s Harlem Musical Romance” at Winter Park Playhouse.

Scott Browning, as Thomas in the Playwrights’ Round Table production of “Ghosts of Glencolumbkille.” (Orlando Sentinel file photo)

Scott Browning

‘Ghosts of Glencolumbkille’ Playwrights’ Round Table

In April: Scott Browning showed every bit of vulnerability in the broken character of Thomas, a former priest and alcoholic. He never overplayed the drunkenness and perfectly pitched Thomas’s sadness without once descending into maudlin self-pity. This is Browning’s first appearance in the year-end theater honors.

Gabriel Garcia, as Edmund in the Ensemble Company production of “Long Day’s Journey Into Night.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)

Gabriel Garcia

‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night’ The Ensemble Company

In March: Gabriel Garcia, in a wonderfully unaffected performance, expertly showed a range of emotions, from disdain to despair to a childlike hope for parental approval as young Edmund, trapped in a family struggling with addiction. This is Garcia’s seventh time on the year-end honors lists, where he has been lauded for acting, directing and design work.

Sarah Malfara, as the Woman in the Ensemble Company production of “The Other Place.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)

Sarah Malfara

‘The Other Place’ The Ensemble Company

In November: Sarah Malfara did strong work in a variety of roles in Sharr White’s twisty play, including a detached doctor, an angry daughter and a closed-off woman who finds room in her heart for compassion. Each character felt completely different from the next, and each one made a strong impression. This is Malfara’s second appearance in the year-end theater honors; in 2024, she was the Critic’s Pick, Leading Actor in a Comedy, for her role in the Ensemble Company’s “In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play).”

Thomas Muniz, as Ian in the Ensemble Company production of “The Other Place.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)

Thomas Muniz

‘The Other Place’ The Ensemble Company

In November: In a play written to spotlight a different actor, Thomas Muniz held his own and showed he was no second banana. As the husband of a woman struggling with health issues, he displayed an exasperated, everyman charm. And he really shone when revealing his character’s hidden depths. This is Muniz’s fourth year-end acting accolade.

Esther Olivo, as Mariela in the Orlando Shakes production of “Anna in the Tropics.” (Courtesy Tony Firriolo via Orlando Shakes)

Esther Olivo

‘Anna in the Tropics’ Orlando Shakes

In August: Esther Olivo lit up the stage with youthful joie de vivre in her hopeful Mariela — then gave an emotional gut punch to the audience when Mariela’s spirit is crushed by the events of the play. Olivo was also lauded in 2023 for her comedic acting in New Generation Theatrical’s “Significant Other.”

K.P. Powell, as the Earl of Suffolk in the Orlando Shakes production of “Henry VI, Part 2: She-Wolf of France.” (Courtesy Tony Firriolo via Orlando Shakes)

K.P. Powell

‘Henry VI, Part 2: She-Wolf of France’ Orlando Shakes

In January: As the delightfully power-hungry Duke of Suffolk, K.P. Powell oozed with ambition. But he equally delighted in playing the duke’s romantic overtures, and remained compelling as the duke’s fortunes began to fade. Powell also was honored in this category in 2024 for portraying the same character in “Henry VI, Part 1.”

Jeremy Wood, as Ralph in the Ensemble Compay production of “Frozen.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)

Jeremy Wood

‘Frozen’ The Ensemble Company

In May: Playing a child killer, Jeremy Wood never forgot to show the audience both a “monster” and a man. He made Ralph damaged, pitiable, unnerving and revolting, but never in a way that felt like a calculated collection of emotional stage directions. His Ralph was the real deal: Everything from his Scots accent to his volley of cursing to his childhood fantasies felt perfectly natural — and therefore far more horrifying. This is Wood’s first appearance in the year-end theater honors.

Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find entertainment news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/entertainment.

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/12/04/best-orlando-theater-2025-featured-actor-drama/