By Lindsey Wilson
24 Apr 2008

Melinda Lopez

Alexandros, Melinda Lopez's comedy about a Latino family celebrating a milestone, will begin its world premiere run May 27 at The Laguna Playhouse in California.

Commissioned by The Laguna Playhouse, Alexandros will be directed by David Ellenstein. Lopez is author of the plays Sonia Flew, The Order of Things.

According to Laguna Playhouse, "Abuela, the matriarch of a Cuban-exile family living in Miami in 1974, is turning 75. Much-married Maritza and her teenage daughter, Marty, have driven in from Texas. Live-at-home single son, Tio, hopes everything will go smoothly. However, as the punch flows, the sky turns stormy, and the handsome gardener Eric arrives, the party unravels. Meanwhile, Alexandros, Abuela's bad-tempered pooch, becomes the catalyst for an emotional meltdown in which closet doors open, truths tumble out, and the bonds of family love are reasserted."

"The family dynamics of the play are universal. We have all experienced those feelings in some way," stated Lopez. "And it is so much fun to have people arguing about Nixon and impeachment trials, especially for those who can't always remember that time period in our history. I feel like history is always present, and because this is a comedy I have fun at the expense of history."

The cast will include Saundra Santiago (Det. Gina Navarro Calabrese on "Miami Vice" and Jeannie Cusamano on "The Sopranos"), Katharine Luckinbill (granddaughter of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz), Kevin Symons, Chaz Mena and Maria Cellario.

Lopez was the first recipient of the Charlotte Woolard Award, given by the Kennedy Center to a "promising new voice in American Theatre." She was a 2003 recipient of a Mass Cultural Council grant, and a resident playwright at the Huntington Theatre. Her play, Sonia Flew, won the Elliot Norton Award for Best New Play, and the IRNE (Independent Reviewers of New England) for Best Play and Best Production. It has been produced at the Huntington Theatre, Coconut Grove Playhouse, the Contemporary American Theatre Festival, the Summer Playwrights Festival and The Laguna Playhouse. It will soon be broadcast on NPR's "The Play's the Thing!"

Alexandros will run May 27-June 29 at the Moulton Theatre, located at 606 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach, CA.

Tickets are $25-$65 and can be purchased by calling (949) 497-2787 or visiting www.LagunaPlayhouse.com.