North Hollywood's Road Theatre Company seduces Los Angeles audiences this summer with the world premiere of An American Romance, by award-winning playwright Mark Lee, running July 5 through Aug. 17

An American Romance is the first play in Lee's trilogy, focusing on the lives of American writers such as Nathaniel Hawthorne (author of classics such as The Scarlet Letter). Fascinated with the American tendency to pursue social and personal perfection, Lee, whose plays have been produced regionally, off-Broadway, and in London, said that the trilogy is his "attempt to understand how our ideals can be destroyed- and strengthened--by the constraints of American society."

Brook Farm was a posh, transcendentalist community established in 1841 in West Roxbury, MA. For six years the Farm served as the stomping grounds for leading artists and thinkers of the day. The comedy follows a young and idealistic Hawthorne, who during his stay at Brook Farm, is confronted with matters of the heart.

An American Romance is directed by Seattle director John Lawler, who founded Seattle's Annex Theatre.

An American Romance will run from through Aug. 17 at the Lankershim Arts Center, and a portion of its proceeds will be donated to the San Fernando Historical Society. For tickets or more information, call (818) 761-8838. --By Jackie Mastropolo