John Leguizamo’s new play ‘The Other Americans’ explores family, ambition and a ‘rigged’ system

Leguizamo came to prominence in 1991 with his one-man show “Mambo Mouth.” He has starred in movies ranging from “Carlito’s Way” to “Moulin Rouge!” to the “Ice Age” franchise. He won an Emmy Award in 1999 for his solo show “Freak,” and a special Tony Award in 2018 for “Latin History for Morons.”

More recently, he has produced and hosted the MSNBC documentary series “Leguizamo Does America,” where he highlights U.S. cities’ Latino culture and roots, and PBS’ “American Historia,” where Leguizamo traces the history of Latinos, from civilizations thousands of years back to modern America.

While Leguizamo is renowned for his solo shows, he said it is “so great” and a “relief” to be onstage with a full cast.

“People don’t understand how hard a one-man show is,” Leguizamo said, explaining that after the initial excitement wears off, performing alone can become grueling. “But now, to be with all amazing cast … it’s incredible to be sharing the stage with so much talent.”

Latino stories have found success on Broadway, in musicals like “The Buena Vista Social Club,” “On Your Feet!” and “In the Heights.” But there have been far fewer plays examining the U.S. Latino experience that have reached a broad audience, Nilo Cruz’s “Anna in the Tropics” being a notable exception.

Arredondo, who plays Norma in “The Other Americans,” said the play’s title refers to the duality that informs the lives of Latinos. “We live in a world where people always say, ‘Where are you from?’ or, ‘What nationality are you?’ If you tell people that you are American, they still ask, but, ‘Where are you really from?’”

To her, the title plays on the reality that even U.S.-born Latinos are often still seen as part of a separate group.

But Arredondo describes the play as “a fundamentally American story.”

“I love this play because it can happen in any background. It could be an Irish family, it could be an Italian family,” she said. “It could be a family in the Midwest. It so happens to be taking place in a Latino household in Queens, but it could be anyone’s story.”

She said it’s rare to see Latinos depicted in films or on TV shows that do not center on a character’s “Latin-ness,” or on an immigration storyline.

In contrast, Arredondo said, “this play is about a family, how the family gets along. It’s about family love, it’s about family support, it’s about family loss.”