Lexes Rubio

Elect to experience this ethnic exploration

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By John Lyle Belden

Comedy draws a lot of laughs from discomfort, but what if it could be you in the audience who is feeling it?

In “The Hispanic / Latino / Latina / Latinx / Latine Vote,” by Bernardo Cubria – a National New Play Network rolling world premiere at Fonseca Theatre, directed by Carlos Medina Maldonado – a struggling academic shares her lived discomfort relatable to anyone of a non-white ethnicity in the United States.

Having written a book on the subject, Paola (Yolanda Valdivia) is our “expert” on being Latinx. However, she relates her main stressor is being “39 and single” and wanting a child. In the spirit of this show, she will poll the audience (participation is optional but encouraged) about choices such as the “sperm donor” for her IVF.

Kaj (David Wesley Marlowe), on the national staff of The Political Party (not to be confused with The Other Political Party), found her book and called her in to join his research team. For an absurd amount of money, Paola is to help determine how to reach Hispanic and Latino/a/x/e voters.

Other researchers are Nicola (Lexes Rubio), whose father is Cuban; Bernard (Matthew Ball), who is Black; and Rebecca (Rachel Kelso), whose last name is Feldman, and she spent a semester in Venezuela. They barely know the difference among the various Latin American cultures, still, though things predictably get awkward, they are eager to learn.

All other roles are smartly played by Luis Navarro, including the IVF specialist and several Party survey respondents.

Through a lot of nervous and silly humor, we all learn a lot about how varied yet relatable people are, as well as how political maneuvering doesn’t dispel stereotype but leverage it.

Valdivia’s Paola is our cheerful guide through all this, making our experience both enlightening and entertaining. Marlowe’s Kaj is results-oriented, coming across as crass, often a jerk but never apologetic, being what one would expect from one in his position. Rubio presents Nicola as a bit standoffish, but we learn the reason for her attitude. Ball is surprisingly upbeat for being an obvious token, but Bernard gets to give his perspective on his role. Kelso presents in Rebecca a woman trying too hard to relate, complete with flustered apologies.

Through it all we discover a lot about humanity, and that we all eventually say or think something we regret. However, the only way to disappoint this ensemble is to miss seeing the show. Performances of “The…Vote” run through March 29 at 2508 W. Michigan St., Indianapolis. Get info and tickets at fonsecatheatre.org.

And by the way, Indiana’s primary elections are May 5; voter registration deadline is April 6.

The ‘flip’ side of the American ‘Dream’

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By John Lyle Belden

Some lucky people find themselves in a rather American dilemma: Is it better to hold on to a legacy, or to cash out? This situation is at the heart of the new comedy, “Dream Hou$e,” by Ellana Pipes, playing at Fonseca Theatre Company.

Latinx sisters Patricia (Yolanda Valdivia) and Julia (Lexes Rubio) have this good fortune, inheriting the family’s beautiful mission-style home, hand-built over a century ago, from their mother who recently passed. Wanting to get the most out of their property, Patricia contacted the real estate reality TV show, “Flip It & List It!” Suddenly, the host Tessa (Jean Arnold) appears with her crew (Brant Hughes, Chris Creech and Mad Brown) to record every step of the house’s transformation.

At first reluctant, the sisters are stunned into compliance with the amount the home could sell for. But things take a turn when, as renovations begin, the walls begin to bleed.

This is not the only bit of magic around, as the sisters (as siblings do) can suspend time for a moment when they really need to discuss something. Otherwise, we tackle some real-world issues of neighborhood transformation/gentrification, the struggle to preserve culture, and how does one best move on when dealing with unavoidable change?

Arnold is a wild joy to behold as the ever-upbeat TV host. She’s savvy in the ways of media and real estate, lacing her persistent charm with an all-business demeanor. However she’s never mean, even taking a liking to the young women; her candid honesty helps keep her from coming off as the villain.

Valdivia and Rubio shine in their own ways. They each approach the situation differently, and have issues to resolve with the house, and each other. Still, their portrayal shows the tested patience of a family bond, with the easy give-and-take of a comedy duo.

Director Jordan Flores Schwartz says it is in Pipes’s script that the community in the play is called “Highville,” so it is either by fate or coincidence it is staged in the Near-West Indy area of Haughville. Given ongoing events in the surrounding city, this does seem apt.

With equal parts hilarity and heart, “reality” and the surreal, this “Dream Hou$e” is well worth a look. Performances run through April 16 at 2508 W. Michigan St., Indianapolis. Tickets and info at FonsecaTheatre.org.