UPDATE: AUGUST 2025
I was recently awarded the 2025 Cunningham Commission for Youth Theatre by DePaul University. I will be developing a new play called How to Catch an Alebrije. The story will follow a group of middle school kids searching for a mythical creature in the hopes it will grant them one wish.
To read about the commission, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE: APRIL 2025
After over three years of working on a new adaptation of Pam Muñoz Ryan’s Esperanza Rising, it is finally going to open next month in beautiful Milwaukee at the same theater that produced the world premiere of Luchadora!
The pic above is one of the amazing props that Props Master Nicki Kulas provided for the show.
The show runs from May 2-18. For more information, click on the image above.
To see a recent interview with the fabulous director Michelle Lopez-Rios, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE: JANUARY 2025
American Theatre magazine wrote an article about the play I am writing for the national BIPOC Superhero Project.
The play Quetzali & The Comic Book Queen vs. The Alebrije of Darkness: Live in the School Cafeteria premieres in February 2025 at Lexington Children’s Theatre.
To read the article, click on the image above.
To learn more about the BIPOC Superhero Project, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE: DECEMBER 2024
My short play Where Are You? was included in the anthology Drama in the Time of Covid: 50 Plays of Love, Lose and Hope. Published by FlowerSong Press.
This anthology features plays from playwrights across the country.
If you are interested in learning more about it, click on the image above.
UPDATE: JULY 2024
I am honored to announce that my short play La Llorona’s Sidekick was selected to be performed at the iconic El Teatro Campesino as part of their Annual Artist Showcase.
Founded by Luis Valdez, El Teatro Campesino has been influential in the development of Chicano Theatre.
The play, La Llorona’s Sidekick, is about three destructive entities and a lucha libre wrestler auditioning to be the sidekick of the legendary spirit.
To read the play, CLICK HERE and scroll down.
UPDATE: MAY 2024
I was recently interviewed for The Scene, a podcast that has been dubbed a “must-listen for anyone deeply engrossed in the world of theatre and theatre education.”
I am honored to be included with this list of awesome theatremakers.
My episode aired April 29 and can be found wherever you find podcasts. If you have no idea where to find a podcast, CLICK HERE for a link to the audio interview.
For more information about The Scene podcast, click on the image above.
UPDATE: April 2024
The World Premiere of my adaptation of Pam Muñoz Ryan’s iconic tale is going to happen in Milwaukee in 2025.
Commissioned & produced by First Stage
Directed by Michelle Lopez-Rios
Dates are May 2-18, 2025.
For more details, click on the image above.
UPDATE: March 2024
Hot off the presses! The new cover for my play. This is the 4th printing of the play.
To get your copy, click on the image above.
UPDATE: January 2024
2024 is going to be quite a busy year. I’ll be developing new play ideas, prepping some plays for their premiere productions and learning more about my duties as a trustee for the Children’s Theatre Foundation of America.
Here are a few other things I’ll be focusing on:
Finding a literary agent to represent my novel version of Luchadora!
The Alebrije Writers Collective. I co-founded a Latinx writers collective with playwright Mabelle Reynoso. Every play created by the collective will be co-authored. Our first official project is a paletero superhero play! We already have a rough first draft. More details soon.
Rewriting! In preparation for their future premieres, I am continuing to shape the scripts for my adaptation of Esperanza Rising as well as a BIPOC superhero play called Quetzali & The Comic Queen vs. The Alebrije of Darkness: Live in the school cafeteria.
Researching. I am in the beginning stages of doing research for new play inspired by the short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” I have always been fascinated by this story and I hope to create a new adaptation that is a bit spooky and doesn’t require a horse!
UPDATE: December 2023
I was recently interviewed for TYA Today article along with composer Deborah Wicks La Puma and theatremaker & professor Joshua Rashon Streeter.
To read the interview, click on the image above.
UPDATE: November 2023
The Magik Theatre’s production of Carmela Full of Wishes is now available for touring to schools & communities in Bexar County and all around Texas.
For more info, contact Adriana Gonzales adriana@magiktheatre.org or click on the image above.
UPDATE: October 2023
I was recently on the Nuestra Palabra podcast promoting the Houston production of Carmela Full of Wishes at Main Street Theater. You can find it wherever you find podcasts or just click on the image above.
UPDATE: August 2023
Children’s Theatre of Madison. Madison, WI. 2022
The Mole Hill Stories, a bilingual adaptation of three books by the award-winning author Lois Ehlert, is going to be published this fall by TRW Plays.
For more info about the play, click on the image above.
UPDATE: June 2023
Seattle Children’s Theatre will produce a new version of Luchadora! that requires only 7 actors. It’s the same story with an updated ending but with more storytelling.
The play will be directed by SCT’s Associate Artistic Director Johamy Morales. For more details, click on the image above.
UPDATE: May 2023
I am continuing to develop a few commissioned scripts for theaters across the country. Here is what I have so far:
A finished fourth draft of a new adaptation of Pam Muñoz Ryan’s Esperanza Rising. Commissioned by Milwaukee’s First Stage
An almost 1st draft of a BIPOC superhero play about a on a teen who discovers a feather growing out of her arm. Tentatively title: Quetzali. Commissioned by Lexington Children’s Theatre in Kentucky.
A reimagining of Luchadora! as a small cast play for a theater that must not be named until I receive permission to do so. :)
I am also developing projects no one is paying me to write. A few are 2-person plays. When I have a better handle on them, I will share what those are.
Lastly, I am in the beginning stages of creating a writing collective focused on creating new works through a collaborative process. Updates to follow.
UPDATE: April 2023
Playwright Mabelle Reynoso and I appeared on the Arts Calling podcast to discuss our recent collaboration writing the short play Like a Jet-Fueled Mariposa. Arts Calling podcast, hosted by playwright Jaime Alejandro, can be found where you find podcasts or click on the image above.
UPDATE: February 2023
Playwright Mabelle Reynoso and I were commissioned by the University of Central Florida & Orlando Repertory Theatre to create a short play that “…authentically represents mental health challenges for high school students, while also depicting resiliency…”
We created Like a Jet-Fueled Mariposa, a 15-minute play about two undocumented sisters who build a space ship out of spare parts.
To read the current draft of the play, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE: December 2022
Alvaro is going to write a Superhero play! Twenty playwrights (including Alvaro) were selected to be part of the TYA BIPOC Superhero Project, an initiative to commission new plays for young audiences written by BIPOC playwrights around the country. For more information, click on the image above.
UPDATE: November 2022
My adaptation of Carmela Full of Wishes is finally in print!
To get your copy, click on the image above.
QUÉ MÁS?
My play The Day the Music Came Back (One-Act Version) was selected for CATCO’s New Works Festival for Young Audiences in Columbus, OH. Headed by Artistic Director Leda Hoffman, CATCO has been very supportive of my work. The theater also produced Luchadora! earlier this year.
For more information: https://www.catco.org/2022-23/new-works-festival-for-young-audiences/