The Other Americans, Fichandler Theatre, Arena Stage, Washington, DC
L to R: Bradley James Tejeda (Eddie), Luna Lauren Velez (Patti), Rosa Arredondo (Norma), Rebecca Jimenez {Toni), and John Leguizamo (Nelson) in The Other Americans . Photo by T. Charles Erickson Photography. John Leguizamo is a multimedia multi-hyphenate: a stand-up comedian, actor, monologist, social activist, voiceover artist, host, and playwright whose work has been seen on the stage as well as in film and television. He wrote and is currently appearing in the current offering at Arena Stage, The Other Americans , in its world premiere run (continuing through November 24). It is 1998. The Other Americans focuses on an upwardly mobile Colombian/Puerto Rican family who have moved from Jackson Heights, Queens, to Forest Hills, Queens. Leguizamo stars as Nelson Castro, the family patriarch, who owns and operates a number of laundromats in New York City. Nelson instigated the move from the cramped apartment in Jackson Heights to the house in a tonier neighborhood over the objectio