Name: Alex Alpharaoh

Hometown: Los Angeles, California

Current Town: Los Angeles, California

Affiliations: Urban Theatre Movement, EST/LA, Antaeus Theatre Co.

Q: How do you self-identify?

A: Latino

Q: Tell me about WET: A DACAmented Journey.

A: WET: A DACAmented Journey is the story of what it means to be an American in every sense of the word, except for one: on paper. It’s the Docu-Story of Anner Cividanis, a DACAmented American who is forced to leave The United States and go back to Guatemala, the place he was born and lived for 3 months of his life, in hopes of being able to return home to the U.S., and become a legal resident.

Q: What else are you working on now?

A: SP!T: O-Dogg, It’s a spoken word play written in metered verse. I’m also working on a book, and a film adaptation of WET.

Q: What have been the defining moments of your journey as a playwright?

A: The first time I saw my words play out in front of me. Seeing actors embody the ideas and images that lived in my head, and coming to life right in front of my eyes. The first time I read Shakespeare in the 10th Grade. Willy Shakes IS the Original Emcee/Hip-hop GOD! When I founded SP!T: Spoken Word Theatre.

Q: Who have been your playwriting mentors and heroes?

A: Mentors: Seth Ez-zvi Rosenfeld, Josefina López, Oliver Mayer, Margaret Medina.

Heroes: Dante Alighieri, William Shakespeare, Stephen Adly Guirgis, Sam Shepard, Tennessee Williams, Luis Alfaro.

Q: What advice do you have for Latin@ playwrights at the beginning of their career?

A: Trust your inner voice. “First with your head, then with your heart, you’ll stay ahead, right from the start!” Write what scares you. Write what makes you uncomfortable. Become a close friend with your vulnerability will turn that vulnerability into your most trusted ally. Make an effort not to judge yourself, because the world already does enough of that for you. Be courageous in your quest to stretch the fabric of your existence through your writing.

Q: What else should we know about you?

A: I am a single parent to a beautiful, talented, empowered, 15-year-old young woman who identifies as a feminist. She has a fierce sense of conviction about her place in the world, and plans on sharing it with the world through her writing.

***For more on Alex Alpharaoh, see:

• Read more about WET: A DACAmented Journey
• “Undocumented Stories Have Always Mattered/Las Historias Sobre Los Indocumentados Siempre Han Importado” – Alex Alpharaoh, David Lozano, Karen Zacarías (Café Onda/HowlRound)
• “Alex Alpharaoh put his own DACA story onstage, and the audience keeps on growing” – Jessica Gelt (Los Angeles Times)
• Capital & Main interviews Alex Alpharaoh, writer and performer of WET: A DACAmented Journey
• “By sharing his DACA story on stage, Alex Alpharaoh hopes to change the immigration debate” – Monica Bushman with Paola Mardo (The Frame)
• “An L.A. DREAMer’s Solo Show About Living Under the Threat of Trump Delivers Nail-Biting Suspense” – Bill Raden (LA Weekly)
• Alex Alpharaoh’s Bio
• Follow Alex Alpharaoh on Twitter