• Arts & Entertainment

      Three Lives, One Performer: A Tour de Force at Sierra Madre Playhouse

      one man in three different outfits and poses

      The “Three Lives” of Alex Xander Luu onstage all weekend at Sierra Madre Playhouse (Photo – Instagram)

      Three lives in one — and a lifetime spent perfecting how to tell them: Chinese Vietnamese American artist Alex Xander Luu brings his acclaimed one-man show to Sierra Madre Playhouse this weekend, May 22–24.

      By Melanie Hooks

      Three Lives, the critically acclaimed one-man show written, directed, and performed by Alex Xander Luu, comes to Sierra Madre Playhouse for four performances, May 22–24, 2026. Luu has toured the production nationwide for more than 20 years.

      In Three Lives, Luu takes the stage alone yet fills it with generations, portraying a father, son, and grandson as he traces his family’s escape from Saigon in 1975 and their search for identity and belonging in America. His storytelling does more than recount history; it explores the weight of leaving home, the pressure to assimilate, and the unspoken bonds that shape families across generations.

      Three Lives examines identity, displacement, family ritual, and the myth of the American Dream through the lens of the Vietnam War and its aftermath. At a time when conversations about identity, migration, and belonging remain at the forefront, this intimate and unforgettable story resonates deeply.

      A UCLA Film and Television graduate, Luu is a Lifetime Teaching Artist with the Los Angeles County Arts Ed Collective and a former teaching artist with The Ford and East West Players. He is also the founder and facilitator of My Own Story (MOS), an autobiographical writing, storytelling, and performance workshop. Audiences may also recognize him from the Netflix series The Brothers Sun.

      For tickets ($12–$35) and information, call (626) 355-4318 or visit sierramadreplayhouse.org.

      Three Lives by Alex Xander Luu
      May 22-24, 2026
      Friday, Saturday, Sunday: 8:00 pm
      Saturday: 2:00 pm
      Location
      Sierra Madre Playhouse
      87 West Sierra Madre Boulevard
      Sierra Madre, CA 91024
      Tickets ($12-$35) available online here.

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