¡Americano! A real Dreamer story debuts off-Broadway

By SIGAL RATNER-ARIAS
Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Tony Valdovinos was only a 6th grader when he made the decision to join the U.S. Marines after watching the horrors of 9/11. But the day of his 18th birthday, when he walked into a recruitment office to enlist, he discovered something his parents never told him: He was an undocumented immigrant — a so-called “Dreamer.” Now his life is portrayed in the musical “¡Americano!,” which began performances this week at New World Stages off-Broadway, with the hope of shining a light on an issue that affects thousands of families.