Fernanda Coppel is an American/Mexican playwright and screenwriter. Her plays have been staged in New York City at The Second Stage and the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. Coppel was a co-writer of "No One Gets Out Alive" which can be screened on Netflix. The one-act, five character play "Chimichangas and Zoloft" has a number of good ideas floating around but most get lost amidst the dizzying love twists, somewhat flat comedic spins and plot holes that go unanswered. Set in present day Los Angeles the show opens with a bang with the unmistakable sounds of flatulence. Sonia Martinez (an admirable Norma Stevens) explains in her soliloquy a sly disclaimer owing to one too many chimichangas consumed alongside margaritas last night for her 40th birthday celebration. Sonia's stalwart attitude loses some bravado as she admits feeling less than felicitous and frankly, depressed. Thus the play's namesake is introduced at the start. Scene 2 is far more jovial. Two teenage girls are slathering themselves in suntan lotion while slithering into salacious innuendos regarding their purported sex lives. Penelope Lopez (a likable Andrea Lizbeth Chavez) insists she and her boyfriend had sex although she's not quite sure how it was. Her best friend, Jackie Martinez (a captivating Alexx Killian Valdez) presses her for details. Penelope wants to know from Alexx if she hooked up with the girl she's infatuated with. Penelope bemoans Jackie's mother, Sonia, being away as she felt comfortable confiding in her. Penelope's mother is MIA without any explanation of why and or for how long. We learn Jackie's mom has been away for two weeks and Jackie is uncertain when she's returning. Penelope's father shares carpool duties with Sonia and he's put out he's been left to the job alone. Jackie's dad, Ricardo, is too busy working to drive for the girl's carpool. There's some rancor apparent between the girl's dads when Ricardo comes to bring Jackie home. What's revealed behind locked doors is the dads are in a tryst unbeknownst to the girls but Jackie's dad's homosexuality was all too familiar to Sonia. Secrets begin to fray between parents and their progenies. No apologies are offered nor reasonings for what is and isn't acceptable. The play is not laugh-out-loud funny but then it's never dull. The girls' friendship is engaging and filled with youthful exuberance. I couldn't decipher any meaningful message but I appreciated the absence of any proselytizing. CHIMICHANGAS and ZOLOFT is best digested as a lightweight diversion with a side of fart-joke humor.
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