Cast and Creatives Set For STIR at the Old Globe

 The Old Globe has announced the full cast and creative team for Stir by Melinda Lopez (The Old Globe’s Mala) and Joel Perez (La Jolla Playhouse’s Kiss My Aztec!). The Globe-commissioned world premiere play is directed by Marcela Lorca (Guthrie Theater’s Caroline, or Change). Stir plays in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, from May 4 through May 26, 2024, with the official opening night on Thursday, May 9.

Stir is about family, food, and healing. Two siblings, separated by distance and circumstance, meet to share their mother’s favorite recipe. What starts as a simple project leads to surprising connection as they reminisce and reveal secrets of their own. This tender comedy invites audiences to grab a seat at the table and savor the possibility of reuniting with loved ones after a long time apart.

“Stir continues a Globe season full of the best American writing for the stage with a world premiere that’s funny, touching, and smart,” said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein.“Melinda Lopez and Joel Perez dare something that, so far, few of our writers are attempting: they take us back to that moment in the pandemic when Zoom was our only means of contact with the outside world. But rather than recalling the uncertainty and fear of that time, instead they remind us that the flip side of that period was a series of rediscoveries. We connected remotely with old friends, family members, and our own memories, and the result of those renewed connections was often happiness. Stir is about siblings who bond over a cherished family recipe, but in a larger sense it’s about how all of us reach across the void to find love, meaning, and joy in the company of others. I can’t wait to share this moving and sweet play with San Diego audiences.”

The cast for Stir includes Melinda Lopez as Mariana (The Old Globe’s Mala), Joel Perez as Henry (La Jolla Playhouse’s Kiss My Aztec!), and Al Rodrigo as Papi (The Old Globe’s Destiny of Desire). 

Understudies include Javier Guerrero (The Old Globe’s El Borracho) as Henry and Papi, and Sandra Ruiz (San Diego Repertory’s In the Time of the Butterflies) as Mariana.

Also, joining Lopez, Perez, and Lorca as part of the creative team for Stir are Diggle (Scenic Design), Christopher Vergara (Costume Design), Cha See (Lighting Design), Fabian Obispo (Sound Design), Caparelliotis Casting (Casting), and Chandra R.M. Anthenill (Production Stage Manager).

Stir will play in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center in San Diego’s Balboa Park (1363 Old Globe Way). Performances for the four-week limited engagement run May 4–26, 2024, with the official press opening on Thursday, May 9 at 7:00 p.m. Ticket prices for Stir start at $33 and are available at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623), and in person at The Old Globe’s Box Office in Balboa Park (1363 Old Globe Way). The Vicki and Carl Zeiger Insights Seminar, scheduled for Tuesday, May 7 at 6:00 p.m., will provide patrons an exploration of the themes and background of Stir from selected artistic company members. Post-Show Forum events will be held on Tuesday, May 14; Tuesday, May 21; and Wednesday, May 22 (evening performance). Community Night at The Old Globewill provide a festive opportunity to connect over refreshments and conversation on Friday, May 10 at 6:30 p.m. An open-caption performance will be held on Saturday, May 25 at 2:00 p.m. This production includes strong language and mature themes. Visit www.TheOldGlobe.org for a full schedule and additional information.

Opening night post-show receptions for the cast and donors are held in Hattox Hall, located in the Karen and Donald Cohn Education Center, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

Stir is supported by Major Production Sponsors Paula and Brian Powers. Financial support of The Old Globe is provided by The City of San Diego. The Theodor and Audrey Geisel Fundprovides leadership support for The Old Globe’s year-round activities.


The Tony Award–winning The Old Globe is one of the country’s leading professional nonprofit regional theatres. Now in its 89th year, the Globe is San Diego’s flagship performing arts institution, and it serves a vibrant community with theatre as a public good. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and the Audrey S. Geisel Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 16 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages, including its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people annually attend Globe productions and participate in the theatre’s artistic and arts engagement programs. Its nationally prominent Arts Engagement Department provides an array of participatory programs that make theatre matter to more people in neighborhoods throughout the region. Humanities programs at the Globe and around the city broaden the community’s understanding of theatre art in all its forms. The Globe also boasts a range of new play development programs with professional and community-based writers, as well as the renowned The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program. Numerous world premieres—such as 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Bright Star, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! —have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

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