Lusia Rozalia Strus (born December 13, 1969) is an American writer and stage and film actress with Neo-Futurists.

Childhood and work as a theater actress

Strus was born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Illinois, to a Ukrainian family. She spoke Ukrainian as her first language and regularly attended Ukrainian school on weekends. She had first decisive successes at performing arts, while a high school student, and attended

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public research university in Normal, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University and is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teachin ...

. As a theater major, she joined Greg Allen's Neo-Futurist ensemble, in 1993, which she wrote solo and ensemble performances for. She has played for the Chicago Steppenwolf, Goodman, and Victory Gardens theaters as well as for the Curious Theatre Company, the Northlight Repertory, and others, and has also worked for Yoplait,

WBEZ WBEZ (91.5 FM) – branded ''WBEZ 91.5'' – is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to Chicago, Illinois, and primarily serving the tri-state region of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is owned by Chicago Public Media and is f ...

, and the Chicago Jazz Festival.

Film and TV actress

Strus is noted for her role as

Adam Sandler Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. Primarily a comedic leading actor in films, List of awards and nominations received by Adam Sandler, his accolades include an Independent Sp ...

's assistant (Alexa) in '' 50 First Dates'', as well as for playing eclectic characters and sometimes incorporating unusual accents in her roles. Her career has spanned theatre and stage for nearly two decades. She had a recurring role on Nickelodeon's '' Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide'' as Dr. Xavier. Strus played Janine in '' Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous'', and plays Rachel in Jason Lew's and

Gus Van Sant Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American filmmaker, photographer, painter, and musician. He has earned acclaim as an independent film, independent auteur. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultures. His ...

's '' Restless''. She had a recurring role in '' Wayward Pines'' (2015), and played Letty's mother Estelle on '' Good Behavior'' from 2016 to 2018.

Filmography

Film

Television

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Strus, Lusia 1969 births 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Actresses from Chicago American film actresses American stage actresses Living people American people of Ukrainian descent