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Madre Luna
Madre Luna (Mother Moon) is a Spanish-language telenovela produced by the United States-based television network Telemundo and RTI Colombia. This limited-run series, also known as Grains of Love, [*] debuted on July 2, 2007. Veteran telenovela writer Julio Jimenez developed the story as a vehicle for star Amparo Grisales. [*] The show scored a 35 percent share of the Colombian audience during the summer of 2007. [*] During November 2007, it averaged 571,000 core adult (ages 18-49) viewers. [*]
''Luna's'' final episode aired Monday, January 28, 2008.
Story
This romantic melodrama features Alejandra Aguirre (Amparo Grisales), a gorgeous, tenacious woman with an amazingly well-preserved body who grows rice in the rural town of Castellon -- and hides a deep, shocking secret. She is a 50-year old woman with great passion, sensuality and splendor. Her self-willed intensity puts her in the middle of a rivalry between Leonardo Cisneros (Gabriel Porras) and his handsome, daring son Angel (Michel Brown). [*] Both dashing men want to possess this vivacious heroine.
Leonardo is Alejandra's old flame, who gave her two energetic children, Valentin and Demetrio. He reappears in her life after many years of absence and revives the strong feelings which she thought had died long ago. This turns her whole life upside down, forcing her to face her past. [*]
Years before, Leonardo met Alejandra during a business trip and they fell in love. He never told his unsuspecting lover that he had been married to his cruel, calculating wife Flavia (Monica Dionne), who is the mother of his son Angel, for three years. Instead, he chose to live a double life of deception. [*]
Not knowing the truth, Alejandra discovered that she was pregnant. When she finally discovered Leonardos deception, she broke off the relationship. She chose to keep her silence rather than risk hurting his family. [*] While she accepts a plot of land in Castellon from Leonardo, she avoids him for years before serendipity brings them back together.
Alejandra's reappearance sends a jolt of passion through Leonardos heart. This also raises hatred and envy in vengeful people who want Alejandra and her children destroyed. These dangerous enemies include Dona Trinidad Zapata (Saby Kamalich), Flavia's tyrannical mother, and the villanous Tirso Reinoso (Paulo Quevedo), who oversees the Cisneros property, along with the scheming Commandante Veneno ("Captain Venom") (Mauricio Aspe),
[*] who leads a group of thugs called the Sierra Brigade.
Meanwhile, the younger generation faces its own fight for love, companionship and fulfillment. Leonardos son Angel falls for Alejandra, knowing nothing of her forbidden secrets. Despite the enormous age difference, Angel becomes so obsessed that he tries to take her by force. This provokes Alejandra's strong desire to stand up against anyone who would abuse her or her children.
Leonardos other sons are also adults with their own conflicts. Valentin now works on the rice farm and Demetrio attends college. These two find themselves competing for the love of Flavia's beautiful young niece, Anabel Saldana (Ana Lucia Dominguez). [*]
All this leads both families down a path to intrigue, desperation, and betrayal. Generational and status conflicts converge. The struggle over love and family and between rich arrogant upper class families and poor, decent farmers pushes both Alejandra and Leonardo to their limits. [*]
Title
The name Madre Luna refers to a family character in the children's stories that Alejandra told her sons when they were growing up. Telemundo's English promotional copy says that the luna (moon) represents the two heroines. Alejandra and Anabel lead the story toward its emotional climaxes just as the phases of the moon direct "ancient feminine mysteries." [*]
Production
Madre Luna is the last Telemundo-produced telenovela filmed in NTSC resolution. Variety called the show "exquisitely lensed," featuring "bronzed bodies, revealing dresses, hacienda lust and luxury, and pop scoring." [*] Madre Luna is shot in Colombia and vehicles in the show bear yellow Colombian license plates. Jimenez said the setting is an imaginary locale inspired by Colombia's rice fields. [*] Despite the setting, Telemundo made product placement deals to promote Windex, Splenda and other U.S. brands during the show.
In addition, Telemundo is expected to air 130 hours of Madre Luna from Monday to Friday over about six months. [*] As with most of its soap operas, the network broadcasts English subtitles as closed captions on CC3. This show replaced Marina in Telemundo's 8 p.m. ET/PT time slot.
Changes
When Telemundo announced Madre Luna in May, 2006, the story was different. Grisales was to play a character named Leonor Aguirre. When her husband dies, she returns home to Castellon to face her troubled past and protect her family honor. She falls madly in love with a charming man half her age. [*]
The villain in this story was Isadora, who believes Leonor was once romantically involved with her husband. So she plots to expose Leonor's dark secret and ruin her familys reputation Isadora spreads a hideous rumor around town, provoking irate villagers to attack Leonor's home and kill her eldest son. The novela was to focus on Leonors quest to rise from the ashes and avenge her sons tragic death. [*]
Actor Javier Gomez was originally cast in a major role in this series, but he went over to another Telemundo soap, Sin Verguenza, instead.
Cast
Amparo Grisales.... Alejandra Aguirre - main heroine
Gabriel Porras .... Leonardo Cisneros - main hero
Michel Brown .... Angel Cisneros - son of Leonardo and Flavia, in love with Alejandra
Saby Kamalich .... Dona Trinidad Zapata - mother of Flavia and grandmother of Angel, villain
Monica Dionne .... Flavia Portillo de Cisneros - wife of Leonardo, villain
Arap Bethke .... Demetrio Aguirre - son of Alejandra and Leonardo
Ana Lucia Dominguez .... Anabel Saldana - cousin of Angel, in love with Valentin
Alex Sirvent .... Valentin Aguirre - brother of Demetrio, in love with Anabel
Paulo Quevedo .... Tirso Reinoso - foreman of the Cisneros hacienda, villain
Mauricio Aspe .... Roman Garrido - bandit in the town, villain
Judy Henriquez .... Angustias - friend of Alejandra
Jose Saldarriaga .... Fidelio Marquez - rich man in the town
Julio del Mar .... Ignacio Morales - farmer, friend of Alejandra
Daniela Tapia .... Dulce - niece of Fidelio, in love with Angel
Ana Beatriz Osorio ....Violeta - ''dancer at the town's bar
Sebastian Boscan .... Hermes - brother of Dulce
Pedro Roda .... Bebo Cantillo - owner of the town's restaurant
Luz Alejandra Pinzon .... Juana - ex-lover of Valentin
Adriana Campos .... Sulma - bandit, girlfriend of Roman
Monica Pardo ....
Dorian Diaz
Mauricio Alvarez
Orlando Lamboglia
Sandra Guzman
Gabriel Gonzalez
Maria Angela Cubillos
Jairo Lopez
Orlando Bonnet
Maria Cristina Montoya
Margarita Duran
Daniel Merizalde
Maria Margarita Amado
Ivette Zamora
Toto Vega
Nure Valbuena
Antonio Puentes
Olga Lucia Rojas
Freddy Ordonez
Richard Martinez
Aida Bossa
Luz Estella Luengas
Sigifredo Vega
Maria Claudia Torres
External links
Telemundo International Madre Lunapage
Telenovela World (bilingual)
Official Telemundo site (Spanish)
Only Amparo Grisales Can Be Madre Luna(Spanish article in La Opinion'')
Madre Luna in RCN TV (Colombia)
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Madre Luna
