| Raúl Esparza | |
| Born | 24 October 1970 Wilmington, Delaware |
|---|---|
| Spouse(s) | Michele Esparza (married 1993, separated 2000) |
| Official website | |
Raúl Eduardo Esparza (born October 24, 1970) is an American stage actor.
Contents |
Background
Born in Wilmington, Delaware to Cuban American parents and raised in Miami, Florida, Esparza graduated from Belen Jesuit in 1988[1] and later received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical and a Drama Desk Award for his performance in the ill-fated musical Taboo. In 2009, he received a Tony Award Nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play for "Speed-the-Plow".
Broadway Work
Esparza first drew attention with his performance in the 2000 Broadway revival of The Rocky Horror Show, which won him the Theatre World Award. Additional Broadway credits include Cabaret (2001), Taboo (2003), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2005) and Sondheim's Company (2006). Esparza's performance in Company earned him a second Tony nomination, this time for Best Actor in a Musical, as well as his second Drama Desk award. Beginning in November 2007, Raúl appeared in Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming and was Tony-nominated for Best Featured Actor in a Play. In 2008, he played Charlie Fox in the revival of David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow co-starring Jeremy Piven and Elisabeth Moss on Broadway.[2] His performance in Speed-the-Plow earned him a Tony nomination for Best Actor in a Play, making him the second performer after Boyd Gaines to be nominated in all four acting categories a performer is eligible for at the Tonys.
Other theatre
In 1999, Esparza portrayed Che in the national tour of Evita, opposite Natalie Toro. The tour was intended to land on Broadway, but failed to do so. In 2001, he appeared off-Broadway in tick, tick... BOOM! by Jonathan Larson, garnering a Drama Desk Award nomination as Outstanding Actor in a Musical. He appeared in two Stephen Sondheim musicals, Sunday in the Park with George and Merrily We Roll Along at the 2002 Kennedy Center Sondheim Celebration.[3] He also appeared as The Arbiter in The Actor's Fund of America Concert of Sir Tim Rice's Chess in September 2003.[4]
Other Work and Personal Life
He recently had a recurring role on the show Pushing Daisies as traveling salesman Alfredo Aldarisio, a role originally given to Paul Reubens. In 2009, Raúl will appear as Abel Plenkov in the Wes Craven film 25/8.
He is starring in the 2009 summer production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night at the Delacorte Theater, from June 25 through July 12.[5]
Esparza was the subject of a New York Times profile in which he revealed that he had homosexual relationships. Since 1993, he has been married to Michele Esparza, his high school girlfriend, though they have been separated "off and on", the actor has said, since 2000. In 2006 Esparza said that he was involved with an unnamed male actor.[6]
References
- ^ The International Jesuit Alumni Directory Belen (Forum Press Inc., 1994)
- ^ Friedman, Roger (2008-12-22). "'Entourage' Star Bashed For Being Diva". Fox News Channel. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,470844,00.html. Retrieved on 2009-01-01.
- ^ Guide to Sondheim Showssondheimguide.com, accessed July 10, 2009
- ^ Gans, Andrew."DIVA TALK SPECIAL: Julia and Josh Dazzle in All-Star Chess,"playbill.com, September 23, 2003
- ^ Hetrick, Adam."Hathaway, McDonald, White and Esparza Open Twelfth Night in Central Park June 25,"playbill.com, June 25, 2009
- ^ Wadler, Joyce (2008-11-26). "Breaking Character for the First Time in His Life". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/26/theater/26wadl.html. Retrieved on 2009-01-01.
External links
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