Destiny of Desire

ESPERANZA AMERICA

Pilar Castillo

ESPERANZA AMERICA (Pilar Castillo) was born and raised in East L.A. and completed her BA at UCLA’s School of Theater Film and Television. Her most recent theater credits include Habitat, The Vault: Bankrupt and The Vault: Unlocked by The Vault Ensemble; Faith, Hope and Charity and Dementia by Evelina Fernandez; and Melancholia at the LATC and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, directed by José Luis Valenzuela. Her television credits include Southland and Single Ladies. Her movie credits include Cry Now, directed by Alberto Barboza; Water and Power, directed by Richard Montoya; Gino’s Wife, directed by Aaron Lee Lopez; and, most recently, 31, directed by Rob Zombie. Esperanza is excited to be a part of this production and would like to thank her family for always supporting her and pushing her to be her best.

OSCAR CEVILLE

Dr. Jorge Ramiro Mendoza

OSCAR CEVILLE (Dr. Jorge Ramiro Mendoza) is delighted to make his Arena Stage debut. D.C. credits include The House of Desires (Don Juan), The Young Lady from Tacna (Cesar), Anna in the Tropics (Juan Julian) and The Knight from Olmedo (Don Fernando) with Gala Hispanic Theatre; Zorro (Constellation Theatre); The New World Order and Other Plays (Scena Theatre); and Host & Guest (Synetic Theatre). Oscar is a company member of Factory 449. Regional credits include Jesus Christ Superstar (Caiaphas), The Royal Hunt of the Sun (Atahualpa), Corpus Christi (Matthew), The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told (Adam) and Jeffrey (Steve). In Panama, he received the Escena Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Play for his performance in Alan Ayckbourn’s How the Other Half Loves. He has also voiced TV and radio programs.

GABRIELA FERNANDEZ-COFFEY

Fabiola Castillo

GABRIELA FERNANDEZ-COFFEY (Fabiola Castillo) is thrilled to be making her Arena Stage debut. Other D.C.-area credits include Uncle Vanya, The Lyons and How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents at Round House Theatre; Mockingbird at the Kennedy Center; Detroit, Gruesome Playground Injuries and Stunning at Woolly Mammoth; Water by the Spoonful and The Motherf--ker with the Hat at Studio Theatre; and After the Fall at Theater J, for which she won a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress. She is a Woolly Mammoth Company Member and graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

CARLOS GOMEZ

Ernesto del Rio

CARLOS GÓMEZ (Ernesto del Rio) is thrilled to be making his Arena Stage debut. On Broadway, he originated the role of Kevin Rosario in the Tony Award-winning musical In the Heights. Other theater credits include Zorba, West Side Story, Once Removed and Living Out (Mark Taper Forum). Film credits include Desperado, Fools Rush In, The Negotiator, Dolphin Tale 2, House of Sand and Fog and The Perfect Game. On television he was awarded three Imagen Awards and nominated for an Alma Award for his part as Carlos Sanchez in the A&E television series The Glades. Additional TV credits include Friends, ER, Charmed, 24, Shark, Criminal Minds, Weeds, Castle and Gang Related.

FIDEL GOMEZ

Dr. Diego Mendoza

FIDEL GOMEZ (Dr. Diego Mendoza) was born and raised in East L.A. and is a proud graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts where he received a BFA in theater. His stage credits include the national tour of Placas; Just Like Us at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts; the national tour of Solitude; Melancholia, The Vault: Bankrupt and The Vault: Unlocked at LATC; and The Merry Wives of Windsor and Romeo and Juliet at Shakespeare Festival LA. His film and television credits include HBO’s Walkout, NCIS, Undercovers, Grey's Anatomy and 7th Heaven.

RAYANNE GONZALES

Hortencia del Rio / Fight Captain

RAYANNE GONZALES (Hortencia del Rio/Fight Captain) happily returns to Arena Stage following her appearances in Mother Courage and Her Children, My Fair Lady, The Music Man, Damn Yankees and Señor Discretion Himself. She was also recently in Man of La Mancha at Shakespeare Theatre Company. Broadway credits include The Phantom of the Opera and Hands on a Hardbody. Rayanne’s other credits include South Pacific (North Carolina Theatre and Casa Mañana), Porgy & Bess (Natchez Festival), the first national tour of In the Heights and NBC’s The Sound of Music Live!. An alumna of Boston University, the Longy School of Music and The Banff Centre, her honors include the National Federation of Music Clubs, Metropolitan Opera Auditions and Plácido Domingo’s Operalia. With warmest thanks to my family, CGF Talent and Paloma, smart and beautiful. Credo.

CASTULO GUERRA

Armando Castillo

CASTULO GUERRA (Armando Castillo) returns to Arena Stage after performing 33 years ago in Galileo, The Suicide, Animal Crackers and Undiscovered Country. He debuted at the Delacorte Theatre in Othello with Raúl Julia and Coriolanus with Morgan Freeman, followed by Watch on the Rhine and Much Ado About Nothing at Center Stage. At the Mark Taper Forum he performed in JoAnne Akilaitis’ Greencard,and at La Jolla Playhouse he was Prospero in Robert Woodruff’s The Tempest. With the Latino Theater Company, he played the Bishop in La Virgen de Guadalupe at the Cathedral of Los Angeles for 14 years and performed in Lysistrata and La Olla at the Getty, all directed by José Luis Valenzuela. Film credits include Terminator 2, The Usual Suspects, The Mexican, Alamo, Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2, Bless Me Ultima and Purge 2.

MARIAN LICHA

Sister Sonia

MARIAN LICHA (Sister Sonia) is delighted to be back at Arena Stage. Her favorite roles include Ofelia in Anna in the Tropics, directed by Jo Bonney at Arena Stage, and Ferula and Count Satigny in The House of Spirits at Gala Hispanic Theatre. Other stage credits include Roundhouse Theatre, Provincetown Playhouse, TOMI Theatre, Repertorio Espanol and the Kennedy Center, where she played Elena in their national tour of Maggie Magalita. She portrayed Imelda on television’s Homicide and Mrs. Serrano in the film Step Up 2. She received an MCAC Theatre Fellowship in 2000, and in 2010, the Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artists Award for her solo performance in the title role of her solo show Frida Vice-Versa (director Jessica Lefkow, co-writer R. Dennis Green), seen at The Chautauqua Festival and other sold-out venues.

NICHOLAS RODRIGUEZ

Sebastian Jose Castillo

NICHOLAS RODRIGUEZ (Sebastian Jose Castillo) returns to Arena Stage where his credits include Curly in Oklahoma! (Helen Hayes Award, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Musical), Eilif in Mother Courage and Her Children, Freddy in My Fair Lady (Helen Hayes nomination), Fabrizio Nacarelli in The Light in the Piazza and the cabaret The Power of Two with Eleasha Gamble. On Broadway, he performed the title role in Disney’s Tarzan. Off-Broadway, he’s appeared in The Toxic Avenger, Almost Heaven, Bajour and Collete Collage. Tours include Jesus Christ Superstar (Jesus), Evita (Che) and Hair (Claude). He participated in Guys and Dolls at Carnegie Hall and I Am Harvey Milk at Lincoln Center. Regional credits include The Ten Commandments (Kodak Theatre), Mothers and Sons, Jesus Christ Superstar, Beauty and the Beast, Damn Yankees, Cinderella, South Pacific, Master Class, Love, Valour, Compassion! and The King and I. He was in the film Sex and the City 2 and featured on the film’s soundtrack. For TV, Madam Secretary. He’s perhaps best known for his portrayal of Nick Chavez on ABC’s One Life to Live (GLAAD Media Award). Nicholas is the Artistic Director of the Broadway Dreams Foundation (www.mybroadwaydreams.com). His debut album, The First Time…, is available on iTunes and at www.psclassics.com. He holds a BM and MM in Vocal Performance from the University of Texas at Austin. www.thenickrod.com.

ELIA SALDANA

Victoria del Rio

ELIA SALDAÑA (Victoria del Rio) hails from Los Angeles and is happy to be making her Arena Stage debut. Regional credits include the musicals Ivy + Bean (Bean) and Jane of the Jungle (Kayla) at South Coast Repertory (the latter with book and lyrics by Karen Zacarías); The Anatomy of Gazellas (Alex) with Playwrights’ Arena; Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (Maria Elena) with Theatre League; and Family Planning (Jilly) at Chalk Repertory, for which she received an Ovation Award nomination. She has also worked with Denver Center Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, Latino Theater Company and National Theatre for Children, among others. TV/film credits include Jane the Virgin, Criminal Minds, The Cleveland Show, The LeBrons and Bella and The Bulldogs. She received her BA in theater from The University of California, San Diego.

ROSINO SERRANO

Augustin Lara, Jr.

ROSINO SERRANO (Augustín Lara, Jr.) was born in Spain and has been part of the musical scene of Mexico since the early 80's. For the last two decades he has shared his professional life between New York, Los Angeles and Mexico City. He served as composer/musical director for numerous theatrical productions with Thalia Spanish Theatre, Central Park Summerstage and Compañía Nacional de Teatro, among others. He is a regular collaborator with the Latino Theater Company. A renowned film composer, Rosino has scored iconic features including the Oscar-nominated The Crime of Father Amaro, Santitos and Walkout. Either as a pianist, MD, composer, arranger or producer, Rosino has worked alongside prominent artists including Eugenia León, Armando Manzanero, Santana, Ivan Lins, Camila and many others. He is a faculty member at ITESM in Mexico City and an Artistic Member of Sistema Nacional de Creadores de Arte (CONACULTA / FONCA).