Q&A with Eduardo Aguilar: From Dora & Diego to Romeo & Juliet Opens Friday!

Today we spend a few minutes with Eduardo Aguilar who plays Sampson in Romeo & Juliet at Artes de la Rosa that opens this weekend! Make sure to visit www.ArtesDeLaRosa.org to get your tickets! Opening night is this Friday!

Production Name: Romeo & Juliet

Name:   Eduardo Aguilar
Character Name:  Sampson

• Born & Raised:   Born in a small town in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. Raised in this funky town I suppose.
• Education:  Like where I went to school? Hubbard Heights Elementary, Rosemont Middle , Trimble Tech, and Texas Wesleyan University.
• Degree: B.A in Theatre Arts.
• Audition Song:  for happy song I usually go with All I Need is a Girl from Gypsy, and ballad Bring Him Home
• Audition Monologue: Edgar from King Lear  
• First Play/Musical You Ever Saw: First play like ever, ever? Blithe Spirit at Trimble Tech. And I think Grease was actually the first musical I saw, I think….wait…yeah it was. Weird.
• Something you’re REALLY bad at: Well, lately I’ve noticed that I’m really slow at finishing things. I have been keeping count and it’s something that I need to fix. Painting or drawing projects, omg, SO slow. Laundry, I finish it a day later. Starting books and never finishing them, yeah, super guilty. Drawing and painting projects too.
• Did you have any particular mentors or inspirations when first starting out? Artistically, and from the point of view of a boy that loved watching telenovelas, I think the idea of entertaining became an inspiration, has been, an inspiration.  It has led me to discover talents that connect me with other cool people that share the same talents.  My family too, they continue to be an amazing support.
• Must See TV Show:  Wait how about Top 3?  No top 4 because I don’t like odd numbers. They are:  Friends, True Blood,  Greys Anatomy and Modern Family.
• First Role:  Ha ha, um Guard 2 in Jean Anouilh.  Fun memories of that show :)
• Favorite Play: Shakespeare: The Scottish Play, and probably Betrayal by Pinter.
• Pop Culture Guilty Pleasure: Lady Gaga duh lol
• Favorite sport/team/player: Since the World Culp is coming up I say that after Mexico, probably Brazil, and I adore Ricardo Kaká.
• First Stage Kiss:  Pavel in I Never Saw Another Butterfly with my lovely friend Camille Suttles
• Pre Show Rituals: Listen to my iPod and stretch .
• Special Skills: I can say the ABC’s backwards really fast.
  
• "I'll never understand why…" : people weren’t born with wings.
• Worst Costume Ever: I found a gig a month ago at the Taste of Dallas event, where I had to wear this stupid, ugly hat with dog ears. Omg, if I had a time machine I would save myself from that embarrassment.  The sad thing about that is that I didn’t get paid because I didn’t go the next day. I to Austin, TX instead.
• Favorite Post Show Meal:  Anything with a decent amount of carbs.
• Biggest On Stage Mishap:  Haha, I broke a little stool on opening night  of Annie. Oops.
• Last Good Movie You Saw: Ha, I think The Heat with Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy was pretty hilarious.
• Something you are incredibly proud of: I have a pretty good memory.
• Words of advice for aspiring performers: Don’t lose yourself, and have fun.
• Career you would want if not a performer:  I think right now I’m pretty fascinated with medicine.
• Three things you can't live without:  My ipod. Food. My hair products.
• Best thing about Fort Worth & the North Side:  I think the people are pretty cool.
• Why people will love Romeo & Juliet: It’s sensual and glamorous.

The Grapes of Wrath; A Moment with Actress Laura L. Watson

Over the next two weeks we will be spending time with members of the cast of The Grapes of Wrath; A Living Scrapbook as they prep for the WORLD PREMIERE production this March 28th at Artes de la Rosa Cultural Center for the Arts. Today we spend time with actress, collegue, and friend, Laura L. Watson.


Not many people know this about me, but I was born in Oklahoma. My entire extended family lives in and around McAlester, Oklahoma. We work as butchers, bakers, shop owners, newspaper men, housewives, at the ammunition plant, but primarily we are ranchers and farmers.
As word travels through the grapevine that I am, in fact, part of this commissioned production of The Grapes of Wrath (thanks to Adam Adolfo, Texas Wesleyan, and the National Endowment for the Arts for making this production possible as part of The Big Read), my family echoes the same sentiment: My acting career must be hitting an all time low to be a part of anything by Steinbeck.
“Steinbeck never lived in Oklahoma.”
“He heard a few stories and then made up one, and people believed it.”
“We don’t talk like that. Nobody does. People from Oklahoma were educated, Christians - we are good people. But no one who’s read that book thinks so.”
“That book is still banned. My kids won’t read it.”
My family stayed in Oklahoma and held on during the Dust Bowl’s Great Depression. They are a proud people who work hard and never, ever give up.
I remember reading The Grapes of Wrath in high school. I hated it - as I should.
Now, I’m reading it as a Texan, as an actor, as an historian, and as a journalist. Though I see my family’s point, I’m also beginning to see everyone else’s reasons for calling it a great American novel.
So, here I am: an Oklahoma-born Texan diving into the bowels of The Grapes of Wrath. And though I can pick the book apart, I see the heart of it - the heart of a peple who refuse to quit. He captured the spirit of Oklahomans. I know these people.
Adam calls this production his book report on The Grapes of Wrath - NOT his adaptation. We are here to make people want to read this book. And, as we make this living book report come alive - complete with anticipation, preparation, birth pains, and (hopefully) the overwhelming celebration when we hear a new life take its first triumphant breath - I am bringing my entire family and our history into the delivery room with me. Though they refuse to support Steinbeck’s work, my family will be on the stage with me.
As part of this diverse cast (including Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Chicanos, Germans, British, and so forth), I will attempt to capture my Oklahoma spirit - the pride, the strength, and the refusal to quit until the work is done. That is what jumped out at me during the first rehearsal: All anyone wanted during the Great Depression was to WORK. To earn their keep, to feed their family and take care of their own. To hold their head up high. I sat up with pride as I realized this was the American spirit of this time - just let me work. (Where is this attitude today? Oh, my, THAT is another blog for another show.) My family may see this as a low point in my acting career, but at least I’m working. And they are proud of me for that.