Lauren Vélez
Lauren Vélez | |
|---|---|
 Vélez at a 2009 Golden Globe afterparty | |
| Born | November 2, 1964 |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1994–present |
Lauren Vélez (born November 2, 1964) is an American actress and the twin sister of actress Loraine Vélez. Her most notable roles are as María LaGuerta on Dexter, Detective Nina Moreno on Fox's New York Undercover, Dr. Gloria Nathan on HBO's prison drama, Oz, and Elena on ABC's comedy-drama, Ugly Betty.[1]
Early years
Vélez's parents moved from Puerto Rico in the early 1950s and lived in the Brooklyn borough of New York City where she and her twin sister were born. Their father was a New York City police officer who eventually bought a house in the middle-class neighborhood of Rockaway, Queens, and moved there with his wife and eight children. The sisters enjoyed setting up improvised plays and acting for the family since childhood. Vélez once played the part of a groundhog in a second grade school play, after which she decided to be an actress.[2]
After graduating from high school, the twins both received scholarships to attend the Alvin Ailey Dancing School. They also studied acting at The Acting Studio with James Price, and Lauren studied Shakespeare with Michael Howard.
Career
Vélez landed her first job performing in the national touring company of the musical Dreamgirls. Vélez also played understudy for actress Phylicia Rashad in Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods. She also performed Off-Broadway in the productions of Much Ado About Nothing and Fasade
In 1995, Vélez landed her first major television role. She was cast as Nina Moreno, a policewoman in the TV series New York Undercover.[3] That same year, she also made her film debut as Lisette Linares in the movie I Like It Like That alongside Rita Moreno and Jon Seda.[4] She was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award and The Desi Award for Best Lead Actress. The movie was nominated for four Independent Spirit Awards and won an NYFCCA award. Another TV series in which she performed was HBO's jail drama, Oz. She also acted in the feature film City Hall, with Al Pacino. In 1997, Vélez starred in Buscando un Sueño (In Search of a Dream), the first Spanish language film sanctioned by SAG. Vélez played a supporting role on Showtime's series Dexter, again playing a police lieutenant.[2]
On June 24, 2006, she won the Best Supporting Actress award at the 2006 Long Island International Film Expo for her performance as Roseanne Crystal in the independent feature film, Serial.[3]
In 2010, she received the Rita Moreno HOLA Award for Excellence from the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA).
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | I Like It Like That | Lisette Linares | Independent Spirit Awards for Best Female Lead |
| 1995 | The Cosby Mysteries | Claudine Palmeri | TV series |
| 1995–1998 | New York Undercover | Det. Nina Moreno | TV series NCLR Bravo Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series Nominated — ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series (1998) Nominated — Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (1997, 1998) |
| 1996 | City Hall | Elaine Santos | Nominated — NCLR Bravo Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series |
| 1997 | Buscando un Sueño ("In Search of a Dream") | ||
| 1997–2003 | Oz | Dr. Gloria Nathan | ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Television Series (2001) Nominated — ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Television Series (1999, 2000, 2002) |
| 1997 | I Think I Do | Carol | Nominated — ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film |
| 1998 | Thicker Than Blood | Camilla López | Nominated — ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in Made-for Television Movie or Mini-Series |
| 1998 | The LaMastas | ||
| 1999 | St. Michael's Crossing | Vicki Solera | |
| 1999 | Taino | Laura | |
| 2000 | Prince of Central Park | Rosa Sánchez | |
| 2001 | Prison Song | Prison Counselor | |
| 2001 | Love and Treason | Agent Susan Mestre | |
| 2005 | Strong Medicine | Dr. Vanessa Burke | |
| 2005 | Barely Buzzed | María Vásquez | |
| 2006 | Medium | Elena Cabrera | |
| 2006 | Numb3rs | Claudia Gomez | |
| 2006–2012 | Dexter | Cpt. María LaGuerta | NAMIC Vision Award for Best Actress - Drama Nominated — ALMA Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Television Series, Mini-Series or Television Movie (2007, 2008) Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2008 - 2011) |
| 2007 | Serial | Roseanne Crystal | Long Island International Film Expo for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2008–2010 | Ugly Betty | Elena | "Kissed Off" (Season 3, Episode 13) "The Courtship of Betty's Father" (Season 3, Episode 14) "There's No Place Like Mode" (Season 3, Episode 15) "Things Fall Apart" (Season 3, Episode 16) "A Mother of a Problem" (Season 3, Episode 18) "The Past Presents the Future" (Season 4, Episode 19) |
| 2011 | Breakout Kings | Carmen Vega |
See also
References
- ^ /p198203 fandango
- ^ a b Dexter
- ^ a b movies
- ^ television
External links
- Lauren Vélez at IMDb
- 1964 births
- Actors from New York City
- American film actors
- American people of Puerto Rican descent
- American stage actors
- American television actors
- Hispanic and Latino American actors
- Identical twin actors
- Living people
- People from Brooklyn
- Twin people from the United States
- 20th-century actresses
- 21st-century actresses