Matthew Desmond
Staff Writer
As an accomplished actress, playwright, singer, producer, and educator, Sandra Delgado has done it all. She is most famous for her first staged play, La Havana Madrid. It was performed at both Steppenwolf and Goodman Theatre and received rave reviews. Delgado, a Colombian American, aims to uplift Latin American culture above its common media portrayals. Most recently, she was commissioned by Audible to write a piece in response to the novel Women Talking, by Miriam Toews. Toews’ novel was adapted to the screen and received a 2023 Oscar nomination. Other than performing and writing, Delgado is also an educator who has taught courses at Dominican University. I recently sat down with Professor Delgado to discuss her life in theater and her advice to people pursuing their passions.
Q. You act. You write and sing. You are clearly a creative person who decided to display all their talents, not just one. How did you decide to not limit yourself to just one skill?
A.“…It was all…revealed to me as I went through my career. It was one step at a time. When I first started, I was just acting, and I really thought that that was going to be it. My initial dreams were…going to L.A…. but as I fell more and more in love with theater and started really working a lot as an actor and working with a lot of playwrights as they were developing…I really found a niche there as an actor. I love being a part of new play processes. I just hit this certain time where I started craving something beyond acting. And having been so inspired by these playwrights and having ideas and…having a support system…has been such a big part of my journey.”
Q. Among the things you do, which is your favorite? Acting, writing, or singing?
A. “I hit a point with acting where it was time for me to take a break, because it wasn’t bringing me joy. The writing has been so fulfilling. Acting will always be part of my artistic expression. However, I just enjoy all parts of writing, especially the intimate parts of me discovering things and sharing it with people and putting it all together. The singing, for me, is a spiritual thing. If I had to choose one…I would say writing.”
Q. Historically, there have not been a lot of roles for minorities in the entertainment industry. As a Latina creative, do you find that this is changing?
A.“Yes. Things have changed, and especially…in the last…3-5 years. Back in the day, I would get called in for very stereotypical roles. One of my credits on IMDB…the name of my character is Crying Hispanic Woman. And I hate that credit so much because it’s like so reductive like that’s another stereotype you see all the time…like the Latina woman and, also, like just Black and Brown people generally speaking being portrayed in very traumatic situations in film and television. It’s like so much money has been made off of our pain. And so that credit…is like…it like honestly like…I’m ashamed of it, you know. I have such mixed feelings about it. It makes me angry. It makes me ashamed, and it also…it motivates me. That credit motivates me to create, to write, roles that are more than one dimension. As far as acting, something that I have noticed is that movie companies have been more open-minded for assigning roles. Now, I look at the project. Does it align with what I want to put out in the world? Is it something that I want to say? And, sometimes, I do it because I can portray this role with dignity. The other thing that is happening…is that more and more Latiné creatives on the executive level are coming into play.”
Q. What are you currently working on, and where can we see you?
A. “I am currently on Audible. I was commissioned by Audible to write a short piece in response to…a new film called Women Talking. Audible and the filmmakers teamed up, and they commissioned three female playwrights to watch the film, and then write a new theater piece in response to it. I wrote a piece, and I got to go to New York where actors from the film read or performed the original pieces. So, I went and…one of the stars from the film read my piece, and it was released on Audible last Thursday. This year…, I am working on a screenplay which is inspired by the life story of Sammy Rangel, a Mexican American activist. This summer, in California, my play, La Havana Madrid, is getting a production in South Coast Rep.
Q. You have taught at Dominican more than once as an artist in residence. Why do you feel it’s important for you to guide the next generation of artists?
A. “I was so excited when I found out I would be working with so many Latiné writers. The more that we are empowered…and really truly live that…, our stories are important to put out into the world…it’s gonna make the world a better place. I now have felt that feeling… when I’m talking to an audience member, and they have been deeply moved by what they saw, because it resonates with them. For me, to play even just a small part in someone’s journey, whether or not they want to pursue writing full time, the confidence is gold.”
Q. What advice can you give future writers and actors about breaking into the industry and getting noticed for their work?
A. “What you should focus on is building relationships by doing the work. A trap I fall into is “I need an agent. No, I need to be writing, and then when the time is right, I will get an agent.” What you do is work. You go see theater. You go see movies. You read books. You figure out “Who are the people I want to work with?.” You fill yourself up, so you know what it is that you naturally like and then just getting out there and doing the work.”
