Today we’d like to introduce you to Carolina Queiroz Couto.
Hi Carolina, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m proudly from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Portuguese is my first language, and I’m so grateful that I get to be an actor here in the U.S.! Being an actress is such a privilege, and being able to work artistically while collaborating with people from all sorts of backgrounds is truly a gift.
I never thought I’d be living the life I have now in L.A. If you had told 15-year-old me that I’d become an actress in Hollywood, I would’ve laughed at you! But here I am.
After going to college here in the States, majoring in Theater and minoring in Philosophy, I decided to go to grad school at Louisiana State University (LSU — Geaux Tigers!), where I earned my MFA in Acting and a teaching certification. It was a highly competitive acting program, and I’m beyond grateful to have been the only international student selected to be part of my cohort.
I’ve worked professionally in Equity theaters in Missouri, Illinois, Louisiana, and now in Los Angeles. In 2018, I won the award for Best Classical Actress at the KCACTF Region 3 Irene Ryan Scholarship auditions. I also feel very fortunate to have continued working online during the lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.
I’m a stage, film, and television actress, as well as an acting teacher and coach, certified in Seven Pillars Acting and Moment Work. I also teach Voice & Speech and Movement for the actor, and I love directing whenever I get the opportunity.
I love Los Angeles, and I’m excited about the new opportunities coming up for me in the next few months!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I think any artist out there would agree that you live a different kind of life when you choose to become an artist. You have unconventional schedules, interests, side gigs, way of living, and savings account than anyone else… The biggest challenge is to stay focused, positive, and humble while taking steps forward, especially when it seems like “all the odds are not in your favor.”
Sure, things felt quite difficult at different times, but when I look back at my life experience, I can’t help but be in awe at how far I’ve come, and how fortunate I am to have worked with the people that I have on the projects that I’ve been in. I guess holding on to my faith in God, and staying open, willing, and grateful has been the key for me. Also, it gives me hope for the future and motivation to keep giving my best every day.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Some of my main roles as an actor include Desdemona in Shakespeare’s OTHELLO produced by Theater Baton Rouge, Cordelia and the Fool in Shakespeare’s KING LEAR produced by Ozark Actor Theater, directed by A.S. Freeman, and Oscar in Lynn Nottage’s SWEAT produced by Swine Palace, directed by G.D. Kimble. I have also had the pleasure to do one of my favorite shows in 2022, produced by the Red Magnolia Theater Company, Lauren Gunderson’s THE REVOLUTIONISTS where I played Marie Antoinette. It was such a wonderful thing to work with a theater that focuses on women’s playwriting, and that is run only by women. I am really proud of that work. I have been a part of one-woman shows, including THE TWELVE DATES OF CHRISTMAS by Ginna Hoben, and the one I wrote with the support of Leigh Fondakowski from the Tectonic Theater Project called CONFESSIONS OF A CARIOCA.
I have also been in short films such as LA MANO NEGRA, BREAK (both films on IMDB), LOVE IN THE DARK (Crypt TV), and THE BURGER by Joshua Tran screened at the New Orleans Film Festival in 2024 and currently available on YouTube. I have a feature project coming out soon that I am super excited about, as well.
I am also an Acting Teacher at the Actor’s Studio of Orange County. I coach online in Los Angeles, as well
I’m currently working on producing here in LA alongside Bankside Rep. Theater Co. a live theater piece in which I will also be acting. The play is called DANNY AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA by John Patrick Shanley, and we are planning on putting it up in March of 2026. Location and dates should be confirmed soon.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
Yes! Put yourself out there as much as you can, connect with people in an honest way, put your head down and do the work–go above and beyond every chance you get, stay open to all the opportunities that come your way, and stay positive. Focus on the work, but also allow yourself to live. Having life experience is so important for an actor. Fight the urge to say (or agree with anyone who says) that this profession is “difficult.”
Creativity requires curiosity and openness to what is available to you, but also patience and rest. Stay open to all forms of collaboration and see any work or audition as an opportunity to work and grow. It’s not about people liking you or being chosen by someone… It’s about collaborating with others and creating something that is meaningful and of quality.
Keep good companies around, be a good company, and as much as you can, make things happen! I guess any person coming from another country can help you with this last one.
Oh, also, make sure to expose yourself to lots of reading, writing, and any art you see out there. Learn who you are and what interests you.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @carolinaqcouto
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/z8mEkgxVr2Q?si=iUx99kfqpKHZ2LyT
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm14255062/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
Image Credits
Sara Cripps Cameron Radice Josh Tran
