Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalia Ortega.
Hi Natalia, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’ve always been in love with art!
I’m an actress, writer, dancer, and director. I love to paint, read, sing, and create. What I like to create the most is works of art that give voice to the silenced. Giving life to stories that I believe will help social change and portraying characters that can make people connect with them is truly my biggest passion.
Originally from Mexico City, I moved to LA three years ago to continue pursuing my career. I studied at Stella Adler’s Art of Acting Studio not only because of their faculty but because they nurture theatre artists who value humanity and believe in providing art and education to the greater community.
While studying at their Professional Conservatory, I was given the opportunity to create my own pieces, and there’s two projects that really marked me as an artist: The first one was a Poetry Project where I became a Pachuco, a Mexican-American talking about the pain that the border represents, the existential crisis of feeling like you don’t belong here nor there, the struggle and the beauty of the immigrant’s journey. The second one was a Solo Show where I explored mental health by sharing the point of view of Lupe Velez, one of the first Mexican actresses to become a Hollywood success, who unfortunately took her own life away.
By the end of the 2.5 years program, I had very clear which type of work I wanted to continue doing.
In 2022 my dear friend Alejandro Cuauhtémoc and I were talking about how frustrated and desperate we felt about violence against women in Mexico. We came to the conclusion that the best way we could help was by writing a show that could create awareness. We collaborated and gave life to “Promises”, a two-person play that repairs on the behavioral nuances that can help a potential victim (and their loved ones) to identify abuse before it’s too late. We performed it at The Broadwater for the Hollywood Fringe Festival.
I’m very grateful for being able to say I’ve been acting in projects back to back ever since I graduated.
I’m currently working with the East West Players (the longest-running theatre of color in the nation!) in the show Sama Sama: Solidarity in the Fields. I’m portraying the character of Dolores Huerta in this story that talks about the “Manongs” and “Bracero Program” and emphasizes the shared narratives of Mexican and Filipino culture. It’s been an educational and very inspiring process.
I keep finding beautiful, talented people who are passionate about changing the world.
Honestly, sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that I’m actually here, living in LA and doing what I love. If I went back in time and told little Natalia that she was going to make it this far, she would lose her mind. I’m very happy with this journey!
In the future, I’m hoping to produce the show I just wrote about eating disorders, with the intention of helping people understand the subject and share a message that I wish someone told me when I needed to hear it myself: “You deserve to eat”.
Art is an effective way to make people feel, question themselves, and understand experiences that otherwise they wouldn’t have access to. I don’t know; maybe I dream too big, haha. I think the world needs more dreamers.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I definitely struggled with the culture shock, specially my first year here.
I remember crying at my first acting class because I was frustrated about the language barrier.
My first-semester doing Improv, I always found excuses to make my characters unable to hear, or I would make them mean and ignore what my scene partner was saying because truly I couldn’t understand the English words they were using. Now I look back and laugh about it, but at the moment it made me very insecure.
I eventually got more confident about my English and found my voice. Having a loving group of friends supporting me helped a lot.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m very proud of my physical theatre training. I trained in Mexico City for several years before I came to the US. One of the teachers that marked me the most was Jaime Soriano, who introduced me to Grotowski’s technique.
Movement is now a fundamental part of my character exploration and my creative process.
Although I will say what sets me apart from others more than anything is my strong, very loud laugh. It’s very particular; that’s what everyone remembers me for, haha. I laugh all the time.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Trust yourself. Follow your dreams, and listen to your intuition.
If you have fear, then do it with fear. I think that for many years, fear stopped me from doing things that I wanted to do. I was scared of not being good enough. But I learned with the years that you don’t need to do things perfectly; you just need to do things with love.
If you have the impulse to go create art, do it!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @nataliaaortega6
