Diane Rodriguez
When Diane was 7 years old she started acting in church plays. Her father, Jake, would build the sets and her mother, Helen, would play the piano. Her family went to a Baptist church in San Jose, California and on Sundays when she couldn’t understand the sermons because they were in Spanish, she dreamed of being an actress. In 9th grade she knew she wanted to go to the University of California in Santa Barbara and she did. Her first year at UCSB her Dad bought her a Pontiac Le Mans that had a white vinyl top and metallic green body. It was fast and she quickly racked up speeding tickets going from Santa Barbara to San Jose.
Upon graduation, her drama school counselor told her it might be best for her to think of another profession. She didn’t listen to him and joined a theatre company led by a man with a big moustache and big ideas, Luis Valdez. By the time she was 30 she had been on the road touring to Europe and Mexico and throughout the U.S. It was pretty grand. She even got directed by the most notable 20th century director, Peter Brook in CONFERENCE OF THE BIRDS where she played a bird and she was pretty riveting.
She moved to Los Angeles to be an actriz (that’s Spanish for actress) and seriously lasted for years doing T.V. guest star roles and super small parts in famous movies like "Terminator 2" and "La Bamba" and doing lots of theatre. She was appreciative but bored of the roles she was playing. She had a college degree but only played maids, and gang boy’s mothers and cried all the time. By the time she was 40 the only roles she was being offered were housekeepers. Admittedly, in real life Diane was not even a good housekeeper. She hated the deception. So, she decided to take matters into her own hands and re-direct her career by empowering herself and becoming a director. And, that’s where she thrives. She admits that she’s gotten a lot bossier but happier.
Now, when she is in NYC seeing a show on Broadway, the Los Angeles Times theatre critic, Charles McNulty, writes about her on Facebook.
May we all find our passion.
