The Latin Explosion: A New America 2015 premiere
Tuesday November 10th, Hudson Theatre 141 W 44th St, New York, NY 10036
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- Music Artist
- Actress
- Producer
Ariadna Thalía Sodi Miranda (born 26 August 1971), known mononymously as Thalía, is a Mexican singer, songwriter, producer, actress and entrepreneur. She is considered one of the most successful and influential Mexican artists worldwide. Apart from her native Spanish, Thalía has also sung in English, Tagalog, French, and Portuguese.
She is sometimes referred to as the "Queen of Latin Pop" by international media because of her renown within the Latin pop music scene for the last three decades. As a solo artist, she has sold over 50 million records worldwide. She has received numerous accolades, including five Billboard Latin Music Awards (from 17 nominations), several Premios Juventud and Lo Nuestro Awards, as well as seven Latin Grammy Award nominations. She has collaborated with renowned artists, such as Tony Bennett, Michael Bublé, Robbie Williams, Marc Anthony, Laura Pausini, Romeo Santos and Carlos Vives as well as with younger popular artists like Maluma, Prince Royce, Becky G and Natti Natasha.
As an actress, Thalía starred in a variety of successful telenovelas that aired in over 180 countries and that led to her being referred to as the "Queen of telenovelas" by the mass media. The global impact of her novelas helped her to popularize her music in non-Spanish speaking territories and markets in Europe and Asia. The Mexican media company Televisa has named her the best-paid telenovela actress in history, while Billboard names her the most widely recognized Spanish-speaking soap star in the world.
In 2011, Terra Networks included her in its list of "powerful and iconic women in Latin music". She is also a successful fashion brand owner (having signed an exclusive deal with Macy's), has her own nationally syndicated radio show and is the author of four books, including her memoir. On 5 December 2013 she was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as a recognition for her achievements in the music industry.- Producer
- Actor
- Music Department
Tommy Mottola was born on 1 July 1948 in The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for The Secret of My Success (1987), Ruthless People (1986) and Carly in Concert: Coming Around Again (1987). He has been married to Thalía since 2 December 2000. They have two children. He was previously married to Mariah Carey and Lisa Clark.- Producer
- Actor
- Writer
George Lopez was born on April 23, 1961, in Mission Hills, Los Angeles, California, the son of Frieda and Anatasio Lopez, a migrant worker. He is of Mestizo Mexican descent. He was deserted by his father when he was two months old and by his mother when he was 10 years old, but was raised by his maternal grandmother, Benita Gutierrez, a factory worker, and step-grandfather, Refugio Gutierrez, a construction worker. Lopez attended San Fernando High School, graduating in 1979. He is known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom George Lopez. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including Mexican American culture. Lopez has received several honors for his work and contributions to the Latino community, including the 2003 Imagen Vision Award, the 2003 Latino Spirit Award for Excellence in Television and the National Hispanic Media Coalition Impact Award. He was also named one of "The Top 25 Hispanics in America" by Time magazine in 2005. In 1993, Lopez married Ann Serrano. The couple has a daughter, Mayan, born in 1996. On September 27, 2010, Lopez announced that he and his wife had decided to end their marriage. Serrano filed for divorce on November 23, 2010, citing "irreconcilable differences. The divorce was finalized on July 1, 2011.- Music Artist
- Composer
- Actor
José Feliciano was born on 10 September 1945 in Lares, Puerto Rico. He is a music artist and composer, known for Moulin Rouge! (2001), Fargo (1996) and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978). He has been married to Susan Omillian since 2 August 1982. They have three children. He was previously married to Hilda Perez.- Editorial Department
- Editor
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Cheech Marin was born on 13 July 1946 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Born in East L.A. (1987), Tin Cup (1996) and Up in Smoke (1978). He has been married to Natasha Rubin since 8 August 2009. He was previously married to Rikki Marin and Patti Heid.- Producer
- Composer
- Music Department
Emilio Estefan Jr. was born on 4 March 1953 in Havana, Cuba. He is a producer and composer, known for The Mask of Zorro (1998), Top Gun (1986) and Cobra (1986). He has been married to Gloria Estefan since 2 September 1978. They have two children.- Music Artist
- Music Department
- Actress
Gloria Estefan was born on 1 September 1957 in Havana, Cuba. She is a music artist and actress, known for Music of the Heart (1999), Poseidon (2006) and The Specialist (1994). She has been married to Emilio Estefan Jr. since 2 September 1978. They have two children.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Rita Moreno is one of the very few performers to win an Oscar, an Emmy, a Tony and a Grammy, thus becoming an EGOT. She was born Rosita Dolores Alverío in the hospital in Humacao, Puerto Rico on December 11, 1931 (but raised in nearby, smaller Juncos, which had no hospital), to seamstress Rosa María (Marcano) and farmer Francisco José "Paco" Alverío. Her mother moved to New York City in 1937, taking Rita with her while leaving her reportedly unfaithful husband and Rita's younger brother behind. Rita's professional career began before she reached adolescence.
From the age of nine, she performed as a professional dancer in New York night clubs. At age 11, she landed her first movie experience, dubbing Spanish-language versions of US films. Less than a month before her 14th birthday on November 22, 1945, she made her Broadway debut in the play "Skydrift" at the Belasco Theatre, costarring with Arthur Keegan and a young Eli Wallach. Although she would not appear again on Broadway for almost two decades, Rita Moreno, as she was billed in the play, had arrived professionally. In 1950, she was signed by MGM, but the studio dropped her option after just one year.
The cover of the March 1, 1954, edition of "Life Magazine" featured a three-quarters, over-the-left-shoulder profile of the young Puerto Rican actress/entertainer with the provocative title "Rita Moreno: An Actresses' Catalog of Sex and Innocence". It was sexpot time, a stereotype that would plague her throughout the decade. If not cast as a Hispanic pepper pot, she could rely on being cast as another "exotic", such as her appearance on Father Knows Best (1954) as an exchange student from India. Because of a dearth of decent material, Moreno had to play roles in movies that she considered degrading. Among the better pictures she earned featured roles in were the classic Singin' in the Rain (1952) and The King and I (1956).
Director Robert Wise, who was chosen to co-direct West Side Story (1961) (the film version of the smash Broadway musical, a retelling of William Shakespeare's "Romeo & Juliet" with the warring Venetian clans the Montagues and Capulets re-envisioned as Irish/Polish and Puerto Rican adolescent street gangs, the Jets and the Sharks), cast Moreno as "Anita", the Puerto Rican girlfriend of Sharks' leader Bernardo, whose sister Maria is the piece's Juliet.
However, despite her talent, roles commensurate with that talent were not forthcoming in the 1960s. The following decade would prove kinder, possibly because the beautiful Moreno had aged gracefully and could now be seen by filmmakers, TV producers and casting directors as something other than the spitfire/sexpot that Hispanic women were supposed to conform to. Ironically, it was in two vastly diverging roles--that of a $100 hooker in director Mike Nichols' brilliant realization of Jules Feiffer's acerbic look at male sexuality, Carnal Knowledge (1971), and Milly the Helper in the children's TV show The Electric Company (1971)--that signaled a career renaissance.
Moreno won a 1972 Grammy Award for her contribution to "The Electric Company"'s soundtrack album, following it up three years later with a Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Musical for "The Ritz" (a role she would reprise in the film version, The Ritz (1976)). She then won Emmy Awards for The Muppet Show (1976) and The Rockford Files (1974).
She has continued to work steadily on screen (both large and small) and on stage, solidifying her reputation as a national treasure, a status that was officially ratified with the award of the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in June 2004.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
David Zayas was born on 15 August 1962 in Ponce, Puerto Rico. He is an actor and producer, known for Skyline (2010), The Expendables (2010) and Dexter (2006). He has been married to Liza Colón-Zayas since 21 November 1998. They have one child.- Actress
- Costume Designer
Cuban-born television hostess Lili Estefan got her big break as one of the main hostesses of the long-running Spanish-language variety show Sábado gigante (1986). After 12 years of hosting that show, she left to co-host a celebrity-gossip show, El gordo y la flaca (1998) for the same network, Univisión, in 1998. She is a major presenter for special events such as beauty pageants and the annual Calle Ocho music festival held in Miami, Florida.- Actor
- Producer
Sullivan Stapleton was born on 14 June 1977 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He is an actor and producer, known for Animal Kingdom (2010), 300: Rise of an Empire (2014) and Gangster Squad (2013).- Actor
- Cinematographer
- Editor
Frankie Negron was born on 21 January 1977 in Newark, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor and cinematographer, known for ROMA: The Silent Film (2015), Boricua's Bond (2000) and Piensa, Piensa (2013).- Montse Torres is known for La ciutat cremada (1976).
- Actor
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Alex Sensation is known for Pasapalabra (2016), Alex Sensation & Nicky Jam: La Diabla (2018) and Alex Sensation Feat. Ozuna: Que Va (2017).- Producer
- Director
- Cinematographer
Jon Alpert was born on 13 December 1948 in Port Chester, New York, USA. He is a producer and director, known for Baghdad ER (2006), Cuba and the Cameraman (2017) and Independent Lens (1999).- Matthew O'Neill was born on 29 March 1971 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for The Dark Knight (2008), High Fidelity (2000) and Dot (2002).
- Juan Camilo Sanchez is known for Grand Theft Auto V (2013) and Yo! MTV Maps (2021).
- Producer
- Writer
- Executive
Richard Plepler is known for Black Bird (2022), The Problem with Jon Stewart (2021) and A Search for Solid Ground: The Intifada Through Israeli Eyes (1990).- Producer
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Nevins runs MTV Documentary Films and was the President of HBO's Documentary and Family Programming from 2005 - 2018. She earned a bachelor of the arts degree from Barnard Collegeand a master of fine arts degree from Yale University. Nevins produced documentaries before joining HBO in 1979. Nevins has overseen production of nearly 500 documentaries, earning eleven Oscars, 31 Primetime Emmys, 19 Academy Awards, 22 News and Documentary Emmys and 18 George Foster Peabody awards for HBO and one personal George Foster Peabody award. She also received a 2005 News and Documentary Emmy for Lifetime Achievement. She received the 1998 Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Documentary Association. Nevins was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame in 2000. She began her career with the United States Information Service in Washington, DC, which produced and distributed documentary programs around the world. Nevins was a producer for National Education Television's Great Dream Machine, a field producer for an ABC television documentary unit, a writer for Time-Life Films, a producer-writer for the Children's Television Workshop, a producer for CBS-TV's Who's Who program, and president of Spinning Reels, a production company. She joined HBO in 1979 as director of documentary programming. Nevins was named executive vice president, original programming, for HBO and Cinemax in 1999 and President of Documentary and Family in 2005. She joined MTV in 2019.- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Born and raised in Tampa, Florida (and of Spanish, Cuban and Argentinian descent), Alexis Carra displayed an early passion to perform which started with dance classes at the tender age of two. By her teenage years she started to dance with Tampa's Bay Ballet Theater and also studied with Alvin Ailey and the Princeton Ballet while she pursued her interest in musical theater. The daughter of a psychiatrist and psychologist, education was important to her and she attended Yale University where she graduated with a B.A. in Theatre Studies, Cum Laude.
During her years at Yale she took a break and toured the country with Ann Reinking's production of the legendary Tony Award winning musical, "Fosse" which cemented her love for musical theater. Upon graduation she headed to New York and quickly procured roles in some of the top Broadway shows including "Wicked," "Sweet Charity," and "Fame on 42nd St." After closing the Broadway show, "The Pirate Queen" she decided to move to Los Angeles and since then, she has worked continuously. She has guest starred on TV series such as "Grey's Anatomy," "Castle," "The Mentalist," and "Bones." The talented actress was a series regular on ABC's comedy, "Mixology" (a mid-season replacement, also on Netflix). She portrays 'Jessica,' a hot young mom looking to find love and fun while getting her confidence back following her divorce.
Carra is a passionate fitness enthusiast and loves to take yoga and Pilates classes and run. She continues to take and teach ballet, modern and jazz dance classes to keep up her technique - and her passion for dance has extended to choreography. She assisted on Fox's hit series "So You Think You Can Dance" and choreographed for The Discovery Channel's hit show, "The Beekman Boys." The busy actress also teaches a musical theater jazz class at Los Angeles's popular dance studio, The Edge.
For philanthropic interests her heart rests with women's causes. She is the Head of Content Creation of the New Hollywood Women's Goal Group, Inc. which helps to support women in the entertainment industry and empower them to authentically pursue their career, personal and philanthropic goals. Alexis has produced directed, and choreographed for benefits raising money for causes such as Free The Slaves, American Cancer Society, and St. Jude's Children's Hospital.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Danny DeVito has amassed a formidable and versatile body of work as an actor, producer and director that spans the stage, television and film.
Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. was born on November 17, 1944, in Neptune, New Jersey, to Italian-American parents. His mother, Julia (Moccello), was a homemaker. His father, Daniel, Sr., was a small business owner whose ventures included a dry cleaning shop, a dairy outlet, a diner, and a pool hall.
While growing up in Asbury Park, his parents sent him to private schools. He attended Our Lady of Mount Carmel grammar school and Oratory Prep School. Following graduation in 1962, he took a job as a cosmetician at his sister's beauty salon. A year later, he enrolled at New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts so he could learn more about cosmetology. While at the academy, he fell in love with acting and decided to further pursue an acting career. During this time, he met another aspiring actor Michael Douglas at the National Playwrights Conference in Waterford, Connecticut. The two would later go on to collaborate on numerous projects. Soon after he also met an actress named Rhea Perlman. The two fell in love and moved in together. They were married in 1982 and had three children together.
In 1968, Danny landed his first part in a movie when he appeared as a thug in the obscure Dreams of Glass (1970). Despite this minor triumph, Danny became discouraged with the film industry and decided to focus on stage productions. He made his Off-Broadway debut in 1969 in "The Man With the Flower in His Mouth." He followed this up with stage roles in "The Shrinking Bride," and "Lady Liberty." In 1975, he was approached by director Milos Forman and Michael Douglas about appearing in the film version of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), which would star Jack Nicholson in the leading role. With box office success almost guaranteed and a chance for national exposure, Danny agreed to the role. The movie became a huge hit, both critically and financially, and still ranks today as one the greatest movies of all time. Unfortunately, the movie did very little to help Danny's career. In the years following, he was relegated to small movie roles and guest appearances on television shows. His big break came in 1978 when he auditioned for a role on an ABC sitcom pilot called Taxi (1978), which centered around taxi cab drivers at a New York City garage. Danny auditioned for the role of dispatcher Louie DePalma. At the audition, the producers told Danny that he needed to show more attitude in order to get the part. He then slammed down the script and yelled, "Who wrote this sh**?" The producers, realizing he was perfect for the part, brought him on board. The show was a huge success, running from 1978 to 1983.
Louie DePalma, played flawlessly by Danny, became one of the most memorable (and reviled) characters in television history. While he was universally hated by TV viewers, he was well-praised by critics, winning an Emmy award and being nominated three other times. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Danny maintained his status as a great character actor with memorable roles in movies like Romancing the Stone (1984), Ruthless People (1986), Throw Momma from the Train (1987) and Twins (1988). He also had a great deal of success behind the camera, directing movies like The War of the Roses (1989) and Hoffa (1992). In 1992, Danny was introduced to a new generation of moviegoers when he was given the role of The Penguin/Oswald Cobblepot in Tim Burton's highly successful Batman Returns (1992). This earned him a nomination for Best Villain at the MTV Movie Awards. That same year, along with his wife Rhea Perlman, Danny co-founded Jersey Films, which has produced many popular films and TV shows, including Pulp Fiction (1994), Get Shorty (1995), Man on the Moon (1999) and Erin Brockovich (2000). DeVito has many directing credits to his name as well, including Throw Momma from the Train (1987), The War of the Roses (1989), Hoffa (1992), Death to Smoochy (2002) and the upcoming St. Sebastian.
In 2006, he returned to series television in the FX comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005). With a prominent role in a hit series, Devito's comic talents were now on display for a new generation of television viewers. In 2012, he provided the title voice role in Dr. Seuss' The Lorax (2012).
These days, he continues to work with many of today's top talents as an actor, director and producer.- Composer
- Producer
- Music Department
- Music Artist
- Actor
- Composer
Armando Christian Pérez, known by the stage name Pitbull or Mr. Worldwide, is an American rapper. His first recorded mainstream performance was on a solo track from Lil Jon's 2002 album Kings of Crunk. In 2004, Pitbull released his debut album M.I.A.M.I. under TVT Records. It included production producers Lil Jon and Jim Jonsin. Pitbull later released his second album El Mariel, in 2006 and his third, The Boatlift, in 2007. His fourth album, Rebelution (2009), included his breakthrough hit single "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)", which peaked at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Pitbull's 2011 album Planet Pit, featured the single "Give Me Everything", which was his first US number-one single. His 2013 track "Timber" from his Meltdown EP topped the charts in twenty nations, including the US and UK. He performed the song "We Are One (Ole Ola)" along with Jennifer Lopez and Claudia Leitte, which served as the official theme of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Armando Christian Perez was born to Cuban expatriates in Miami, Florida. When he was 3, he could recite the works of Cuba's national hero and poet, José Martí, in Spanish. Growing up, he was influenced by the Miami bass genre of pop music and has cited Celia Cruz and Willy Chirino as sources of inspiration for his music. Pérez's parents separated when he was young, and he was raised by his mother; he later spent time with a foster family in Roswell, Georgia. He attended South Miami Senior High School before graduating from Miami Coral Park High School, where he focused his career on rapping.
He said he chose his stage name of Pitbull because the dogs "bite to lock. The dog is too stupid to lose. And they're outlawed in Dade County. They're basically everything that I am. It's been a constant fight". After meeting Lil Jon in Miami, Pitbull was featured on Lil Jon and the East Side Boyz' album Kings of Crunk in 2002. Pitbull's song "Oye" was featured on the soundtrack to the film 2 Fast 2 Furious the following year. In addition, Pitbull released several mixtapes, composed of freestyles and remixes of popular rap music. Campbell featured Pitbull in his single, "Lollipop".
n 2001, Pitbull was signed to Luther Campbell's Luke Records by Jullian Boothe, then the label's vice-president of A&R. In 2001, Pitbull was introduced to Robert Fernandez of Famous Artist Music & Management, an independent label and management company specializing in developing artists, by the Diaz Brothers, a producer duo signed to the company. Fernandez "saw the eagerness and hunger he had" and, with the Luke Records deal ending, began working to develop Pitbull. Together they focused on creating a more radio-friendly sound. Fernandez later told HitQuarters: "At that time his music had a lot of verses and took a long time to get into the hook, and so we took time in getting the songs catchier and less on the rap side." Fernandez introduced Pitbull to Lil Jon, hoping to secure the rapper a small guest intro spot on Lil Jon's upcoming album Kings of Crunk. According to Fernandez, Jon took a liking to Pérez and offered him a track on the album; it is called "Pitbull's Cuban Ride Out." This track helped raise the young rapper's profile.
In 2004, Pitbull released his debut album M.I.A.M.I., with the lead single being "Culo" produced by Lil Jon and the Diaz Brothers. It peaked at No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 11 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart. Other singles included "Dammit Man", "Back Up", "Toma", and "That's Nasty" (both featuring Lil Jon). He joined the Anger Management Tour, the 2000 hip-hop concert tour headlined by Eminem and 50 Cent. Pitbull also appeared on the Ying Yang Twins' single "Shake", which peaked at No.41 on the Hot 100 and No.12 on the rap chart, Adassa's chart topping single "Kamasutra" & Twista's "Hit the Floor" (#94 Hot 100, No. 20 Rap). Remix album Money Is Still a Major Issue was released in November 2005; it included new track "Everybody Get Up", a duet with hip-hop/R&B group Pretty Ricky.
TVT Records, Pitbull's label at the time, and Slip-n-Slide Records disputed over the release of Welcome to the 305, an unreleased album by Slip-n-Slide that Pitbull had recorded in 2001. A Miami judge ruled that Slip-n-Slide had a legal right to release the album as it was recorded when Pitbull was a Slip-N-Slide artist, and prior to him signing with TVT Records. A U.S. District Court judge affirmed the decision further. TVT was then ordered in March 2007 to pay Slip-n-Slide $9.1 million for attempting to block the album's release to record stores and digital download entities. In 2005 Pitbull and rapper Sean 'Diddy' Combs co-founded Bad Boy Latino, a subsidiary of Combs' Bad Boy Records label. It primarily focuses on Latin hip hop, Latin soul, Latin pop and other tropical music and has offices in New York and Miami, Florida.
In April 2011 Jennifer Lopez released Love?, which featured Pitbull on two singles. "Fresh Out the Oven" did not meet with critical or popular success but the second cut, "On the Floor" was a certified hit. The single went on to make its Billboard Hot 100 debut at number nine, becoming the highest debuting Hot 100 single of Lopez's career. Pitbull released Planet Pit, on June 21, 2011. Pitbull collaborated with T-Pain on its first single, which became a moderate hit; "Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor)", which peaked at #7 on the Hot 100.
On March 22, 2011, Pitbull released his second single, "Give Me Everything"; three months later, the song became Pitbull's first single to top the Billboard Hot 100. It was ranked no. 5 on the 2011 Billboard Year-End Chart. The song features American R&B singer Ne-Yo, American singer Nayer and Dutch DJ Afrojack, who also produced the song and co-wrote it with Matt Howard, Pitbull and Ne-Yo. In August 2011, Lindsay Lohan sued Pitbull, Ne-Yo and Afrojack in response to the song's lyrics referencing her name, "I've got it locked up like Lindsay Lohan." Lohan objected to the negative connotation of the line and claimed that she should have been compensated for the use of her name in the song. The case was dismissed by a federal judge, who ruled the tune's lyrics are protected by the First Amendment, which covers freedom of speech and creative expression.
On November 10, 2017, Pitbull announced his 5th compilation album, titled 'Pitbull Greatest Hits'. The thirteen track album features eleven of Pitbull's most successful leading artist songs, accompanied by "Jungle (with Stereotypes ft. Abraham Mateo and E-40)" and "Locas (ft. Lil' Jon)", two brand new Pitbull songs. The deluxe edition of the album released exclusively in Japan featured a 14th Pitbull track, "Celebrate". The compilation album was released worldwide on December 1, 2017.