We recently connected with Nohely Quiroz and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Nohely thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

When I was a kid I would go to family parties where there would be mariachi or banda players and I would sing along with the live music. It became a party trick for my parents. My immigrant parents that wouldn’t know what to do with me if this was something I wanted to pursue. It took me a long time before I could actually learn how to sing with a teacher or dance in a class. Getting on a dance team or cheer team was also difficult because I didn’t grow up in dance studios. Learning the craft had much more sacrifices to it to get to it. And I think that’s what keeps me going. Only I know what I had to go through to get to where I am now.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a first generation Mexican American singer actress stunt performer and comedy writer. I wrote my own show called Tales of a 5 Foot Nothing after many years of being a chorus girl in regional musical theater productions. There is no role in commercial theater written for a 5 foot cafecito skin Latina. Not white enough for In the Heights and too brown for West Side Story. Both about East Coast Latine. I wanted to see the stories about people who looked like me. So I just wrote it. And I created a show that highlights other performers as well, creating jobs for talented performers and production crew. My creative team is all BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA+.

I have worked for the Walt Disney Company for over 10 years and in and out of recording studios since I was 9 years old. Today I make a living as a voice over artist while I am able to keep working on my show, looking for new venues and opportunities to take my story.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I had to unlearn not to try to be the work that’s already created. To be authentically myself shines brighter than trying to be anyone else. When a new book musical is created or a new breakdown for a character in a tv show is released, there is an urgency to fit that mold to book the job. I had to unlearn that.

As an actor it’s your job to find yourself in the work and what you can organically bring to a character to bring them to life. Once I started to have fun and be honest to myself, I started to see success in every area of my life. Which was unexpected.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

If you can think of every role in an office selling a product then you can imagine all the roles being done by the product. And sometimes that part gets harder and then the focus gets pulled from keeping the product ready for purchase. Because it’s selling itself and memorizing lines.

The actor is the product and the company. The bigger the career the easier to hire more help but for the majority of us, there is so much more behind the script and the performer.

We are not paid too much. There is so much to it that a lot of people do not see.

Contact Info:

• Website: Nohelyquiroz.com
• Instagram: @nohelyviquiroz
• Other: https://m.imdb.com/name/nm5623950/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk

Image Credits
Ryella Zar Photography Blake Eiermann Photography Quiroz personal images