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Raúl Esparza
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Raúl Esparza
Raúl Eduardo Esparza (born October 24, 1970) is an American actor. Considered one of Broadway's most prominent leading men since the 2000s, he is best known for his Tony Award-nominated performance as Bobby in the 2006 Broadway revival of Company and for his television role as New York Assistant District Attorney (ADA) Rafael Barba in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where he had a recurring role in Season 14 and was promoted to a series regular in Seasons 15 to 19.
He made his Broadway début in 2000 as Riff Raff in the revival of The Rocky Horror Show. Subsequently, he starred as Jonathan in the original Off-Broadway production of Tick, Tick... Boom! and Caractacus Potts in the original Broadway production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in 2005. He received Tony nominations for his roles as Philip Sallon in the Boy George musical Taboo in 2004; Bobby in the musical comedy Company in 2006; Lenny in Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming in 2008; and Charlie Fox in David Mamet's play Speed-the-Plow in 2009. Most recently, he starred in the Off-Broadway productions Road Show and Seared in 2019, and Oliver! in 2023.
Esparza has been nominated in all Tony categories for which an actor is eligible. He is widely regarded for his versatility on stage, having performed musicals by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Stephen Sondheim, Kander and Ebb, Boy George, the Sherman Brothers and in plays by Mamet, Pinter, William Shakespeare, Tom Stoppard, and others.
His film work includes Sidney Lumet's Find Me Guilty and Wes Craven's My Soul to Take, and his television credits include roles on The Path, Medium, Hannibal and Pushing Daisies. He narrated the audiobook for Stephen King's Under the Dome as well as several others, and he has sung in concerts across the country.
Raúl Esparza was born in Wilmington, Delaware, to Cuban parents, María Elena Cecilia García y Gutiérrez and Raúl Esparza y Rues, who had fled Fidel Castro's regime. While his paternal grandfather had been established in Castro's sugar ministry, his father's family grew disillusioned with the government and, in 1966, his father and grandmother escaped to the U.S. by boat, while his grandfather defected through Spain. Esparza's maternal grandfather had originally moved to Cuba from Figueres, Alt Empordà, Catalonia, Spain.
Esparza was raised in Miami, Florida. He graduated from Belen Jesuit in 1988 and won a Silver Knight Award in Drama that same year. In 1992, Esparza received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama and a Bachelor's degree in English from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
Esparza participated in the genealogy program Finding Your Roots, during Season 8, Episode 3. He learned during the episode that his Catalan great-great-grandparents founded Garcia de Pou Restaurant Supply Store in Madrid, still owned and operated by members of his family. He also learned that another branch of his family came from the small town of Navata, Girona, Catalonia, Spain, where they can be traced back fourteen generations.
Esparza first drew attention with his performance in the 2000 Broadway revival of The Rocky Horror Show, which won him the Theatre World Award. Esparza's other Broadway credits include Cabaret (2001), Taboo (2003), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2005), and Stephen Sondheim's Company (2006). He received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical at the 58th Tony Awards and won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance in Taboo. His performance in Company earned him a second Tony nomination, this time for Best Actor in a Musical at the 61st Tony Awards, as well as his second Drama Desk Award, this time for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. Beginning in November 2007, he appeared in Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play at the 62nd Tony Awards. In 2008, he played Charlie Fox in the revival of David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow co-starring Jeremy Piven and Elisabeth Moss on Broadway. His performance in Speed-the-Plow earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play at the 63rd Tony Awards, making him the second performer (after Boyd Gaines) to be nominated in all four acting categories a performer is eligible for at the Tonys, although he has yet to win one.
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Raúl Esparza
Raúl Eduardo Esparza (born October 24, 1970) is an American actor. Considered one of Broadway's most prominent leading men since the 2000s, he is best known for his Tony Award-nominated performance as Bobby in the 2006 Broadway revival of Company and for his television role as New York Assistant District Attorney (ADA) Rafael Barba in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where he had a recurring role in Season 14 and was promoted to a series regular in Seasons 15 to 19.
He made his Broadway début in 2000 as Riff Raff in the revival of The Rocky Horror Show. Subsequently, he starred as Jonathan in the original Off-Broadway production of Tick, Tick... Boom! and Caractacus Potts in the original Broadway production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in 2005. He received Tony nominations for his roles as Philip Sallon in the Boy George musical Taboo in 2004; Bobby in the musical comedy Company in 2006; Lenny in Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming in 2008; and Charlie Fox in David Mamet's play Speed-the-Plow in 2009. Most recently, he starred in the Off-Broadway productions Road Show and Seared in 2019, and Oliver! in 2023.
Esparza has been nominated in all Tony categories for which an actor is eligible. He is widely regarded for his versatility on stage, having performed musicals by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Stephen Sondheim, Kander and Ebb, Boy George, the Sherman Brothers and in plays by Mamet, Pinter, William Shakespeare, Tom Stoppard, and others.
His film work includes Sidney Lumet's Find Me Guilty and Wes Craven's My Soul to Take, and his television credits include roles on The Path, Medium, Hannibal and Pushing Daisies. He narrated the audiobook for Stephen King's Under the Dome as well as several others, and he has sung in concerts across the country.
Raúl Esparza was born in Wilmington, Delaware, to Cuban parents, María Elena Cecilia García y Gutiérrez and Raúl Esparza y Rues, who had fled Fidel Castro's regime. While his paternal grandfather had been established in Castro's sugar ministry, his father's family grew disillusioned with the government and, in 1966, his father and grandmother escaped to the U.S. by boat, while his grandfather defected through Spain. Esparza's maternal grandfather had originally moved to Cuba from Figueres, Alt Empordà, Catalonia, Spain.
Esparza was raised in Miami, Florida. He graduated from Belen Jesuit in 1988 and won a Silver Knight Award in Drama that same year. In 1992, Esparza received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama and a Bachelor's degree in English from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
Esparza participated in the genealogy program Finding Your Roots, during Season 8, Episode 3. He learned during the episode that his Catalan great-great-grandparents founded Garcia de Pou Restaurant Supply Store in Madrid, still owned and operated by members of his family. He also learned that another branch of his family came from the small town of Navata, Girona, Catalonia, Spain, where they can be traced back fourteen generations.
Esparza first drew attention with his performance in the 2000 Broadway revival of The Rocky Horror Show, which won him the Theatre World Award. Esparza's other Broadway credits include Cabaret (2001), Taboo (2003), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2005), and Stephen Sondheim's Company (2006). He received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical at the 58th Tony Awards and won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance in Taboo. His performance in Company earned him a second Tony nomination, this time for Best Actor in a Musical at the 61st Tony Awards, as well as his second Drama Desk Award, this time for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. Beginning in November 2007, he appeared in Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play at the 62nd Tony Awards. In 2008, he played Charlie Fox in the revival of David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow co-starring Jeremy Piven and Elisabeth Moss on Broadway. His performance in Speed-the-Plow earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play at the 63rd Tony Awards, making him the second performer (after Boyd Gaines) to be nominated in all four acting categories a performer is eligible for at the Tonys, although he has yet to win one.
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