By Cristopher Pineda, Oct. 1, 2024
Puerto Rican American actress and playwright Liza Colón-Zayas won best supporting actress in a comedy series at the 76th Emmy Awards Sept. 15 for her role as Tina Marrero on the Hulu series “The Bear.”
First starting as one of the main chefs at The Original Beef of Chicagoland in the show, her character became a representation for Latina women in the workforce.
As a Puerto Rican woman herself, Colón-Zayas’ Tina also deals with the many difficulties of being diminished for her identity as a Latina in the food industry. A standout episode for her character comes from season three’s “Napkins.” The episode, directed by her co-star Ayo Edebiri, focuses on Tina’s home life and internal struggles, such as familial issues with her son, and getting fired from a job she had for 15 years. This episode quickly became a fan-favorite of the entire series.
Belen Flores, an environmental biology student at Cal Poly Pomona, recounts how the episode feels rawer and more human than the stereotypical portrayal of male well-respected chefs in media.
“The first jobs that my family had coming to this country were in food service, so watching the ups and downs of that experience in a mainstream television show is very moving,” Flores said.
During Colón-Zayas’s acceptance speech, she said that she felt shocked at winning the award and didn’t prepare anything to say. She said that she did not expect the award being up against such well-known actresses like Meryl Streep, Carol Burnett, Janelle James, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Hannah Einbinder.
Jay Manuel Castro, a recent graduate of the theatre department, said that even though this is such an amazing moment, it might feel obsolete because people of color are still striving for acceptance.
“When it comes to actors and performers who are POC there is already so much weight on us,” said Manuel Castro. “So, when there is a historical moment like this, we don’t think about it because we are just trying to be seen.”
Colón-Zayas, a Bronx native, started her career Off-Broadway where she wrote, produced and starred in, “Sistah Supreme,” a one-woman show about growing up Latina in 1970s and 1980s New York.
She has also been a member of the LAByrinth Theater Company since its founding in 1992. The company was originally known as Latino Actors Base and was founded by a small group of actors who wanted to push their artistic limits and expand the boundaries of mainstream theater.
Sayda Trujillo, an assistant professor in theatre at CPP, said that she saw Colón-Zayas perform for the first time during her time in New York with LAByrinth.
“I saw her on stage and back then I was so happy because it was diverse, and it was just people making theatre,” Trujilo said. “I was inspired by seeing her be among really great actors.”
Before landing “The Bear,” Colón-Zayas’ most memorable roles were in theatrical shows such as Adly Guirgis’ Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, “Between Riverside and Crazy,” where she earned a Lucille Lortel Award that recognizes excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre.
During the award ceremony, Colón-Zayas underlined the importance of voting and how vital it is to have representation in the community.
“People who look like me know that their voice and their face and everything about them matters,” said Colón-Zayas.
According to USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, only 5.2% of speaking characters in movies are Hispanic or Latino, which has not changed significantly for the past 16 years. Additionally, 4.5% of directors were Hispanic or Latino, and none of the 100 top movies of 2023 depicted proportionally Hispanic or Latino population in U.S.
This Initiative pointed out that as Latinos account for the second largest racial group in the U.S, there is a lack of diversity that needs to be faced both off and on-screen.
“The lead roles that we do see are predominately drug lords, gang members and experiences that are stereotypes,” Manuel Castro said. “Not every single Latino has those stories, is that person or has that character’s experiences on the screen.”
Being a Latino in Southern California, Manuel Castro sees many different parts of the Latino culture, and according to him, seeing a portrayal outside the normal for Hollywood is refreshing.
“On top of their needing to be more lead roles for Latinos, we need to also shine a light on Latino writers and directors,” said Manuel Castro. “If we are finally given the time of day, you will see so much more diversity and experiences that a lot of people would be intrigued to see.”
Colón-Zayas’s work doesn’t end through her acting, but also through her advocacy. As an Emmy winner, she advocated for people in the community to vote and join groups such as Poder Latinx to raise awareness of the importance of having a voice.
Feature Image courtesy of Lauren Wong
*Para leer esta historia en español, haga clic aquí.*
