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[0:00] Martín Acuña: Hi everyone, I am Martín Acuña and you are listening to Backstage Talk.

[0:16] Martín Acuña: Hello everyone, welcome back to another episode of Backstage Talk. Today's guest is Alberto Garrido. He is a content coordinator at Televisa Univision, but he is also a writer. I'm really excited to have Alberto here today because we got connected thanks to a past guest, Dylan Kaplan. So shout out to Dylan. And Alberto, I am really happy to have you over. How are you? Welcome to Backstage Talk.

[0:43] Alberto Garrido: Thank you so much for having me. It's so fun to be here.

[0:46] Martín Acuña: Yeah, it is. So Alberto, give us a little bit more insight on who you are, what do you do, and a random fun fact about you.

[0:58] Alberto Garrido: Okay, so let me start. I'll think of the fun fact while I do my introduction. My name is Alberto Garrido. I am from New Jersey, but I live in New York right now. I am, as you said, a content coordinator for Televisa Univision, but I'm also an actor and a writer. And 2020, oh gosh, it was 2021, I guess now. So almost over a year and a half ago, a colleague of mine got together and wrote a script for a miniseries pilot. And her and I wrote it. We acted in it. She directed it. I assistant directed it. I did all the show writing for it. And we pitched it to film festivals and it got into Catra Latinx, which is here in New York City. And it also got into Miami Web Fest. And then I actually just finished a script surrounding personal experiences of the Cuban Revolution.

So I've been busy with my creative stuff as well. And then a fun fact. One time, oh gosh. Okay, so I'll say this one since you live in Colombia, but I just went to Colombia. And while I was there, I actually got so sick at one point that I almost passed out. Like my fever got so high that I almost passed out. Yeah. And I was traveling alone and I just thought like all these strangers in the hostel were gonna like wake up to my body on the floor. Yes. I don't know if that's fun or scary. Yeah, maybe it's a scary random fact, but I'll take that. I like it.

[2:36] Martín Acuña: Well, thank God you're better now. And I hope you kind of enjoyed your time down here.

[2:43] Alberto Garrido: Oh, Colombia's amazing. No, it was amazing. So I went to, I mean, I'll tell you really quickly. I went to Cartagena, Salento and Medellin. And it was amazing despite, you know, getting insanely sick, but it was amazing. And the people there are lovely.

[3:02] Martín Acuña: Well, it's good to know that you had a good time despite your sickness. So which was your aha moment in which you said that you wanted to spend the rest of your life in the entertainment industry?

[3:10] Alberto Garrido: Oh my gosh. That is, I mean, it's an easy question because I know exactly when. When I was nine years old, I was always a very shy, anxious-ridden kid. So I was that kid in class who wouldn't raise their hands, like the teacher would ask a question and they would ask me my name even. And I would just sit there and be like, I'm not telling you. And so then I, and my mom tried so hard to get me to come out of my shell. My poor mom would like put me in like the swim team competition and karate and everything to like get me to like come out of my shell. And then they were doing the Wizard of Oz at my school and I was nine years old. And I said to my mom, like, mom, I want to audition for the play.

And my mom was like, you want to audition for the play? Okay, go, go for it. By all means, like, sure. Cause I always grew up, like I was, I loved to sing and like growing up and everything. So I auditioned for the Wizard of Oz. I had like four lines, I think. And then, but I like cared so much and I like knew it so well when she worked so hard and showed up to all the practices that they actually like gave me an extra part. And then they were like, you're going to understudy all the roles. And yeah, from that point, like I knew I was like, I want to do this forever in some capacity. I love it. I love it.

[4:41] Martín Acuña: Yeah. And you've also performed besides, we're going to dive a little bit deeper later in your writing stuff, but you've also performed in New York, right?

[4:46] Alberto Garrido: Yeah. So I've done, it's so weird because it just feels, I don't know. I don't think we give ourselves credit, but like I've done like experimental theater workshops in New York. I've been a part of original pieces here in New York. And even like I've sung with, when I was in high school, I got to sing with Kristin Chenoweth, which is something that like never processed until recently. But yeah. And I grew up in high school theater. I got nominated in, so in New Jersey they have the Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Awards and Paper Mill Playhouse is an equity theater where a lot of Broadway shows go right before they come to Broadway. So I got nominated for one of those my senior year of high school. So I was always super involved in community and regional and theater in New York. And I'm well-connected with actors here in Brooklyn and other creatives. So yeah.

[5:42] Martín Acuña: What's the best character you've ever performed?

[5:46] Alberto Garrido: Ooh, that is really hard. So when I was in college, I'll say this, when I was in college, we did 21 Chump Street, I don't know if you know, by Lin-Manuel Miranda. And I got to be Justin. And that I think was like, for a while, I think when you, I don't know if other actors or performers feel this way, but sometimes I think you just like, performing feels like a chore, like rehearsing feels like a chore. And that was the first time in a while where I was like, oh, this is why I love it. Because it was just fun. And I felt like I was Justin. It wasn't work for me to be this, sorry, not to toot my own horn, but this charismatic character who just likes to dance and meet people. And it was just a fun show to do.

And it's 20 minutes. So we would do it. And it's like this adrenaline rush. You're like, cool, great 20 minutes. I'm gonna go home. I'll see you guys out. So that was really fun. But I think every character kind of holds a special place in every actor's heart. Not to be cliche, you know, I played Pontius Pilate in Jesus Christ Superstar, that holds a special place in my heart, because that's when I got nominated for that award. And then I played the baker in Into the Woods, my senior, my junior year of college. And that was honestly a terrible experience. But it taught me so much about, yeah, it was a bad experience, but I learned a lot.

[7:25] Martín Acuña: Well, we all grow from the good and the bad, especially from the bad.

[7:30] Alberto Garrido: Yeah, I know. Did you just see how like, I thought about how bad it was. And I was like, let me just push that to the back and not get into that.

[7:41] Martín Acuña: So after high school, being involved in theater and community theater and regional theater, why did you choose the entertainment industry? And why musical theater? And why work on Broadway? And why this whole universe?

[7:56] Alberto Garrido: Ooh, that's a great question. I mean, I know, I like I said earlier, I knew I always wanted to be in entertainment in some capacity. And I thought for a while I wanted to work in music business. And then I saw how people, I should be careful what I say. Give me a second. For a while, I thought I wanted to work in music business. And then I eventually decided that was not going to be for me. But I just think I knew I always wanted to be in entertainment. And I always knew I was going to have a job and then my side hustle that I was going to also be my job because I log off of work. And then what am I doing? I'm writing, I'm pitching to film festivals. So I always knew that that was going to be what I did. And I think it's about just dipping your toes.

[9:20] Alberto Garrido: Yeah, that's a funny story because I moved to New York with no job and I saw the apartment that I live in now and I was like, I'm just going to say I need to move away. I need to get out. I need to be in New York. I'm just going to say yes and I'll take it and I'll figure it out. And as soon as I said yes to my apartment, I got an interview with Televisión. Literally the second I said yes, an interview email came through. I didn't get that job. But five months later, I got the job I have now with Televisión Univisional just in a different department. So it's just weird. I don't know. The universe gave me a little wink with that one. It was like, take the apartment. You'll see. Yeah, we're going to figure the rest out. So the universe was like, you go, boy.

[10:08] Alberto Garrido: Yeah. So being able to hyphenate, being, as you just said, writing, performing, producing, dipping your toes into different things, how would you summarize your journey in our industry?

[10:23] Alberto Garrido: Oh, wow. Okay. So I think that something I learned is that no journey looks the same. And I think that a lot of young creatives fall into this trap of, well, this is what, and I've had a lot of conversations with other creators about this. Well, this is what my college professor told me I have to do. So this is the path I follow. I'm going to go to New York, and I'm going to take class, and then X, Y, and Z is going to happen. Or I'm going to go to LA, I'm going to take class, and then X, Y, and Z is going to happen. And the reality is, that's not necessarily true. I've seen a lot of people go really far with really bizarre background and experience. And I just think saying yes, and being open to different experiences, even if it doesn't fully align with what you want to do, I would say just do it.

I mean, listen, if you want to be a creative, and you have the opportunity to go be a nursing student, yeah, obviously, don't say yes to that. That's not going to take you on that trajectory. But I read this book, actually, and the whole, she was talking about work capital, and how in your 20s, there's this idea of work capital. And so many people who are young will say no to a lot of opportunities because they're like, well, that's not exactly what I want. But she, her whole point is like, well, no, but if it's close, that's one step closer to getting where you want. And that's something that I kind of, I do believe and bring into whatever I do. And even with like, for, you know, my job with television, it is very corporate, but I'm gonna get to go to set in a few weeks, which is really, really exciting and be with our talent and have that experience.

And it's like, well, that's, that's the next step. You know, I took this job, and now I'm gonna get to go to set. And then what happens on set, you don't know, you don't know who you meet on set, you don't know what not that I'm gonna leave my job in case my company is listening to this. But I just, yeah, there's no set path. And I think people fall into this trap of like, well, this is how it's gonna go. And that's not true.

[12:32] Martín Acuña: Yeah, absolutely. So what advice would you give to people that want to be in our industry in different under different hats, it doesn't specifically has to be performing or writing or producing. But with your experience working in a corporate job, but in the entertainment industry, what would be your advice?

[12:52] Alberto Garrido: I will, like I just said, I think saying yes to things and being open minded to potential opportunities that could help you navigate to where you want to go. Also creating your own opportunities goes a long, long, long way. Like don't sit and wait for it to come to you just create, create your own opportunity, even if it's like, it doesn't need to be anything crazy. You know, start your own podcast. If you want to be like a radio host, it doesn't matter if two people listen to it, you can say you have a podcast. If you are an actor and you are struggling to get work, write a five page script, film it and put it on YouTube and add it to your reel just creating your own opportunities and not letting not waiting for things to come to you.

[13:40] Martín Acuña: Absolutely. One of the last questions besides signing on your apartment without a job, what is a risk that you've taken that has totally paid off?

[13:51] Alberto Garrido: That has totally paid off?

[13:54] Martín Acuña: Yeah.

[13:56] Alberto Garrido: There's one that came to my mind first, but okay, so I guess I know. So before I took my apartment, I was, I was waiting tables last summer to while I was working on this film project. And I was, I mean, in, I mean, in the US it's different than Colombia. Like we, we make tips and you make really good money if you're at a good restaurant. I mean, like scary money, you know, especially if you're working on the lake in the summer. So I was making really good money for someone my age. Yes. And so I was making this really good money and I was like, okay, I can't, I losing it. I can't be a waiter forever. I can't fake this personality forever. I, I need to like get to the city and have an opportunity there.

And I got this unpaid internship. That's now a 20 minute walk from my apartment. And I was like, oh, it's unpaid. I'm going to have to cut back my hours at the restaurant. I'm not going to be able to, I'm going to have to like budget and all this stuff. And I was like, I just have to take it though, because it's in my field and like, who knows what can come of this? So we take this unpaid internship and I was basically like living between my grand, my abuela's apartment, my friend's apartment and my parents' house in Jersey. And that being on the unpaid internship helped me get a couple of production jobs. And also it made me realize like, oh, I actually want to live in Brooklyn because before I moved to Brooklyn, I was like, oh, I want to live in Jersey city.

And then I moved to Brooklyn and then I was like in this like really cool area of Brooklyn. And I was like, oh no, this is the spot. But then, so I don't think I would even have this apartment. I wouldn't have gotten a lot of the production jobs I had gotten if I didn't take this unpaid internship. And if I didn't have those production jobs, I wouldn't have the job I have now with Televisión y Visión. So yeah, sometimes it's.

[16:00] Martín Acuña: Love it. Alberto, last question before we close, what are your top five favorite musical theater shows?

[16:07] Alberto Garrido: Okay. I have a list. I'm just trying to make sure I get it right. Okay. I'm going to say Once on this Island because I saw the Michael Arden version when it was here in New York and that was mind blowing. I would say A Chorus Line, Cabaret, Ren, and then I'll say Hamilton because it was the last thing I saw right before the pandemic. And I mean, why not? But I would also like, if I'm listening to a musical theater soundtrack, it's in the Heights. So, I mean.

[16:45] Martín Acuña: Those two competing each other.

[16:46] Alberto Garrido: Well, that's the thing in the Heights. I mean, for us Latino Americans living in the US, in the Heights is amazing.

[16:57] Martín Acuña: Yeah. Yeah. It takes us back home.

[17:00] Alberto Garrido: Yeah. Exactly.

[17:03] Martín Acuña: Alberto, thank you so much for being here, for joining us today, for sharing your thoughts. I am really happy to have you here. So thank you so much for being on Backstage Talk.

[17:15] Alberto Garrido: Thank you so much, Martin. I really appreciate you having me on.

[17:18] Martín Acuña: Thanks, everyone, for listening to this new episode of Backstage Talk. Remember to follow us on Facebook and Instagram at Backstage Talk Podcast.