Desiree Casado (born August 18, 1985) is a former actress most notable for the role of Gabriela "Gabi" Rodriguez on ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

'', the daughter of longstanding main characters Luis and Maria. Casado took over the role in 1993 (being the first child actress hired to appear on ''Sesame Street''). Casado got the role when the previous actress, Gabriela Rose Reagan (the real-life daughter of the actress playing Maria,

Sonia Manzano Sonia Manzano (born 1950) is an American actress, screenwriter, author, singer and songwriter. She is best known for playing Maria on ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 2015. She received a Lifetime Achievement Daytime Emmy Award in 2016. Her memo ...

), told her mother she did not enjoy being on television. The character of Gabi has become a more integral part of the show's cast in the last couple of years, perhaps mostly to fulfill

Sesame Workshop Sesame Workshop (SW), originally known as the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), is an American nonprofit organization that has been responsible for the production of several educational children's programs—including its first and best-know ...

's need to sustain youth among the cast, as the old guard of the show ages. Casado's character of Gabriela is one of only a handful of Latino/Latina characters who have appeared on ''Sesame Street''. In addition to her role as Gabi, Casado appeared in various television commercials (including for

Jell-O Jell-O is an American brand offering a variety of powdered gelatin dessert (fruit-flavored gels/jellies), pudding, and no-bake cream pie mixes. The original gelatin dessert ( genericized as jello) is the signature of the brand. "Jell-O" is a ...

). Her film credits include '' I Like It Like That'' (1994), ''

Bed of Roses A bed is an item of furniture that is used as a place to sleep, rest, and relax. Most modern beds consist of a soft, cushioned mattress on a bed frame. The mattress rests either on a solid base, often wood slats, or a sprung base. Many b ...

'' (1996), ''

Joe's Apartment ''Joe's Apartment'' is a 1996 American musical black comedy film written and directed by John Payson (in his feature directorial debut), based on his 1992 short film of the same name, and starring Jerry O'Connell and Megan Ward. The first MTV Films ...

'' (1996), ''

Wishful Thinking Wishful thinking is the formation of beliefs based on what might be pleasing to imagine, rather than on evidence, rationality, or reality. It is a product of resolving conflicts between belief and desire. Methodologies to examine wishful think ...

'' (1997), '' Gloria'' (1999), and ''

Anamorph In mycology, the terms teleomorph, anamorph, and holomorph apply to portions of the life cycles of fungi in the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota: *Teleomorph: the sexual reproductive stage (morph), typically a fruiting body. *Anamorph: an ase ...

'' (2007). In 2004, she acted in her first starring role in the independent film ''Juicy''. She also played a small role on the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

''. She has also appeared in character as Gabi at Sesame Place, promoting "Healthy Habits" in 2006.Muppet Central Forum
/ref> According to her official ''Sesame Street'' cast biography, Casado loves to dance, especially Hip-Hop, and is taking

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

lessons. As of 2012, she was also working as a

sixth grade Sixth grade (or grade six in some regions) is the sixth year of schooling. Students are typically 11–12 years old, depending on when their birthday occurs. Different terms and numbers are used in other parts of the world. It is commonly the firs ...

teacher while continuing her dream as an actress as well as her appearances on the show. She married Michael Miller in 2012.

References

External links

*
Sesame Place: Sesame Place holds Healthy Habits Weekend

Hollywood.com: Desiree Casado

Biography from Sesame Place Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Casado, Desiree 1985 births Living people American actors of Puerto Rican descent American child actresses American film actresses American television actresses 21st-century American women