Yareli Arizmendi (1964) is a Mexican

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

, writer, and director. Born in Mexico City, Arizmendi went to high school in Kansas (Academy of Mt. St. Scholastica), then received a BA in Political Science and her MFA in Theatre from the graduate acting program at the

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Insti ...

. She played Rosaura in the film '' Like Water for Chocolate'', written by Laura Esquivel and directed by Alfonso Arau. In 1991, Arizmendi married Sergio Arau.

Career

Arizmendi played Rosaura in the film '' Like Water for Chocolate.'' She also co-wrote, produced, and played Lila Rodriguez in ''

A Day Without a Mexican ''A Day Without a Mexican'' is a 2004 fantasy film directed by Sergio Arau in his directorial debut from a screenplay co-written with Yareli Arizmendi and Sergio Guerrero. It stars Yareli Arizmendi, John Getz, Maureen Flannigan, Muse Watson, F ...

.'' Her one-woman show ''Nostalgia Maldita: 1-900 Mexico'' was performed on a stairmaster. It was featured on the WXEL series ''Heritage''. Arizmendi has appeared on television in '' Six Feet Under'', ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

'', '' The Agency'', '' 24'', and ''

Medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation *Medium bomber, a class of war plane *Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Communication * Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data * Medium of ...

'' and on film in ''Don’t Let me Drown'', ''AMERICA'' with

Edward James Olmos Edward James Olmos (born February 24, 1947) is an American actor, director, producer, and activist. He is best known for his roles as Lieutenant Martin "Marty" Castillo in ''Miami Vice'' (1984–1989), ''American Me'' (1992) (which he also dir ...

, and ''Naco es Chido''. She worked with Luis Valdez and

Teatro Campesino El Teatro Campesino (Spanish for "The Farmworker's Theater") is a Chicano theatre company in California. Performing in both English and Spanish, El Teatro Campesino was founded in 1965 as the cultural arm of the United Farm Workers and the Chicano M ...

and toured with Teatro de la Esperanza to Nicaragua. She translated and staged

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

plays, as well as developing bilingual in-schools programs with the

Old Globe Theater The Old Globe is a professional theatre company located in Balboa Park in San Diego, California. It produces about 15 plays and musicals annually in summer and winter seasons. Plays are performed in three separate theatres in the complex, which i ...

. In 1995, Arizmendi received the Princess Grace Foundation Statue Award for contribution to a field of performance art. She has narrated the audiobook editions of several books, including ''American Dirt'' by Jeanine Cummins and ''Como agua para chocolate'' by Laura Esquivel.Audible
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Family

Arizmendi is married to Sergio Arau whom she met on the set of '' Like Water for Chocolate.''

References

External links

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NPR Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arizmendi, Yareli 1964 births Living people American actresses of Mexican descent American film directors American women screenwriters Audiobook narrators Mexican emigrants to the United States Princess Grace Awards winners 21st-century American actresses Mexican expatriate actors in the United States