VestaVamps Exclusive: Interview with Alana De La Garza, star of NBC's hit show Law & Order!
In honor of Women's History Month, we sat down with the beautiful and talented Alana De La Garza, who can currently be seen as Assistant District Attorney Connie Rubirosa on Law & Order, a show that is making history in its record-breaking 21st season!
VestaVamps: Congratulations on the continued success of Law & Order, now entering its 21st season! What is it like being part of a show making TV history?
Alana De La Garza: I feel privileged to be a part of it. It’s really an honor to get to work with such incredible actors and friends.
VV: You’ve been on the show since 2006. The cast has changed quite a bit since your first season, and you’re now among the “veterans” of the cast. How has new cast affected your work environment?
ADLG: Well, I went from working alongside Sam Waterston to Linus Roache. How lucky am I? And Jeremy Sisto and Anthony Anderson just make the workday go by that much faster—they are a lot of fun to hang with. Epatha Merkerson keeps me in tears. Literally, we laugh all day! The great thing is that I have made wonderful friends throughout the years that I will keep long after L & O.
VV: As one of two principle women on the cast, some viewers might get the impression it’s a bit of a “boys club.” How do you and costar S. Epatha Merkerson hold your own with all the guys?
ADLG: When you’re shooting 15 hours a day, there’s no time to pay attention to the “boys club.” You have to jump in and you swim or you sink! Besides, I think they probably now think of me as one of the boys.
VV: You’re the first Latina Assistant District Attorney on the show. How do you think your ethnicity has influenced the character of Connie Rubirosa?
ADLG: The great thing about my role is that I was hired and the character was created based on me. That was fun to find out what my name would be and my back-story. Originally, I auditioned to play a detective. After the reading, (creator and producer) Dick Wolf asked me how I was at cold-reads. I laughed and said, “I think we're about to find out.” About four minutes later I read for the non-descript ADA.
VV: How did you first start acting?
ADLG: I started doing commercials and thought, “Hmmm this would be my dream job. What if it actually worked?” I moved from Cape Town, South Africa to New York City to study acting. Six months later, I got my first “series role” as Rosa Santos on All My Children. I had angels watching over me!
VV: What’s a typical workday like for you?
ADLG: My driver picks me up at 6:40 am, God bless him, with coffee in hand. We head to the studio. Hopefully we arrive by 7am, and I walk directly to the rehearsal of our first scene of the day. After rehearsal, the crew begins to light and prepare cameras, the set and anything else that needs attention. I get into the make-up chair for some desperately needed love. Afterwards, I put on my wardrobe and then we start shooting. We rehearse and shoot until we’ve fulfilled our daily goal. I may finish at 7pm or I may finish at 1am. It’s a lot of hours, but I love my job.
VV: Wow! Those are long hours! How do you manage to find a balance between work and home life?
ADLG: I have a very understanding husband! (laughing) I almost always have the weekend off, and I just take it day by day. When something’s important to you, you make time for it. We just make it work. He takes great care of me. When I come home so tired that I can’t quite form a sentence, he feeds me and puts me to bed! That’s actually happened several times. He’s even blown-dry my hair as I lay on my pillow more than once.
VV: What are some of your favorite “domestic” activities? How do you unwind at home?
ADLG: When I have time, I LOVE to bake. I love the mixers, the pans, cups and gadgets. And most of all I love to eat afterwards! I’m also a huge arts and crafts nerd! Love to make homemade gifts and sentimental keepsakes.
VV: What are some of your favorite meals? Can you share one of your favorite recipes with the Vestalian community?
ADLG: I’m a foodie in general. I love food, really. I have a recipe for a coffee cake that’s out of this world. To be fair, it was passed to me from one of my best girlfriends, Bridget. It’s her mom’s recipe. Yummmmmm!
Check out Alana's favorite coffee cake recipe here!
You can see Alana every week on NBC's Law & Order, now on Monday nights, 10pm EST.
