Stephanie Andujar

Stephanie Lee Andujar (born July 15, 1986), nicknamed StephA, is an American actress, director, producer, writer, singer, dancer and songwriter. She is known for her comedic and dramatic roles. Starring in the Academy Award-winning film Precious (2009), Pariah (2011), See Girl Run (2012), Babygirl (2013), A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014), and the film Marjorie Prime (2017). Her television career includes CBS's Blue Bloods (2018), NBC's Law & Order: SVU (2007), nurse drama Mercy (2010), and Blindspot (2015). Andujar received praise for her performance in Orange is the New Black Season 2 (2014) as young Miss Rosa. Stephanie also starred in theatre performances from The Wiz, The Crucible, and The Good Woman of Setzuan.

Stephanie Andujar
Andujar in 2020
Born (1986-07-15) July 15, 1986
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Other namesStephA
Alma materPace University
Occupation(s)Actress, director, producer, writer, singer, dancer, songwriter
Years active2007–present
Parent(s)Hector Luis Andujar, Sr.
Carmen L. Andujar
Relatives2
Websitestephanieandujar.com

Early life and education

Andujar was born in Manhattan, New York on July 15, 1986.[1] Her father, Hector Andujar, was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico and her mother Carmen Andujar (of Puerto Rican descent) is an NYPD School Safety Agent, born in Chelsea, New York. She has an older sister Melanie Andujar and a younger brother Hector Andujar Jr. Her family first resided in Harlem, then to Queens, finally settling back to the neighborhood in Manhattan. While being raised in Chelsea-Elliot Houses housing projects, Andujar started acting at the age of 12, when her parents enrolled her at a Beacon after-school arts program.[2] At 13, she landed the part of the Scarecrow in the musical The Wiz. While performing in The Wiz a talent manager noticed her and signed her up immediately.[2] Her drama teacher Derrick Tyes pushed for her to audition for drama schools. She was then accepted at Talent Unlimited High School where she performed in more than 10 drama productions.[2]

She obtained her Business Degree (2009) at Pace University in New York City.[2]

Career

In 2007, while attending Pace University, Stephanie auditioned for a role in Law & Order: SVU and booked her first role as Latrice Munez. She then auditioned for Push, which was being turned into a film directed by Lee Daniels. Andujar's role came when she played former heroin addict Rita Romero in the 2009 film Precious. She went on to play young Miss Rosa in Orange is the New Black Season 2. Hillary Busis of Entertainment Weekly raved about her performance and stated, "Stephanie Andujar, who plays Young Rosa, is mesmerizing, and I want her to star in a prequel spinoff called Portrait of the Prisoner as a Young Bank Robber."[3][2][4]

In 2016, Stephanie formed Andujar Productions with her family and produced a comedy web series "StephA: One Woman Show", playing over 10 characters. The show is based on Stephanie's life growing up in New York City and currently has 5 seasons.[5]

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
2008 Awilda and a Bee Jillian Short
2009 Precious Rita Romero
2011 Pariah Pier girl
2012 See Girl Run Alicia
2013 Babygirl Awilda
2014 A Walk Among the Tombstones Cashier
2017 Marjorie Prime Julie

Television
Year Title Role Notes
2007 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Latrice Munez Episode: "Fight"
2010 Mercy Deanna 2 episodes
2014 Orange Is the New Black Young Rosa 2 episodes
2015 Blindspot Isabella DeChirico Episode: "Eight Slim Grins"
2016–2020 StephA: One Woman Show Various 33 episodes
2018 Blue Bloods Molly Chavez 2 episodes

Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2009 8th Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards Best Ensemble (shared with the film's ensemble cast) Precious Nominated
30th Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Best Cast (shared with the film's ensemble cast) Won

References
  1. Stephanie Andujar Biography | https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2837910/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1 | imdb.com
  2. Guerra, Erasmo (2009-11-04). "A 'Precious' opportunity for young nuyorican actress". Nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2011-04-08.
  3. Busis, Hillary (2014-06-11). "Orange Is the New Black recap: Take the Money and Run In which we focus on matters of life and death -- and badass bank robbery, courtesy of Young Rosa". EW.com.
  4. Martinez, Kiko (2009-11-20). "Stephanie Andujar-Precious". cinesob.net. Retrieved 2011-04-08.
  5. Prestridge, James (2017-10-23). "Close-up: An Interview with Marjorie Prime actress Stephanie Andujar". prestridgesquared.com/.
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