Days after returning from Puerto Rico following his grandfather’s funeral, Lorenzo Rodriguez stood backstage at Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington preparing to perform in the school’s adaptation of “A Christmas Carol.”
He had missed rehearsals. Midterms were waiting. Grief was still fresh.
“I emailed the director and asked if there was another way I could help with the show,” Rodriguez said.
Instead, the director asked whether he still wanted to perform.
Rodriguez did.
During the production, he delivered a monologue about grief and loss while mourning his grandfather, Hector Rodriguez, whom he described as “the male role model in my life.”
“He was just the most humble man,” Rodriguez said. “So polite to everybody. He lit up the room. He was always so happy and looked at life in such a positive way.”
The following week, Rodriguez completed his midterms.
“I honestly didn’t think I’d be able to get through all of it,” he said.
Now, the Archbishop Carroll senior is preparing for his next act: studying theater in New York City at Fordham University.
Growing up in Caguas, Puerto Rico, Rodriguez said creativity and performance were woven into everyday life. Surrounded by artists, he developed an early appreciation for theater, music and dance long before stepping onto a stage himself.
“I’m from a very artsy family,” Rodriguez said. “I inherited that.”
Nearly five years ago, Rodriguez moved to Washington with his mother, Maria Rodriguez, and their dog, Nina, after his mother decided to pursue a master’s degree in classical theater at George Washington University.
As a child, Rodriguez accompanied his mother to auditions and watched her persevere through rejection while continuing to pursue professional acting opportunities.
“She faced rejection in many places,” he said. “But she got in.”
Today his mother performs in Washington, D.C., with GALA Hispanic Theatre while continuing her work at the Sitar Arts Center.
Rodriguez said watching his mother pursue graduate study, auditions and professional theater work made an artistic career feel possible.
“We’ve been a team since I was born,” he said.
After attending St. Augustine Catholic School for eighth grade, Rodriguez chose Archbishop Carroll High School partly because several classmates planned to attend.
Familiar faces and Carroll’s close-knit community helped ease the transition from Puerto Rico to Washington.
“I found my people pretty quickly,” Rodriguez said.
He said he did not initially expect theater to become such a defining part of his high school experience.
Rodriguez first enrolled in dance class to fulfill graduation requirements, later joking that it was “PE for arts people.” He performed in school assemblies celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month and Black History Month, along with Carroll’s annual Christmas production.
Over time, Fine Arts Department Chair and choir director Nova Y. Payton, known affectionately by students as “Nova Tate,” recognized his potential.
“She always saw something in me,” Rodriguez said. “Even before she knew I acted, she was like, ‘You got it.’”
At Payton’s encouragement, Rodriguez auditioned for “The Lion King Jr.” during his junior year and landed the role of Timon. Afterward, he became involved in every theater production Carroll staged.
Rodriguez said theater gave him a place where he felt fully himself.
Onstage, he discovered he could connect with audiences through humor, movement and emotional vulnerability.
He said he was admitted to Fordham through acting auditions.
As he prepares to leave for New York City, Rodriguez said the transition will be emotional for both him and his mother.
Still, he said, she has encouraged him to pursue the future they moved to Washington to build together.
“She’s like, ‘Go there. Don’t stay here for me. Do what you need to do to be successful,’” Rodriguez said.
Looking ahead, Rodriguez said he hopes other students searching for community or purpose will continue putting themselves out there.
“Find your people because they’re out there,” he said. “That’s how you grow.”
