September 09, 2021

By Lapacazo Sandoval

Contributing Writer

 

Afro-Latina Rosanny Zayas (Dominican) is tearing it up as Sophie Suarez, the love object of two, beautiful lesbian women who craves her attention in Showtime’s THE L WORD: GENERATION Q.

Let’s rewind. Showtimes’ “The L Word” first burst into the world in 2004 and it was a bold push into the lives of lesbian women who, as the theme song explained were “talking, laughing, loving, breathing, fighting, fucking,” — and after 17 years it remains the first ensemble lesbian drama in the television history books.

Fast forward and today we have the show reshaped into THE L WORD: GENERATION Q aka GENERATION Q which was created by Marja-Lewis Ryan.

This season of THE L WORD: GENERATION Q kicked off in the aftermath of Sophie’s (Rosanny Zayas) decision at the airport as she, Dani (Arienne Mandi), and Finley (Jacqueline Toboni) are all left to pick up the pieces. Meanwhile, Bette’s (Jennifer Beals) personal and professional pursuits force her to reexamine her roots — something Angie (Jordan Hull) also questions and explore in her own way. In the wake of her divorce, Shane (Katherine Moennig) throws herself into finding new ways to keep the bar thriving, while Alice (Leisha Hailey) is surprised when writing her first book steers her whole life in a new direction.

 

Micah (Leo Sheng) is pushed to reckon with his identity as he navigates big changes in his career and love life, while Gigi’s (Sepideh Moafi) journey to move on from Nat (guest star Stephanie Allynne) and Alice takes an unexpected turn.

Now up to episode five, we know that Sophie chose Dani Núñez (Arienne Mandi) over Finley — a romantically clueless girl who should come with a set of warning labels—resolving the cliffhanger from the season 1 finale and is dealing with the aftermath of a disrupted wedding and the messy feelings of love being experienced by all of the key characters. 

It’s important to note that this show is deliciously messy by design. For those that loved the classic “The L Word” it might not be their cup of tea but people and communities evolve and THE L WORD: GENERATION Q has certainly kept that spirit and energy.

There is something special about Zayas and a clever eye can see that’s she well trained, having studied first at Queens College, and later at The Juilliard School is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Her theater credits include the role of “Natasha” in the Roundabout Theater’s workshop of Anton Chekhov’s THREE SISTERS spearheaded by Resident Director Sam Gold, and it was her work in the titular role of Jose Rivera's MARISOL, while at Juilliard, that jump-started her career. An interesting side note, she was only unemployed for one year after graduation. Her other credits include ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK for Netflix, MODERN PERSUASION on Hulu, as well as THE CODE, and INSTINCT for CBS. Next, she will be seen in Sam Esmail's limited series ANGELYNE for Peacock and UCP. H

To watch and share the trailer, go to: https://youtu.be/LAL3MZRqAzs.

Here is what Afro-Latina Rosanny Zayas (Dominican) had to share about playing Sophie Suarez in THE L WORD: GENERATION Q.

THE L.A. WATTS TIMES: You are tearing it up as Sophie. I can’t wait until I can just, relax and watch the episodes that Showtime provided me with.

ROSANNY ZAYAS: (laughing) Really? Are you a fan, fan of the show?

LAWT: Absolutely.

RZ: That’s so good to hear.

LAWT: What surprised you about the direction of your character's storyline?

RZ: I think that one of the most surprising parts happened in episode three (https://bit.ly/3mPkeyI) and what shocked me the most was when I asked Finley (Jacqueline Toboni) to stay in our home and to live with me. Like, I didn’t want her to go. For me as an actor, it’s always shocking for me to see turning points in the story. Sophie still felt that she needed her around.

LAWT: Finely. Finley. Finley. This character would not hurt a fly but oh, my goodness, she can beat the crap out of herself. Truly, her own worst enemy. Sorry, continue.

RZ: That’s so true.

LAWT: I am so impressed with your beautiful body language. All culled from your background in theater. I mean The Juilliard School is mystical like HOGWARTS.

RZ: (laughing) I do have a lengthy background in theater and it’s always helpful to have that kind of awareness with your body. A lot of the learning to work on television is learning to let go and to be me. I feel very lucky and I am super grateful that I have the opportunity to go to work and learn more about what my body does in certain situations, under certain circumstances.

LAWT: Now that you are working in television and living in gratitude (smart lady), are there other areas in the entertainment field that you might consider mastering?

RZ: Absolutely. I have dreams of writing and directing but one step at a time. You know, it’s funny, after I graduated I didn’t work for about a year, and not a lot of people can say that.

LAWT: No girl, they can not!

RZ: But I’ve had some consistency in working in the industry but I am still very much at the beginning, and I hope that I can continue to learn from different sets and meeting different people, and grabbing as much information as possible so I can learn how a person makes a show and learn how I would create a show or whatever, hopefully, that I can come up with.

LAWT: It’s like you are being paid to learn. A unique position for sure.

RZ: This industry is super interesting — how it all works — and from what I am learning, there is no one, specific way, to go about creating a story. It can happen in a million different ways. I think that’s the fun part about being an artist. The staff and the crew of THE L WORD: GENERATION Q are so much fun, and so open to helping that if I asked if I could shadow someone for the day, they would say yes.

LAWT: Ding. Ding. Ding. You said the magic word — to shadow. You got it!

RZ: Thank you.

For more information, go to www.SHO.com.

Category: Arts & Culture