901-754-9404
My List0

We've now made it easier for you to research and save your favorite keynotes speakers. Click on the + sign to add a speaker to your Speaker List and email your favorites to colleagues and friends.

using System.Text.RegularExpressions;
Tony Plana, Entertainment Speaker

Tony Plana

    • Actor, Ugly Betty
    • Education Advocate
Full Bio
In Person-Fee 🛈

$15,000 - $20,000

Virtual Fee:

Please Inquire

Travels From

California

Tony Plana

Tony Plana

Tony Plana Speaker Biography


Tony Plana was educated at Loyola-Marymount University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree through the Honors Program in Literature and Theater Arts, graduating magna cum laude. He received his professional training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, England.

Plana most recently stared in the hit ABC series, Ugly Betty. He played Ignacio Suarez, Betty’s father. The show was based on the popular Columbian telenova Yo Soy Betty La Fea, and was adapted for the English language by Salma Hayek.

Plana also starred as the widowed, Mexican-American patriarch, Roberto Santiago, in Showtime’s landmark, groundbreaking hit series Resurrection Boulevard for which he has received 2001 & 2002 ALMA award nominations for best actor. It is the first English speaking weekly series in the history of television to be produced, written, directed and starring Latinos. Resurrection Boulevard is the first of its kind to be renewed for three seasons on a television network and the most awarded series in Showtime’s history including an ALMA award for best television series of 2002.

Having co-directed and co-produced the film A Million To Juan with Paul Rodriguez, Plana celebrated his solo directorial debut in December 2000 with The Princess and the Barrio Boy. It represents the first Latino family film to be produced by Showtime and stars Academy Award nominee Edward James Olmos, Maria Conchita Alonso, Pauly Shore, and two of Plana’s co-stars from Resurrection Boulevard, Marisol Nichols and Nicholas Gonzalez. The film received two 2001 ALMA award nominations for Best Made for Television Movie and Best Ensemble Acting and won the 2001 IMAGEN award for Best Made for Television Movie. Plana’s television episodic debut was 2001’s Resurrection Boulevard’s Saliendo, which garnered excellent critical acclaim, receiving a GLAAD award for best dramatic episode of the year and a SHINE award for sensitive portrayal of sexuality. He has directed several episodes of Nickelodeon’s hit series, The Brothers Garcia, receiving a HUMANITAS award nomination and winning the Imagen Award for its third season finale, Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover. He just completed directing an episode of Greetings from Tucson for the Warner Brothers Network.  

Plana is also the co-founder and executive artistic director of the East L.A. Classic Theatre, a group comprised primarily of Hispanic American theatre professionals. The East L.A. Classic Theatre is dedicated to serving the Latino community through educational outreach programs to primary and secondary schools and through Bi-lingual productions of traditional and contemporary classics.

Through the East L.A. Classic Theatre, Plana has developed a unique and innovative literacy program called Beyond Borders. It is designed to enable students to expand their educational horizons and academic achievements by moving beyond their personal, cultural and vocational borders.

Working directly with language arts teachers, Beyond Borders utilizes the performing arts to impact literacy skills in academically at risk and bi-lingual students. Proven to facilitate and even accelerate student achievement of district and state literacy standards, the program recently received a 5-year Title VII grant from the federal government and educational grants from the Toyota Corporation and Times-Mirror Foundation through the Montebello Unified School District. It has also received a three-year California State Education grant through the Baldwin Park Unified School District.

Plana’s distinct talent lies in his provocative adaptations of classic Shakespearean plays, specifically conceived for minority communities with little or no theatre going experience. He directs these plays against relevant historical backgrounds that foster interest in expressive speech and dramatic literature and which serve as catalysts for the investigation of personal and interpersonal psychology, race and cultural relations, socio-political issues and world history.

For example:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, set during the Spanish conquest of the Americas, comedically explores the strained relations between Native Americans and the conquistadors ultimately proposing an integrated vision of Indigenous and European cultures.

A zoot suit styled Romeo & Juliet, with 1940’s W.W. II swing music, features a Japanese Juliet and a Latino Romeo struggling to define their love and future in a city sharply divided by racism and economics.

A 21st century salsa musical version of Twelfth Night satirizes narcissism as an impediment to mature love, highlighting Latino/African American relationships and promoting openness to other races, other cultures.

A Mariachi musical Much Ado About Nothing set in early California depicts upper class Mexican rancheros interacting with working class Anglo prospectors and farmers.
Plana is also committed to developing new works. He has directed several critically acclaimed theatre pieces, including: Judith Ortiz Cofer’s Don Jose de la Mancha; Nancy De Los Santos’ The Answer to My Prayer; and Rick Nájera’s The Pain of the Macho for HBO New Writer’s Festival. As well as Guillermo Reyes’ The Seductions of Johnny Diego and A Heart’s Eye, adapted from James Agee’s book Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, for the mark Taper Forum; and Rogelio Martinez’ Adrift for South Coast Repertory Theatre.
As an actor Plana has starred in more than 60 feature films, including JFK, Nixon, Salvador, An Officer and a Gentleman, Lone Star, Three Amigos, Born in East L.A., El Norte, 187, Primal Fear, Romero, One Good Cop, Havana, The Rookie, Silver Strand and Picking Up the Pieces with Woody Allen. He recently appeared in the action thriller Half Past Dead with Steven Segal and Morris Chestnut, and JaRul.

On television he recently starred in the Showtime Original Miniseries, Fidel, as the notorious Cuban dictator, Batista, as well as Showtime’s Noriega: God’s Favorite. He has portrayed leading roles in four critically acclaimed television series Veronica Claire for Lifetime, Bakersfield P.D. for FOX and Steven Bocco’s Total Security and City of Angels for ABC. He has also appeared in several Emmy award winning programs such as Sweet Fifteen, Drug Wars: The Camarena Story, The Burning Season: The Life and Death of Chico Mendes and a special episode of L.A. Law, which also received an Imagen Award. Mr. Plana currently portrays a recurring role in FOX’S John Doe and on NBC’s award winning drama The West Wing as the U.S. Secretary of State.

Plana has been very active in live theatre. On Broadway, his credits include Zoot Suit and The Boys of Winter. He has performed in leads at the Mark Taper Forum in Zoot Suit, Richard III, Widows, and The Reader. He has appeared in a wide variety of productions in many venues, including Figaro Gets a Divorce at the La Jolla Playhouse; Rum and Coke, Cuba and His Teddy Bear and Bang Bang Blues at the New York Public Theatre; Rum and Coke and Charlie Bacon and His Family at the South Coast Repertory Theatre; The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit (The Musical) at the Pasadena Playhouse; A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Hamlet at the California Shakespearean Festival; Fugue at Syracuse Stage Company and Ariel Dorfmann’s Mascara at the Arizona Theatre Company.

He is the recipient of two Nosotros Golden Eagle awards for outstanding work in film and television, as well as five Los Angeles Dramalogue Awards for Theatre. In addition to his extensive involvement in the media arts, he also serves on various boards including the American Red Cross, the Mariachi Heritage Foundation, the East L.A. Community Youth Center, and the Young Musicians Foundation created by Henry Mancini.

Plana is the proud father of Alejandro and Isabel and has been happily married to actress Ada Maris who starred in Nurses on NBC and currently stars on Nickelodeon’s The Brothers Garcia.



Embracing the Spirit of Multiculturalism
      In this presentation, diversity speaker Tony Plana advocates for the recognition of minority contributions to US history, from the military to the arts. A Cuban immigrant, Plana shares stories from his youth, emphasizing how he embraced education in order to achieve success and was able to make a cultural contribution through his dedication. Celebrating diversity, human values, and tolerance, he encourages audiences to move past the civil rights struggles of the 20th century, and to embrace the complexity of identity in society today.

The Classroom as Theater
      As executive director of the East LA Classic Theatre, celebrity speaker Tony Plana demonstrates his dedication to serving the community through educational outreach theater programs. In this presentation, Plana incorporates his expertise of stage and screen performance - producing a unique tool to making education more entertaining and useful in the acquisition of language arts.

Related Speakers

Bhakti Sharma keynote speaker

Bhakti Sharma

2nd Female Swimmer in the World to Swim the Arctic Ocean

Souled Out, speakers

Souled Out

Ultimate Party Band

Cal Fussman, Speaker

Cal Fussman

Renowned author and interviewer of hundreds of world icons

Bruce Tulgan, Speaker

Bruce Tulgan

Top Expert on Leadership Development and Generational Issues in the Workplace

Dennis Swanberg, Motivation Speaker

Dennis Swanberg

America's Minister of Encouragement

David Gerard

David Gerard

Performer of incredible mentalism and mind reading

Sekou Andrews

Sekou Andrews

Grammy-Nominated Creator of "Poetic Voice" & Inspirational Speaker

Joe Gerstandt Speaker

Joe Gerstandt

Freedom Fighter

Tom Cotter

Tom Cotter

Comedian and Breakout Star from America's Got Talent

Petra Velzeboer keynote speaker

Petra Velzeboer

Inspirational Speaker On The Future of Work

Jim Kelly, Celebrity Speaker

Jim Kelly

NFL Hall-of-Fame Quarterback

Colin Mochrie, Entertainment Speaker

Colin Mochrie

Stand-up Comedian Best Known for "Whose Line is it Anyway?"

Reviews

Testimonials

Everyone on the ESB team has been great to work with for our events. Looking forward to keep working with ESB!

Plexus Worldwide

We had a positive experience with ESB. Matt Meyer is a great communicator and easy to get a hold of. His helped us through the process to mak..

BNSF

ESB was patient, thorough, and responsive during the planning process. Thank you for making this such a great experience for us!

ConnectWise

ESB supported our needs and the needs of our speaker throughout the entire process. I highly recommend working with ESB to find your next spe..

DogWatch

"It's always a pleasure to work with ESB. Very professional and personable staff. Thanks!"

Testimonial | Texas Society of Architects

"Excellent! Thank you for being a true partner to our organization and its development."

HCA Healthcare

"They are the only speakers bureau I will even consider using!"

Testimonial | Youth Villages

A wonderful bureau to work with! Big ups to everyone who helped make our event a success. Fingers crossed we get the chance to collaborate fo..

MDRT | Testimonial

"As always, you are the best most responsive speaker bureau I've ever worked with!"

Image Media

Angela Schelp was a great partner in finding the right kick-off speaker for our conference. This was my first conference identifying the keyn..

CubeSmart
Need Suggestions? Have Questions?

Need Suggestions? Have Questions?

Call to discuss how we can you help find the right speaker(s) for your organization.

© 2024 Executive Speakers Bureau. All Rights Reserved.

Design and Developed by eBiz Solutions

Get Ideas in 1 hour or less

Executive Speakers Bureau consistently receives praises about our speed and efficiency. From the beginning of your event planning, our extensive online speaker database and resourceful staff allow us to quickly equip you with the best speaker for your event.

Need a last minute speaker? No worries. Our speed and efficiency help us give you ideas for speakers in one hour or less.

Please fill in information below