Mara Croatto (born February 2, 1969) is a retired Venezuelan-born Puerto Rican actress.

Early years

Croatto is the daughter of

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

actress Raquel Montero and Puerto Rican ( Italian Argentine born) folk singer, Tony Croatto. Shortly after birth in

Caracas, Venezuela Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...

, her parents decided to move and resettle in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. She was raised and educated in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

. When Croatto was 11 years old, she attended the ''D'Rose Modeling School'', where she took modeling classes. She was an alumna of the ''Academia del Perpetuo Socorro'' in Miramar. Croatto always considers herself a Puerto Rican and publicly identifies herself as such.Fundación Nacional para la Cultura Popular
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Acting career

Croatto started her acting career as a narrator in ''El Show de Shows'' ("The Show of Shows") which aired locally on Channel 11. She also worked as a

dancer Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

on such television shows ''Juventud 83'' and ''Juventud 84'' during her adolescence. During her early adulthood, she won a small part on the

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

show ''La Pension de Doña Tere'' (''Mrs. Tere Boardinghouse'') starring

Norma Candal Norma Daniela Candal Penedo (April 10, 1927 – February 5, 2006), was a Puerto Rican actress and comedian who was best known for her role as Petunia on ''La criada malcriada''. Early years Norma Daniela Candal Penedo was born in 1927 in Fajard ...

. That year, she also worked in her first mini soap opera in which the members of Menudo participated. Her character was that of the sister of

Ricky Martin Enrique Martin Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography incorporati ...

who happened to be in love with

Robby Rosa Draco Cornelius Rosa Suárez (; born Robert Edward Rosa Suárez, June 27, 1969), also known as Draco Rosa, Robi Draco Rosa or simply Robi or Draco, is a Puerto Rican singer, musician, songwriter and entrepreneur. Rosa originally garnered fame ...

. Her first important role in a soap opera was in ''Cisne Blanco'' (''White Swan'') with

Deborah Carthy-Deu Deborah Carthy Deu (born January 5, 1966) is a Puerto Rican actress, television host and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universe 1985. She was the second Puerto Rican to win Miss Universe since Marisol Malaret in 1970. Early life Deborah Ca ...

. Among the other soap operas in which she has participated are: * '' María María'' 1989, Julia * ''Pobre diabla'' 1990 * ''

Marielena ''Marielena'' is a Spanish-language telenovela written by Delia Fiallo. It premiered on Telemundo in 1992, and starred Lucía Méndez and Eduardo Yáñez. The telenovela was originally aired in a few dozen countries around the world. Premise ...

'' 1992, Graciela (Special performance) * ''Guadalupe'' 1993-1994, Diana Zambrano * ''

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi language, Otomi: ) is a city and municipal seat of the municipalities of Mexico, municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. It is both th ...

'' 1995, Sarah (Special performance) * ''

Aguamarina ''Aguamarina'', is a 1997 American telenovela produced by Telemundo. Was led by Ruddy Rodríguez and Leonardo García with antagonistic action of Mara Croatto. Cast * Ruddy Rodríguez Ruddy Rosario Rodríguez de Lucía (; born March 2 ...

'' 1997, Verona Calatrava * ''La Mujer de Mi Vida'' 1998, Katiuska Cardona * '' Me muero por ti'' 1999, Helena * '' Gata Salvaje'' 2002-2003, Eduarda Arismendi - antagonist * ''

Amor descarado ''Amor Descarado'' (''Barefaced Love'') is a telenovela produced by RTI Producciones and Spanish language, Spanish-language United States–based television network Telemundo, this is a US Hispanic version of Chilean telenovela ''Amores de mercad ...

'' 2003, Chantal * ''

La ley del silencio ''La ley del silencio'' is an American telenovela produced by Telemundo in 2003. Cast * José Ángel Llamas - Padre Javier Castro * Flora Martínez - Natalia Aguirre * Rodrigo de la Rosa - Fernando Cardenas * Jullye Giliberti - Magdalena ...

'' 2005, Isabel * '' Valeria'' 2008, Estrella Granados

Personal

Croatto was married to Juan Roselló, the brother of former Menudo member

Roy Rosselló Roy Stephan Rosselló Díaz (born May 1, 1969) is a Puerto Rican pop and gospel singer, businessman, and former member of the popular Puerto Rican group Menudo. Roy currently lives in Brazil, where he focused his musical career and built a fa ...

. She and Roselló have two sons together, Juan Alejandro and Michael Gabriel. On August 29, 2004, Croatto married Mexican actor

José Ángel Llamas José Ángel Llamas Olmos (born 13 October 1966) is a Mexican retired actor in telenovelas, perhaps best known for his dual role as Pelluco and Rodolfo in ''Amor descarado''. His striking good looks made him a heartthrob among his many fans. In F ...

. They have one son together, Rafael. In February 2011, Croatto and Llamas became born-again Christians, and they have quit acting to focus on their service to God.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Croatto, Mara 1969 births Living people American actors of Puerto Rican descent Puerto Rican telenovela actresses Puerto Rican people of Italian descent Venezuelan emigrants to the United States Venezuelan people of Argentine descent Venezuelan people of Italian descent 20th-century Puerto Rican actresses 21st-century Puerto Rican actresses American Christians Puerto Rican people of Argentine descent Puerto Rican Christians

Early years

Acting career

Personal

See also

References

External links