{"id":791221,"date":"2026-05-12T14:15:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T14:15:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/791221\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T14:15:22","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T14:15:22","slug":"elissa-cuellar-continues-to-impress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/791221\/","title":{"rendered":"Elissa Cuellar Continues to Impress"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s been two years since Elissa Cuellar caught our attention as a Jesus-loving member of an all-female musical group in American Mariachi at the Alley Theater<\/strong>. Her performance earned a place on our Ones to Watch list that season, and we\u2019re thrilled that she\u2019s been busy showing us the range of her talents since then.<\/p>\n

Performing at the Alley is a big deal for any young actor, and Cuellar has now done it twice. For two years, she was the understudy for the company\u2019s popular one-woman show, The Nightshift Before Christmas<\/strong>, and stood in several times during the run\u2014a challenge she was glad to meet, though not one she wants to specialize in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do love a small cast show,\u201d says Cuellar. \u201cYou can really dig down and mine emotional subtext \u2026 but now having done a one-person show, it\u2019s fun, but I don\u2019t think I would sign up to do that for the rest of my life. Emotionally, it\u2019s a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

KJ Sanchez, who directed Elissa in both Alley performances, knows that whether it\u2019s a solo or ensemble show, Cuellar is up for the challenge. \u201cElissa is a stellar actor and one of my favorite collaborators,\u201d says Sanchez. \u201cShe\u2019s smart and always understands what the play needs in each moment and has the skill to fulfill those needs every time. She\u2019s also wildly talented and very funny. To top it off, she\u2019s always kind and great to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many directors feel the same, casting Cuellar in a wide variety of roles within a short time: at Classical Theater as a spunky Victorian-era woman targeted by Dracula<\/strong>; at A.D. Players as the iconic Wicked Witch of the West; and as the narrator in the docu-drama Spill<\/strong> at Rice University\u2019s Moody Center for the Arts.<\/p>\n

But it was her effort as Chorus in this season\u2019s production of Electra <\/strong>at Classical Theater that really illustrated the flex of her craft. A role usually meant for a group of actors with differing ideas and opinions was instead played exclusively by Cuellar, who stole the show in an already superlative production.<\/p>\n

Trying to figure out how to incorporate a role meant for diverse actors and outlooks was a challenge at first.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t start out where it ended up, says Cuellar, who initially imagined that Chorus itself was changing. \u201cInstead of being this heightened sort of Greek chorus character, the role became hyper-realistic and what was so fun about that was the permission to just breathe on stage. To kick back and listen and watch what was happening and not try to put mustard on it. It was extremely freeing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jon Harvey, who directed Cuellar in Electra<\/strong>, says that she is smart, quick on her feet and deeply attuned to the creative process. \u201cWhen it was time to work, we worked. But when it was time to build community, she was right there: wry, a little ornery, telling jokes, offering support, and asking the kinds of questions that move a process forward. It became clear to me\u2014and to many others\u2014that she is someone you want in the room when you\u2019re trying to create meaningful work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having worked with Cuellar over the years, Harvey has had an up-close seat for her trajectory as an artist. \u201cIt\u2019s easy to say that someone has it, but having seen Elissa\u2019s growth over the years, it\u2019s clear that \u201cit\u201d is something she has built through dedication and practice\u2014so much so that it now appears effortless\u2026 She has undoubtedly grown as an artist through the many opportunities she\u2019s embraced\u2014but I would argue that we grow as artists by having the chance to work with her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cuellar says the experiences she\u2019s had onstage have made her feel more durable. \u201cI\u2019m able to better face the ups and downs\u2026. to navigate the working, the not working and being able to go out for shows with an idea of where I might fit. When I do get a no, I\u2019m more able to weather that. Which is not to say that I don\u2019t still get my hopes up, but not getting a role isn\u2019t the end of the world, the way it might have been several years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

When it comes to what Cuellar would like to do next, she says she gravitates toward whatever activates and challenges her, citing high-energy shows where she\u2019s asked to take on several different characters as a particular interest.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also don\u2019t do a ton of musicals,\u201d says Cuellar. \u201cI do sing, but I wouldn\u2019t call myself a musical actor. There are so many talented artists in Houston who earn that moniker. But I would love to do a pared-down musical or a play with music, that would be fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Up next, Cuellar appears in the world premiere of That Drive Thru Monterey at the Stages Sin Muros Festival, which continues through June 7.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s been two years since Elissa Cuellar caught our attention as a Jesus-loving member of an all-female musical…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":791222,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5130],"tags":[323076,12730,4345,35788,358,3187],"class_list":{"0":"post-791221","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston","8":"tag-elissa-cuellar","9":"tag-homepage","10":"tag-houston","11":"tag-houston-theater","12":"tag-texas","13":"tag-tx"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116562030030139364","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/791221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=791221"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/791221\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/791222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=791221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=791221"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=791221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}