Trini Alvarado


Actor

About

Also Known As
Trinidad Alvarado
Birth Place
New York City, New York, USA
Born
January 10, 1967

Biography

This dark beauty successfully made the transition from child performer to working adult actress. Of Hispanic heritage, Trini Alvarado began her show business career dancing with her family's flamenco troupe at age seven. Within two years, she had made her stage acting debut in the musical "Becca" and by age 11 was featured in the Broadway company of Elizabeth Swados' musical "Runaways." ...

Family & Companions

Robert McNeill
Husband
Actor.

Biography

This dark beauty successfully made the transition from child performer to working adult actress. Of Hispanic heritage, Trini Alvarado began her show business career dancing with her family's flamenco troupe at age seven. Within two years, she had made her stage acting debut in the musical "Becca" and by age 11 was featured in the Broadway company of Elizabeth Swados' musical "Runaways." She debuted in features as a precocious pre-teen in Robert Young's quietly effective "Rich Kids" (1979). She subsequently proved to be a versatile and dependable performer, shifting comfortably between projects on the big and small screens and avoiding typecasting in Latina roles. Alvarado delivered touching performances in "ABC Afterschool Specials," as a shy girl who discovers her friends have accepted her only because she has a famous father in "A Movie Star's Daughter" (1979), and as an aspiring singer whose mother pressures her to study bookkeeping in "Starstruck" (1981).

After making her feature debut, Alvarado distinguished herself in a number of fine performances, including as Diane Keaton's daughter in "Mrs. Soffel" (1984), as Maureen Stapleton's granddaughter working at a Catlike Mountain resort hotel in the underrated "Sweet Lorraine" (1987) the clunky musical "Satisfaction" (1988), co-starring Julia Roberts, as the daughter Bette Midler sacrifices all for in "Stella" (1990). She was cast opposite John Goodman in "The Babe" (1992), playing the fragile first wife of the baseball legend. before landing her most high profile film role as Meg, the oldest, conventional March sister in Gillian Armstrong's acclaimed remake of "Little Women" (1994). Unfortunately, her follow-up was the first role to take advantage of her familial heritage, playing Anjelica Huston's daughter in the critically-lambasted "The Perez Family" (1995). Alvarado fared better as the doctor living in a haunted house in Peter Jackson's "The Frighteners" (1996).

Life Events

1974

Began performing at age 7 with her family's Flamenco troupe (date approximate)

1976

Made professional acting debut at age 9 in stage musical "Becca"

1977

TV debut as Goldilocks in "Unicorn Tales" (syndicated)

1978

Broadway debut, "Runaways"

1979

Feature acting debut, "Rich Kids"

1982

Debut in a TV-movie, "Dreams Don"t Die" (ABC)

1984

First screen collaboration with Gillian Armstrong, "Mrs. Soffel"

1985

Played Anne Frank in the stage musical "Yours, Anne"

1986

Debut as guest on episodic TV, "Kate & Allie"

1988

Appeared in the Off-Broadway production of "Godspell"

1990

Had breakthrough role as daughter to "Stella"

1992

Moved into adult parts in "The Babe"

1994

Starred in the ensemble of "Little Women", directed by Gillian Armstrong

1996

Featured in "The Christmas Tree", an ABC TV-movie directed by Sally Field

1996

Co-starred with Michael J Fox in "The Frighteners"

Videos

Movie Clip

Little Women (1994) -- (Movie Clip) We've Been Expectorating You! With Winona Ryder narrating as Jo March, and language, including from young Amy (Kirsten Dunst), straight from the Louisa May Alcott novel, director Gillian Armstrong begins her widely praised adaptation, with Trini Alvarado as Meg, Claire Danes as Meg, and Susan Sarandon as Marmee, in Little Women, 1994.
Little Women (1994) -- (Movie Clip) I Never Know The Rules Evading a less interesting beau, Winona Ryder as Jo March at a society party in Civil War-era Concord, Mass., bumps (as will be her habit) into Christian Bale, as “Laurie,” the handsome, mysterious and affluent new neighbor who has fascinated her and her sisters, including Meg (Trini Alvarado), in director Gillian Armstrong’s Little Women, 1994.
Little Women (1994) -- (Movie Clip) The Most Elegant Family In Concord Reading together from magazine serials, using their adopted performance names, in what they consider the “March Family Theater,” sisters Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy (Winona Ryder, Trini Alvarado, Claire Danes and Kirsten Dunst) speculate about the future and their new neighbor (Christian Bale), in Little Women, 1994.
Mrs. Soffel (1984) -- (Movie Clip) Biddles Must Not Hang At the real Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh, introducing the kids (Trini Alvarado, Jennifer Dundas, Danny Corkill, Harley Cross), the Biddles (Mel Gibson, Matthew Modine), warden (Edward Hermann) and wife, risen from her sick bed, Diane Keaton, the title character, in Mrs. Soffel, 1984.

Trailer

Family

Domingo Alvarado
Father
Flamenco singer. Spanish, born c. 1930.
Sylvia Alvarado
Mother
Flamenco dancer. Born c. 1935; Puerto Rican.
Tony Alvarado
Brother
Born c. 1958.

Companions

Robert McNeill
Husband
Actor.

Bibliography