Lauren Vélez

Lauren Vélez (born November 2, 1964) is an American actress and the twin sister of actress Lorraine Vélez. Her most notable roles are as María LaGuerta on Showtime's Dexter, Detective Nina Moreno on Fox's New York Undercover, Dr. Gloria Nathan on HBO's prison drama, Oz, and Elena on ABC's comedy-drama, Ugly Betty.

Early years

Lauren and Lorraine's parents moved from Puerto Rico in the early 1950s and lived in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, where the twins were born. They have five other sisters and one brother. Their father, a New York City Police Department officer, eventually bought a house in Far Rockaway, Queens, and moved there with his wife and eight children. The twins enjoyed setting up improvised plays and acting for the family, and they participated in nearly all their high school productions, such as, Fiddler on the Roof. After graduating from high school, they each received scholarships to attend the Alvin Ailey Dance School. They both went on to study acting at the Acting Studio with its founding artistic director James Price, the protégé and personal friend of Sanford Meisner. In addition, Lauren studied Shakespeare with Michael Howard.