Question 1

What is Raúl Esparza doing now?

Accepted Answer

Despite theaters going dark because of the Covid19 pandemic, Raúl Esparza still managed to keep busy during quarantine by utilizing the potential of online theater.

He started out the pandemic with co-producing and
 
hosting a huge celebration for Stephen Sondheim’s 90th birthday, which ended up being the largest self-tape compilation ever made and won the Drama League Award for Outstanding Digital Concert Production.

Trying to make the best of the online experience during the quarantine, Raúl Esparza also starred in a timely streaming production of Molière's Tartuffe which received rave reviews and co-conceived and starred in a socially-distanced-filmed feature-length musical film called The Waves in Quarantine, inspired by a stage adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s The Waves, with music and lyrics by late David Bucknam and Adam Gwon.

Raúl also took part in 24hourplays’ Viral Monologues by creating an emotional piece called Frijoles written by Matt Barbot.

In April 2021, Raúl joined Sutton Foster for “Bring me to light”, a streaming concert which was filmed live at the New York City Center.

As for TV gigs, in late 2020, Raúl Esparza came back for a visit to "Law and Order: SVU" and reprised his role as Rafael Barba in the 4th episode of season 22 called “Sightless in a Savage Land” and season 23 episode 9th "People Vs. Richard Wheatley". 
Raúl has also guest starred as Paul Mendelson in most episodes of the new miniseries Dopesick which premiered on Hulu in October 2021; and was part of the show "Finding your Roots" in episode 3 "Children of Exile" where he discovered more about his ancestors.

His most recent projects include the feature-length movie "Glimpse" written and directed by Theresa Rebeck, The Hulu tv series "Candy" (you can watch the trailer here) and he was announced as part of the cast for the new FX Limited Series “Retreat” (airing date still unconfirmed).

As for theatre, Raúl is currently starring as Fagin in New York City Center's Encores Oliver! for a two-week-run from May 3 - 14. 
But that's not all since Berkley Rep announced their 2024 calendar and Galileo is going to have it's run in May! We'll keep you updated in all the details as soon as we have them.

Question 2

Where can I find a complete list of Raúl Esparza’s work?

Accepted Answer

There is no official list or index of all his work, Raúl only has a gallery of pictures from different shows and projects he has done over the years on his website.

But with help from other fans, we created a master list which you can find here, including most of his work in theatre, films, tv shows and other events; plus some useful links to videos available online or sources where you can find more information.

* If you have a suggestion or inquiry about the master list please, leave a comment in the comments section or send us a DM or email.

Question 3

Where can I find videos of his presentations?

Accepted Answer

There are many videos uploaded on YouTube and our favorite ones can be found here. Also, on Raúl's website, there's an index with his projects and there you can find other videos and pictures.

Question 4

Where can I listen to Raúl Esparza’s music?

Accepted Answer

Many of the cast recordings are on streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple music or some videos on YouTube. Plus, in the streaming platforms, you can search by artist and find a complete collection of the songs. Here are the links to direct access to both collections: Spotify & Apple Music.

Also, on Raúl's website, there's an index of songs and you can stream directly there. If you are interested in purchasing any of Raúl Esparza songs, you can find a complete list of their Amazon links on his official website.

Question 5

What was Raúl’s Broadway debut?

Accepted Answer

His first Broadway show was “The Rocky Horror Show” (2000) at the Circle in the Square Theatre, where he portrayed Riff Raff. The cast included Dick Cavett, Lea DeLaria, Jarrod Emick, Joan Jett, Alice RIpley, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Tom Hewitt, among others. The show started previews on October 20 and the Opening night was in November.

Raúl's last show was on May 13, 2001 since he decided to be part of the original Off-Broadway production of "tick, tick, BOOM!"

Question 6

What Broadway shows has Raúl Esparza been in?

Accepted Answer

Raúl Esparza’s Broadway credits include 9 shows so far; "The Rocky Horror show", "Cabaret", "Taboo", "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang", "Company", "The Homecoming", "Speed-the-Plow", "Arcadia", and "Leap of Faith". Raúl has been nominated for four individual Tony awards and won several other awards, including Drama League Award and Obie Award. See the complete list of Raúl Esparza’s awards and nominations.

Now, what will be Raúl Esparza’s 10th Broadway show? That is the million-dollar question which we cannot wait to know the answer to!

Question 7

Is Raúl Esparza coming back to Broadway?

Accepted Answer

Probably yes!

In the past few years, Raúl Esparza has said multiple times that he has missed the live audience. He also has always called Broadway his home. And above all, he just loves doing theater, as he mentioned in his interview for the book “A Wonderful Guy: Conversations with the Great Men of Musical Theater” by Eddie Shapiro, “You do this because you have to because it is the meaning of your life, and you get to do it. [...] I would just do plays by myself in my backyard”.

Although nothing official is announced yet, we know that Raúl Esparza has been involved in developing a couple of Broadway-hopeful shows, in the past 2-3 years. For example, a Broadway revival of Chess based on a new book by Emmy winner Danny Strong looks very possible; Raúl Esparza performed the role of Freddie Trumper at the show’s limited run at Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. in 2018. Another such show is “Seared”, a new play by critically-acclaimed playwright Theresa Rebeck which ended its successful Off-Broadway run at MCC theater, just a couple of months before the pandemic halted everything. Galileo, a new musical featuring a book by Danny Strong and music and lyrics by Michael Weiner and Zoe Sarnak, is another show that we are hoping to find its way to Broadway soon. Raúl Esparza starred in a public reading of Galileo at Vassar & New York Stage and Film in 2019.

As of May 2023, Raúl participated in the production of Encores! Oliver! as Fagin during a 2-week-run. In 2024, he's expected to be part of Berkley Rep's "Galileo".

Question 8

Why did Raúl Esparza leave SVU?

Accepted Answer

Raúl Esparza left SVU to open up his schedule to work on other projects, especially live theater and other creative works. Confirming it was his decision to leave SVU, right after his last episode in 2018 he told EW, “I had explored a lot of what I thought Barba was about. I just felt it was time to move on”.

Later in 2019, in an interview for the book “A Wonderful Guy: Conversations with the Great Men of Musical Theater” by Eddie Shapiro, Raúl Esparza admitted that after he learned all that he, as an actor, could learn from SVU, showing up for work didn’t feed him creatively, anymore. He said, “at a certain point with filming, I began to feel like I just didn’t want to go to work. I’ve never felt that in theater, not ever.”

Therefore, even though he still enjoyed the company of his friends, especially Mariska Hargitay on the SVU set very much, he decided to exit the show and pursue new works that would give him the opportunity to challenge himself, again.

Question 9

Is Raúl Esparza in Candy?

Accepted Answer

Yes! It's in fact his latest announced project!
The five night event is set to premiere on May 9, 2022.

The show follows the story of Candy Montgomery, a 1980 housewife and mother who did everything right—good husband, two kids, nice house, even the careful planning and execution of transgressions—but when the pressure of conformity builds within her, her actions scream for just a bit of freedom. With deadly results.

Starring Jessica Biel, Melanie Lynskey, Timothy Simons, Pablo Schreiber, and Raúl Esparza. The name of his character is still yet to be confirmed but he'll be portraying Candy Montgomery's defense attorney.

You can follow the show's social media: Twitter & Instagram to keep updated with the latest news about it.

Question 10

Is Raúl Esparza in Dopesick?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Raúl Esparza guest stars in most episodes of Hulu’s miniseries Dopesick, as Paul Mendelson. Paul is a geologist who is married to Agent Bridget Meyer, played by Rosario Dawson.
You can see Raúl on episode 1 (First Bottle), episode 2 (Breakthrough Pain), episode 3 (The 5th Vital Sign), episode 5 (The Whistleblower), episode 6 (Hammer the Abusers), and episode 7 (Black Box Warning).

Dopesick premiered on Hulu on October 13, 2021.

Question 11

Is Raúl Esparza in Retreat?

Accepted Answer

Yes! On February 12, 2022 FX Networks confirmed the cast for it's new Limited Series "Retreat" and Raúl was confirmed alongside Clive Owen, Brit Marling, Harris Dickinson, Alice Braga, Jermaine Fowler, Joan Chen, Edoardo Ballerini, Pegah Ferydoni, Ryan J. Haddad and Javed Khan joining the previously announced Emma Corrin.

The cast has been spotted filming in NYC, New Jersey and other locations. Due to a recent post of one of the cast members, we can say they've wrapped up filming.

There's no airing date announced yet, but as always, we'll keep you updated.

Question 12

Is Barba coming back to SVU?

Accepted Answer

Although Raúl Esparza left Law and Order: SVU in season 19 to be able to engage in new projects, especially live theater, coming back as a guest star in an episode or two was never off the table. I
 
n fact, from the first day Raúl left SVU, everyone, including Raúl himself and Mariska Hargitay made it very clear that the door was open for Barba and it was not the last we saw him. Saying goodbye to Barba/ Raúl right after his last episode in season 19 aired, Mariska told him on Twitter, “[…] Family always gets to come home... come home soon.”

In his EW interview in 2018, Raúl also stated that ADA Barba is a part of the SVU family now and confirmed that it was possible that there would be a life for him in the future.

But Raúl didn’t come back to SVU until Season 21, when Warren Leight, who was the SVU showrunner between season 13-17 and got Raúl to play Barba in the first place, came back to take the helm of the show, again. It was when Barba finally returned to SVU for a very brief, yet sweet, appearance in the 13th episode of season 21 called “Redemption in Her Corner”. 
Then in season 22, Raúl Esparza guest starred in the 4th episode called “Sightless in a Savage Land”. In an interview with Variety in 2021, Raúl said coming back to SVU for one episode and getting to work with his friends again, especially in a year of so much uncertainty, was like “walking into a huge embrace” for him.
More recently, Raúl Esparza starred as a guest star for one episode on season 23 of Law and Order: SVU. reprising his role as Rafael Barba on episode 9 called "People Vs Richard Wheatley" which aired on December 9, 2021.

Question 13

Is Raúl Esparza in the new “tick, tick, BOOM!” Movie?"

Accepted Answer

The new production of “tick, tick, BOOM!”, directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda and starring Andrew Garfield was released on Netflix last November. Despite Raúl Esparza being the first Jonathan Larson in an Off-Broadway production, he didn't get a cameo in the movie.

Either way, you can always enjoy the original Off-Broadway cast recording of "tick, tick, BOOM!" (2001) performed by Raúl Esparza, Amy Spanger and Jerry Dixon or watch available footage of that memorable show, on youtube.

Listen to Raúl discussing with BroadwayRadio about the new movie and other topics here.

Frequently Asked Questions