Roberto Lopez
- Gallery: Roberto Lopez
Age: 40.
Job: Digital printer.
Marital status: Single.
Children: Two boys, two girls.
Not on the hunt: "I'm not dating. I don't have a girlfriend. I'm just working. Just focused."
If his life were a reality TV show, it would be: "Life the Musical."
Where we met him: At McFadden's in Old City and North by Northwest in Germantown.
Waiting in the wings: He's played the spouse of a cheating wife in "Baby Mama Drama" at the Painted Bride and at Vare Junior High School. Also performed in "Welcome Home Eddie" in 2001. "I never had acting classes or acting anything. I just was able to read a script."
Making a difference: Belongs to Men in Motion in the Community (MIMIC), a grassroots organization that helps motivate at-risk youngsters. "We start off showing them a DVD of lifers at Graterford and then we speak on our experiences. We say, 'We're available. We're here. If you can't talk to anybody at home, give us a call.' We want the phone call before 911 call."
Giving back: "You've got to help build back the community. I was incarcerated for almost five years. I'd tried to support myself by selling drugs. I was 23 and I came home when I was 28. That's how I met the person that got me into theater. He was a social worker. I'd always acted out skits for him."
How he got back on track: "I abandoned what I knew from the streets. Someone asked me, 'How were you able to come back from that?' I said, 'The roots.' [Often, kids] haven't been taught self-esteem. They haven't been taught the value of certain things."
First trip: "On my first vacation, I went to Greece. I went to Greece by myself. A friend of mine had a pizzeria. I said, 'I'm going to come and visit you someday.' I swam in the Mediterranean Sea. I partied in Athens. When I got out of prison, I said, 'I wanted to see another part of the world.'"
E-mail: phillysteeler@yahoo.com.
Clothing: JMcLaughlin.
