A biography for Rachel Zeglerhasn’t been written yet.
“I auditioned for 'Hamilton' and the 'West Side Story' Broadway revival and so many different stage musicals... It was never right, and I think it was just getting me ready for the opportunity of a lifetime, which was to play one of the most iconic musical characters in a Steven Spielberg movie.”
“Writing and sharing music, it's a very vulnerable thing. Especially when you're in the public eye, people like to have ideas of what it might be about, or who, or what. I just kind of want to share my music with the world in a very intimate way.”
“I've been told to go back to where I came from, even when I was born in suburban New Jersey.”
“I'm a huge advocate for the fact that there's no one way to be Latina.”
“I am a lip balm fiend. I have one in every pocket, every purse, and every coat.”
“I grew up with the classic Latina bowl cut that my parents gave me, which I will never forgive them for. I looked like Dora the Explorer.”
“There's an instant gratification to performance art.”
“The endgame was a Tony Award; that was what I wanted.”
“You know, yeah, my dad is white - he's American. His family has been in this country for many, many, many years. And the same can't be said for my other side of the family.”
“I really credit my learning curve to my experience on stage.”
“I listen to a lot of Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift. And show tunes.”
“I'm a white Latina. I don't get stopped on the street for the way that I look. That's my privilege, but when I speak Spanish on the subway, I've been spit on.”
“Authenticity in Latin identity comes in so many different shapes and sizes and colors.”
“I named my guitar Joan after Joan Baez.”
“My first red carpet was the Met Gala, which just feels like a baptism by fire.”
“I was fortunate enough to live in a close proximity to Manhattan and got to see Broadway shows all the time.”
“I was auditioning since the age of 14 to be in Broadway shows, and it just never happened for me.”
“That's why art is so fantastic: It can keep being adapted to move with society's vision as well as the original.”
“My sister's name is Jacqueline. And my parents originally wanted to name me Catherine, but they thought it would get a little bit confusing because they sound very similar. And my mom is a big 'Friends' fan, and thought that the name 'Rachel' for Jennifer Aniston's character sounded beautiful on TV. And that is why I was named Rachel.”
“My relationship with my family, my 'core four,' as I call us - my mom, my dad, my older sister, and me - has stayed the same, truly.”