Exclusive Interview with ‘Party of Five’ Actress Emily Tosta

If you don’t know who Emily Tosta is, you’re going to want to familiarize yourself. The up-and-coming actress has already appeared in series like Mayans M.C., Rosewood and NCIS: Los Angeles and she’s now taking on her biggest role to date as Lucia Acosta in Freeform’s Party of Five reboot.

I got the chance to talk with Emily about her Party of Five audition process, her character Lucia’s relationship with Matthew, what kind of role she’s hoping to mark off her acting bucket list and much more. Keep reading to see what she had to say! 

You were born and raised in the Dominican Republic and came to the United States when you were only 12 years old. Did you always know you wanted to be an actress or is that passion something you discovered once you moved to the US?

Since I was a little girl, one of the first memories is being so passionate about acting. The reason why my mother and I came to the US was to pursue that dream. I had been working in my country for many years as an actress, and I wanted to strive for more and come live that American dream. 

I personally always love hearing about auditions stories so what was your audition process like for Party of Five?

The process was pretty typical! I went in for an audition, I had a callback, then we went straight to the testing sessions and chemistry reads (which are always nerve wracking). You read with different people from different roles and you get paired up with different families, it’s a very interesting process. Then we had studio tests and network tests.. And then we got the amazing news!! 🙂 

I know a lot of actors bring a bit of themselves to the characters they play so in what ways would you say that you are similar to Lucia and in what ways are you different from Lucia?

I bring a lot of myself into Lucia. We are both very determined, we have a passion for helping others, we are very studious and we always speak our minds. 

The heart of this show is clearly the family dynamic between the siblings and their relationships with one another. Was that bond between you, Niko, Elle and Brandon pretty immediate or was it something that took time for you guys to build? If the latter, what are some of the things you guys did to build that sibling bond?

It was actually pretty immediate! Even in the chemistry read sessions, as soon as I read with Niko, Elle and Brandon, something felt different than reading with other people. It was instant chemistry. Also, we shot the pilot in Canada so we were all living there in the same hotel for like a month and a half, so that also brought us closer together! 

At the end of 1×05, we saw Lucia do something totally illegal by taking a picture of a dead guy’s social security number to give to Matthew. Since the beginning, we’ve seen her take drastic measures to help this guy she barely knows, so is it more about her trying to help someone because she couldn’t help her parents or does she really care about Matthew and what happens to him?

Lucia has definitely been very passionate about helping Matthew. It honestly stems from a place of feeling helpless towards being able to help her parents. She just simply doesn’t want any more people around her leaving her. She does care for Matthew a lot, but at the same time some of it comes from a place of feeling like she did something good for someone, since she couldn’t for her mom and dad. 

One of the things I’ve loved about Lucia so far is how much of a “social justice warrior” – as Emilio dubbed her – she is and how willing she is to stand up for what she believes in. And so far it’s worked in her favor. But at some point are we going to see that come back around and cause problems for her?

Lucia definitely starts developing a stronger voice for herself and she uses that to become a justice warrior. You will see Lucia struggle with a character that introduces her to charity which may give her thoughts of retrieval from it, but she bounces back! 

There is such a depth to the stories that Party of Five is telling and it seems like the audience is really resonating with them so far. As an actress, what it does it mean to you to be a part of such an important project that people are really identifying with?

It’s such a blessing to be a part of such a timely and important project. Now is the best time to tell a story like this. We get to shine light on so many important topics and this is what entertainment should be about. Using our resources and platforms to talk about the things that matter, to start those important conversations. 

Lucia and Leticia – your character on Mayans M.C. – could not be any different. As an actress, do you like the challenge that comes with playing characters that are polar opposites?

I absolutely love it! It is such a dream, as an actress, to be able to play with those different spectrums. They are both so different from each other, different upbringings, different environments, different conflicts. It is amazing going between one and the other. 

Kind of going off of that, is there a specific role or type of character you haven’t gotten the chance to play but are hoping to mark off your bucket list?

I have always wanted to be in a superhero movie. Being a part of a Marvel project has always been a dream since I was little! 

Which episode of Party of Five are you excited for fans see and why?

I adore all episodes but one of my favorite ones is episode 7, which is when Lucia starts realizing the strength of her voice and reach, she steps out of her comfort zone and delivers a speech that changes a lot of people’s perspectives, including hers. 

Last question — we’re called Talk Nerdy With Us because we all have an inner nerd so what is something that you’re currently nerding out about?

YES! SO MANY THINGS. I am constantly reading about astrology, the moons/stars/planets, energies, frequencies, the law of attraction, the meat and dairy industry.. GOSH I could go on and on, maybe we need a separate interview JUST about the things I nerd out about? haha

Make sure you follow Emily on Twitter and Instagram. Party of Five airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Freeform.

Featured Photo Credit: Rowan Daly