Gaby Moreno’s Broadway Debut: From Guatemalan Roots to ‘Hadestown’ Star

As a powerful blizzard blankets the East Coast in snow, another force of nature is preparing to take over the chilly streets of Manhattan.

Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Gaby Moreno will develop her Broadway debut as Persephone, the leading lady of Anaïs Mitchell’s Tony Award-winning musical “Hadestown,” beginning March 3 at the Walter Kerr Theatre in Novel York City.

Moreno, 44, takes a video call during her second day of rehearsals, as she is learning how to play Persephone, goddess of spring — and in this play, a wine-drunk lush.

“For the first few minutes I was like, ‘Can I do this? I feel like a klutz,’” she says of her character’s flailing steps, meant to distinguish the inebriated goddess. “I’ve never been drunk because I don’t like the taste of alcohol,” Moreno adds, giggling.

A decorated musician with nine bilingual albums – including her 2024 Grammy Award-winning acoustic album “X Mí” – Moreno’s path to Broadway is a testament to perseverance and a commitment to artistic integrity. Her journey began in Guatemala City, and was seeded during a family trip to New York City when she was 13 years old, where she saw “Les Misérables” and “The Phantom of the Opera.”

“I went back home thinking, This represents a dream of mine,” she recalls.

That trip also sparked a fascination with the blues. Hearing a street performer in Times Square introduced her to a genre unknown to her, and she began collecting blues compilation albums. The first track she played was Koko Taylor’s 1965 rendition of “Wang Dang Doodle.”

“That’s the moment I’ll never forget,” says Moreno.

Growing up, Moreno’s mother, Lucy Bonilla, was a popular radio broadcaster in Guatemala, and Gaby often performed alongside her and her sisters in commercials. She even recorded voice-overs for Pollo Campero, a beloved Central American chicken restaurant chain.

At 10 years old, she opened for Ricky Martin in 1991, thanks to her father, a concert promoter. “It was such a wonderful experience. I got to discover that I loved singing on stage,” Moreno says. “I felt right at home.”

Yearning to start a music career in the States, Moreno recorded a cover of a Guatemalan waltz called “Luna de Xelajú.” Her mother sent the demo to a producer in Miami, who connected her with a music manager in Los Angeles. At 18, she signed with Warner Brothers and moved to L.A., enrolling in the Musicians Institute’s Vocal Certificate program to secure a student visa.

Moreno envisioned blending American blues and folk traditions with Latin American folk music, but her label discouraged it, fearing it would “confuse [the] audience.”

“It took a while for me to find my own voice and to find where I belonged in this music world,” Moreno says. “Because at the beginning, [labels] were telling me you can’t sing in both languages — you gotta pick a lane.”

After a 2001 merger between AOL and Time Warner, Moreno’s recording contract was dissolved. She later signed with Epic Records, but was dropped following the decline in CD sales and the rise of digital file-sharing sites like Napster and Limewire.

“I didn’t even get past recording an album,” she says.

Undeterred, Moreno won the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in 2006 for her song “Escondidos,” the first time a Latin category had taken the top prize. She began releasing music independently on MySpace, and in 2009, she opened for Tracy Chapman on tour across the U.S.

Moreno’s versatility led to opportunities in television and film. Her music has been featured in NBC’s “Parks and Recreation,” Guillermo del Toro’s “Cabinet of Curiosities,” and the final season of Netflix’s “Orange is the New Black,” including a cover of “Cucurrucucú Paloma.” She also contributed to the soundtrack of “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.”

Despite these successes, Moreno says she hasn’t achieved mainstream recognition as a musician. “I’m perfectly fine with that. I am so happy at this point in my life where I can make music for a living,” she says.

Moreno has earned three Grammy nominations, and finally won the Grammy for Latin pop album in 2024 for “X Mí (Vol. 1),” an acoustic collection of her previous function, including “Luna de Xelajú.”

Actor Oscar Isaac, who befriended Moreno in 2013, describes her as “powerful the way that water is flowing and it’s light, but it’s unstoppable and effervescent.” The two performed “Luna de Xelajú” together on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in 2024.

Guatemala remains central to Moreno’s identity. Last year, she starred in “Lamento,” a musical short film set in an abandoned Guatemalan beach resort, highlighting the impacts of climate change. “It’s something that brings me joy to work with people from my country,” she says.

Now, as she prepares to embody Persephone in “Hadestown,” Moreno is ready to bring her unique blend of musical influences and personal experiences to the Broadway stage. “One thing I can tell you is: wait to bring on the spring,” she says.