If you’ve been glued to the latest series of “Black Mirror” on Netflix you may have spotted the Cayman Islands’ very own Rita Estevanovich.
The 44-year-old actor pops up as Dr. Garcia in “USS Callister: Into Infinity”, a sequel to one of the show’s most popular episodes, “USS Callister”, starring Cristin Milioti and Jessie Plemons.
“I didn’t actually realise when I got the part it was for Black Mirror,” she says, speaking from her home in London.
“It was only at the live table read I found out. Obviously a very nice surprise!”
Estevanovich took a leap of faith and moved to the UK almost six years ago, along with her young son and mother, to study at the renowned acting school, Rose Bruford College.
Although Covid descending on the world six months into her master’s degree caused a few setbacks, she and her fellow students persevered with the help of Zoom and the odd break in lockdowns to graduate by the end of 2020.
She has since made a number of appearances in films, TV shows and commercials, including Red, White & Royal Blue (Amazon Prime), Black Cake (Hulu, Disney Plus) and of course, Black Mirror.
She’s even been the voice of a five-headed dragon in Dungeons & Dragons: The Queen’s Cradle (Amazon Prime).
In 2022, she made her UK stage debut playing campaigner Gina Miller at the UK’s most famous theatre festival, Edinburgh Fringe.
Guyanese-born businesswoman Miller twice won legal challenges against the government over Brexit issues, including when the Supreme Court ruled in favour of giving MPs a say over triggering Article 50 – the legal mechanism taking the UK out of the EU.
Estevanovich says it was an “honour to briefly slide into the high heels of the powerful, living legend that is Mrs Miller”.
“This intelligent whistleblower with Caribbean roots risked everything to uphold the law; playing the part gave me a deeper appreciation for this brave woman and opened my eyes to British politics and the media’s role in pushing for Brexit.”
Estevanovich, who grew up in West Bay and George Town, started her working life as a TV journalist on the islands following a degree in political science, business and Spanish at the University of Central Florida.
But when the television station closed down in 2004 due to Hurricane Ivan, she was forced to look elsewhere.
A volunteering position with the National Cultural Foundation to restore the Harquail Theatre led to a staff role within the organisation, while also igniting her passion for acting.
The foundation encouraged her to pursue her dream, and with their support, she soon headed to LA to take the New York Film Academy’s one-year “Acting for Film” conservatoire programme.
After graduating, Estevanovich came home to help her family with the storm recovery.
She had planned to return to LA to further her acting career but was offered the opportunity to work in local radio, and not long after, in a new role at the Foundation so decided to stay.
After a few years in radio, she left to focus her energies completely on the Foundation, where she remained for ten years, working as a programmes manager.
She also took on acting, hosting and voice-over work for the organisation, while also throwing herself into various other local and international projects.
Estevanovich says her many roles provided a fantastic training ground for her career in arts and entertainment.
“People think of Cayman as a place for business, finance or tourism,” she explains. “But because the country is so small, you actually have access to a lot of opportunities in various sectors of the arts that you might not have somewhere like London or LA where there is so much competition.”
In 2016, three years after her son was born, Estevanovich made what might have seemed like a surprising move into property management.
“I loved working at the Foundation, that was a dream job for me, but I was so immersed in everything it eventually became too much – I was burning the candle at both ends.”
“I just needed a break from it all and also wanted to spend more time with my son.”
She says the work – within guest services and condo management – offered the (relatively) regular hours and calm she needed then.
But as time went on, she felt the arts calling once again.
“I could feel myself being sort of tugged back and then I saw something, I think it was in the news, where they were looking to form a troupe to represent Cayman at the World Championships of the Performing Arts in San Diego.”
“I had no idea what it was, I’d never heard of it, but it piqued my interest, especially as I needed something to challenge myself.”
“I was in my late thirties at the time. A lot of the people who auditioned were young people I’d worked with in the CNCF’s youth theatre company, Young at Arts. They were like, ‘Hi, Miss Rita!’, which was funny, but also lovely.”
After securing her spot in the troupe, the team headed to the US to take part in the big event.
“It was huge – about 60 countries represented. It’s the Olympics of Performing arts apparently,” she says.
The championships have various disciplines, including dancing, singing, modelling and acting, with Estevanovich competing as an actor.
“You had to perform a number of prepared minute-long pieces in different categories, like classical, lyrical, commercial etc and then if the judges like you, you move through the rounds,” she says.
“And I ended up doing really well, winning several medals and going through to the finals. And then I won the whole senior acting category. In my head I thought, this is hilarious, it can’t be right?
“But it got crazier as I then won ‘Grand Champion Performer of the World’! I just couldn’t understand it – I thought the judges had made a mistake. Did they miss the acrobats who were incredible?
“I even went and checked the rules, which did say that it wasn’t just down to the technical side of things – it could be the energy of the performer, or a star quality or something. It was a shock anyway!”
After being presented with “a very heavy” trophy, Estevanovich headed home with the confidence she needed to take the next big step in her life.
In 2019, she and her family said goodbye to the Cayman Islands – at least for now – and headed to the UK, where she’d secured a spot at her first-choice drama school.
Six years on, and with several credits behind her, Estevanovich says she’s enjoying her new chapter and is excited for what’s next.
She still regularly works with people and organisations in the Cayman Islands on voice-over and other arts projects, and visits a couple of times a year, but for now London is her base.
“It’s the right place to be career-wise and my son is settled in school and doing well – I wouldn’t want to uproot him.”
“But who knows what the future holds.”
