Raúl Eduardo Esparza was born October 24, 1970 in Wilmington, Delaware, to Cuban parents, María Elena Cecilia García y Gutiérrez and Raúl Esparza y Rues, who had fled Fidel Castro's regime. He is an American actor and singer. Considered one of Broadway's most prominent leading men since the 2000s, he is best known for his Tony Award-nominated performance as Bobby in the 2006 Broadway revival of Company and for his television role as New York Assistant District Attorney (ADA) Rafael Barba in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where he had a recurring role in Season 14 and was promoted to a series regular in Seasons 15 to 19.