Kiara Feliciano was born in Baltimore, MD, but raised the majority of her life in Ocala, FL. She is of Puerto Rican descent and speaks both English and Spanish.
From a young age, Kiara took an interest in performing. In the eighth grade she starred in her first musical, Peter Pan, as Wendy. It was then that Kiara realized all she wanted to do was act. She went to West Port High School and joined the MCCA (Marion County Center for the Arts) program. It was here and in the Ocala Civic Theatre that she expanded her resume, starring in Our Town (Stage Manager), The Tempest (Ariel), Swinging on a Star (Ensemble), Grease (Cha-Cha), CATS (Demeter), and many more. Kiara continued to pursue her career in college. Many obstacles came along the way, ranging from acting classes lacking a challenge for her to financial problems. This led her through Stetson University (DeLand, FL), SCAD (Savannah, GA) and Florida Gulf Coast University (Ft. Myers, FL.) She learned her love of acting in front of the camera during these years and acted in a few short films. She continued acting on the stage in plays like Agamemnon (Cassandra), Faustus Burns Brightly (Helen), and Three Sisters (Masha.) |
Kiara received her MFA in Acting at the University of Houston. In grad school, Kiara starred in Serious Money (Jacinta Condor), Three Sisters (Olga), Blood Wedding (Mother), Twelfth Night (Olivia), and Our Country's Good (Liz Morden.) Between her two years at UH, Kiara was hired at Unto These Hills in Cherokee, NC where she played Quatie and understudied the lead role, Selu. During those two years, Kiara earned her basic passes with the SAFD in quarterstaff and her Recommended Pass in rapier and dagger, unarmed, single sword, and knife. This awakened her interests in whip cracking, knife throwing, and aerial silks. She was a teaching assistant at the Texas Combat Intensive. She also assisted teaching two Intro to Theatre Classes and taught her own Acting for Non-Majors class. She also has two years of training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, MMA, Muay Thai, and Krav Maga for which she has earned her Orange belt.
Kiara has continued to perform in professional theaters such as the Houston Shakespeare Festival and Unto These Hills in Cherokee, North Carolina. She has taught a year as a visiting instructor at the Florida Gulf Coast University, two years at the University of Houston as a teaching assistant, a year as an actor health educator with Kaiser Permanente's Educational Theatre in Southern California for grades K-12, and now currently runs the Marion County Center for the Arts Acting program at West Port High School in her hometown Ocala, FL. She aspires to start up her own touring educational theatre company in Central Florida.
Kiara has continued to perform in professional theaters such as the Houston Shakespeare Festival and Unto These Hills in Cherokee, North Carolina. She has taught a year as a visiting instructor at the Florida Gulf Coast University, two years at the University of Houston as a teaching assistant, a year as an actor health educator with Kaiser Permanente's Educational Theatre in Southern California for grades K-12, and now currently runs the Marion County Center for the Arts Acting program at West Port High School in her hometown Ocala, FL. She aspires to start up her own touring educational theatre company in Central Florida.