Raised between Washington D.C. and Mexico City, in a family of artists and theatre fanatics, you could always find Ilyana in front of the camera, on stage, or backstage.  

Her Mexican Grandmother, Tita, as they called her, was a prominent stage actor and director in Mexico City and was instrumental in building Mexico's theatre culture and was one of the strongest pillars of the Mexican theatre community. She was Ilyana's first theatre mentor and acting coach, and she has her to thank for her devotion to theatre. 

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Ilyana continued to study theatre at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, as well as, study abroad at The University of Manchester in the UK and Keimyung University in South Korea. 

At Eckerd, she acted in three productions, but also participated in the technical side as a carpentry assistant, director, and even lighting designer. Her final year, she directed the seniors' thesis production of Pretty Pieces by Charles Robertson, as well as, designed the lighting and the set. At graduation, she was the sole recipient of the Creative Arts Collegium Award.  

 

For the 2019 Capital Fringe Festival, she Co-Produced and Co-Directed, alongside Tim Caron, The Knights of Salisbury, an original new musical. The production was a hit at the festival, and it was featured in newspapers and even got a three minute segment on WUSA-9. 

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Right after college, Ilyana snagged an amazing opportunity working for The Keegan Theatre in DC, first as a scenic carpentry apprentice, then as a videographer, assistant stage manager and assistant teaching artist, and finally as a production stage manager. Simultaneously, she was acting in several community theatre productions in the DC/MD/VA area including: A Midsummer Nights Dream (Mclean Community Players), The Count of Monte Cristo (Aldersgate Church Community Theatre), and The Fantasticks (The Little Theatre of Alexandria), as well as, participating in productions with Oscar Flores and Olga Martha Dávila in Mexico City.

 

Ilyana last appeared on stage as Maeve in Blue Stockings at The Little Theatre of Alexandria and she last appeared backstage in Arco Iris with Arts on the Horizon.