Nelson Ascencio (born August 30, 1964) is a Cuban-American actor and
comedian. Ascencio is most notable for his membership in the recurring
cast of comedians on sketch comedy series MADtv and for playing
Flavius in The Hunger Games film series.Nelson Ascencio was born in
Guayos, Cuba but fled his homeland when he was very young. He then
immigrated to Tarrytown, NY, where he started acting in his early
teens with local theater and school productions. He continued his
acting training after high school at the prestigious American Academy
of Dramatic Arts and the HB Studios. While living in Manhattan,
Ascencio perfected his comedy skills by doing some stand up. Then he
moved to Los Angeles, California where he took classes at the
Groundlings Theatre. Since then he has written, performed and produced
his own sketch shows with the comedy group Unsafe Sketch at HBO
Workspace, Luna Park, The Upfront and Theatre at the Improv. His
television credits include appearances on The Larry Sanders Show and
Seinfeld.Ascencio joined the cast of MADtv in 1999 as a feature
performer, for the fifth season, becoming the show's first
Cuban-American cast member, as well as the second one to be born
outside of North America (after Bryan Callen), and the second Latino
cast member at the time (after Pablo Francisco). However, Ascencio was
later promoted to a repertory performer status the at the beginning of
the sixth season, but left at the end.In February, 2012 Ascencio
joined the cast of Don't Tell My Mother! (Live Storytelling), a
monthly showcase in which celebrities share comedic accounts of
stories they would never want their mothers to know.
comedian. Ascencio is most notable for his membership in the recurring
cast of comedians on sketch comedy series MADtv and for playing
Flavius in The Hunger Games film series.Nelson Ascencio was born in
Guayos, Cuba but fled his homeland when he was very young. He then
immigrated to Tarrytown, NY, where he started acting in his early
teens with local theater and school productions. He continued his
acting training after high school at the prestigious American Academy
of Dramatic Arts and the HB Studios. While living in Manhattan,
Ascencio perfected his comedy skills by doing some stand up. Then he
moved to Los Angeles, California where he took classes at the
Groundlings Theatre. Since then he has written, performed and produced
his own sketch shows with the comedy group Unsafe Sketch at HBO
Workspace, Luna Park, The Upfront and Theatre at the Improv. His
television credits include appearances on The Larry Sanders Show and
Seinfeld.Ascencio joined the cast of MADtv in 1999 as a feature
performer, for the fifth season, becoming the show's first
Cuban-American cast member, as well as the second one to be born
outside of North America (after Bryan Callen), and the second Latino
cast member at the time (after Pablo Francisco). However, Ascencio was
later promoted to a repertory performer status the at the beginning of
the sixth season, but left at the end.In February, 2012 Ascencio
joined the cast of Don't Tell My Mother! (Live Storytelling), a
monthly showcase in which celebrities share comedic accounts of
stories they would never want their mothers to know.
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