Drea de Matteo

Born: 19 January 1972

Age:

Years Active: 1995-present

Andrea Donna de Matteo (born January 19, 1972) is an American actress who is best known for her role as Adriana La Cerva on the television drama The Sopranos (1999–2006), for which she received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2004. Other notable roles include Gina Tribbiani on Joey (2004–2006), Wendy Case on Sons of Anarchy (2008–2014), Angie Bolen on Desperate Housewives (2009–2010), and Detective Tess Nazario on Shades of Blue (2016–2018).

De Matteo was born in Queens, New York. Her mother, Donna, is a playwright and playwriting teacher who has been on faculty at HB Studio, and her father, Albert, was a furniture manufacturer who was owner and CEO of Avery Boardman and Carlyle. She is of Italian descent, and grew up in a Catholic family.

After graduating from the Loyola School on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, De Matteo earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in film production from the Tisch School of the Arts of New York University in Greenwich Village, intending to become a film director. She additionally studied acting at the HB Studio.