When I read about Lolita Milena, I was immediately drawn in by her story of survivorship. From immigrating to the US as a toddler to being physically abused by her foster family which led to paralysis, Lolita is rolling into a life of love.

She has found a loving adoptive family where she discovered her love for the arts. Now, Lolita is pursuing a career in acting, modeling and writing. She released her debut novel when she was a junior in high school.

In this interview, Lolita answered my call to reveal:

• What she learned from her abusive situation
• How her story of survivorship can help someone else
• Her inspirations to go into acting
• How to make theatre more inclusive
• So much more 

Connect with Lolita: Instagram, TikTok

Lolita Milena, Photo Credit: Amanda Stayer

1. Your story is truly inspiring! You have been a survivor since you were a toddler. You immigrated to the US in 2002 as a toddler with a foster family. As a result of their physical abuse, you were left physically paralyzed. Since then, you have found a very loving adoptive family. What did you learn about yourself from this experience? Since I was so young, not much was to be learned just yet. But as I grew up, I gained insight into how my other adopted siblings came up before entering the family. I learned from so many walks of life and the main lesson to come from it; be grateful for what you have.

2. Because you were so young when this happened, how did you get out of your abusive foster family and into the loving arms of your adoptive family? Authorities had gotten involved immediately following the morning of the injury. I believe it was within the same week I was placed with my current family under immediate foster placement. My parents specialized in caring for special needs children and those who endured traumatic experiences.

3. How do you feel your story of survivorship can help someone who might be in an abusive situation? I see my story as one to act as a tale for caution. A child in the foster system coming out with an injury such as my own, is commonly seen as a positive outcome. Unfortunately many end horrifically.

4. At six years old, you discovered your love of musical theatre. Who or what inspired you to become an actress? I always loved films and novels. I craved the next story. My mother and I bonded over cinema, my father and I connected through books. Stories were a way for me to place myself in worlds so different from my own. I’d find myself acting out the chapters in my room seeing the realms in my mind. When it came to watching actors work their magic, I fell in love with their abilities to make someone of any age believe the tale being told. And, I felt it best to take my spin on it someday.

5. What do you love about performing? I adore reading a character on the cold paper and knowing I can bring them to life, breathing and feeling off the page.

Lolita Milena, Photo Credit: Amanda Stayer

6. As you go out on auditions or get cast in productions, do you feel there need to be any changes to accessibility in the world of theatre to make it more inclusive? Something I strongly believe is; cast the best person for the job. I’d love to someday see characters not originally written to have a disability, but the actor was so convincing regardless of the disability they have in the everyday world.

7. Through social media, you have been able to collaborate with various clothing companies, including Abercrombie & Fitch. You were part of their "Face Your Fierce" campaign in 2019. What did this particular campaign do for you? It was my first legitimate campaign and I was so excited when my friend had referred me as a co-member. Yes, I still have the cologne bottle to this day and display it haha.

8. In addition to being an actress, you are also a published author, writing your first book in your junior year of high school in 2017. You took on the challenge of writing a 50,000 word novel in only 30 days. Not only did you surpass the word count goal by 14,000, but did so in 20 days. What did you get from writing that you didn't get from performing? Writing and acting are so different yet, I love both mediums. As a writer I can go as in-depth into the mind of a character as I want, and I tend to dive as deep as I possibly can. Acting is great to make those characters come to life in the visual realm, but with writing your story has no time constraints.

9. Your first published novel, 2459 won you first place in your state for the NANOWRIMO content. What is the hidden meaning behind your novel's title? So, for 2459 it’s very simple. In the orphanage back in Siberia, the children lost their names outside of their birth certificate. In those walls you became a number; mine was in-fact 2459.

10. What is something we didn't get to talk about in this interview that you'd like my audience to know about you? I love to travel! So far I’ve been able to work around non-accommodating spaces. So, one of my main life goals would be to find myself successful enough to no longer feel the need to worry about seeking accommodations. As an orphan-immigrant, I do wish to see each country in my heritage; many are not accessible for me as I am currently. Consider the goal set!

Lolita Milena, Photo Credit: Amanda Stayer

More on Lolita Milena:

Lolita Milena is a paraplegic actress and author. Born in Siberia, Lolita immigrated to the United States in 2002 as a toddler with her then foster family. The fall of the same year through child abuse, Milena was left permanently paralyzed. It was shortly after she was adopted by her current family.

Her introduction to the art form began in musical theatre at the early age of 6 years old. Having performed in an accumulated 20 theatrical productions, Lolita had turned to social media platforms to create content ranging from short skits to special effect makeup.

During her junior year of high school in 2017, Lolita had taken on the challenge in writing a 50,000 word novel in only 30 days. Not only did she surpass the word count goal by 14,000, but did so in 20 days. Her first published novel, 2459, won her first place in her state for the NANOWRIMO content. Also in 2017, Lolita had discovered TikTok, opening a new world of possibilities and opportunities. She had gained popularity on the platform by uploading short acting and comedic skit clips. As of January 2023, Lolita had been steadily climbing the ranks on the popular app, sitting around 720,000 followers.

In 2019, Lolita was discovered by her management through TikTok, who had assisted her into the industry; eventually booking the character Jenna in Lionsgate and Buzzfeed's 1UP. While being an actress and self published author, Lolita also began work relationships with cosmetic and clothing brands through social media platforms. These brands being and not limited to: TTDEYE, Abercrombie & Fitch, and OrangeJuicetheBrand Clothing. In the summer of 2019, Milena had been one of the faces for Abercrombie & Fitch's Face Your Fierce campaign.

Lolita was adopted by her current family at the age of 2 years old after the incident. She has 8 sisters, 1 brother, and is the third youngest. She hopes to continue growing and with the influence, show young men and women in a similar predicament that: "Just because you have a disability, doesn't mean you can't follow your dreams."