Ravera was born in
San Francisco, California. She is of mixed African-American and Puerto Rican heritage. She is a classically trained dancer. In the early 1990s, Ravera began appearing in guest-starring roles on television shows, including
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,
Melrose Place and
Star Trek: The Next Generation. During 1993–1994, she was a cast member of the CBS crime series
Silk Stalkings. In films, she had a starring role in the 1995 erotic drama
Showgirls, directed by
Paul Verhoeven, and in 1997 appeared in the family drama
Soul Food. Ravera later went to television, appearing in TV films of the week and in series guest roles and regular roles. She appeared in the TV miniseries
The Temptations in 1998 as Josephine Williams, the first wife of Otis Williams. She was a regular cast member of
Time of Your Life, a spin-off series of
Fox's popular teen drama
Party of Five, from 1999 to 2000. From 2005 to 2009, Ravera played Irene Daniels during the first four seasons of the
TNT crime drama series
The Closer and was the only regular cast member to leave the series during its run. From 2006 to 2008, she appeared in a recurring role on
ER and in 2007 she appeared opposite
Denzel Washington as the wife of
Melvin B. Tolson in the biographical film
The Great Debaters. == Filmography ==