The youngest of three children from a Cuban family living in the Bronx, and a graduate of the Fiorello LaGuardia School of Arts, Torres is a gifted mezzo-soprano, as well as a jazz and gospel singer. Following her high school graduation, she made her professional debut as the lead in Dreamgirls in a Connecticut production.

Over the next several years, the ingenue amassed an impressive list of versatile stage credits, including two lead roles on Broadway in The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public and Face Value. Working with such acclaimed directors as Dan Sullivan, Tommy Tune and Jerry Zaks, she starred in Antigone, Blood Wedding, A Raisin in the Sun and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, among other productions.

It was a recurring character she played on the daytime drama One Life to Live that brought Torres to the attention of producers Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi. After casting her in guest starring roles in M.A.N.T.I.S., Hercules: The Legendary Journey and Xena: Warrior Princess, Raimi and Tapert cast her in the ALMA Award-winning role of Hel in the futuristic adventure series Cleopatra 2525.