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March 22, 2000, Wednesday, BC cycle
SECTION: Entertainment News; State and Regional
LENGTH: 820 words
HEADLINE: Lone Star Living; 'Selena Forever' stars see role as a road to the limelight
BYLINE: By RAMIRO BURR, San Antonio Express-News

   SAN ANTONIO - The two actresses playing Selena in the upcoming "Selena Forever" musical took different paths to the same goal: to shine under the bright lights of the big stage.

"This is the most historical event I've ever been in, in my life," said Rebecca Valadez, 20, of San Antonio. "We have all worked really hard to get here, and I think the Selena musical will take us to the next level."

For Veronica Vazquez, 24, of the Bronx in New York City, the timing is right, too.

"This is what I studied for and wanted to do my whole life, and it's finally happening for me," she said. "I'm excited and a little nervous, too."

Valadez and Vazquez will play the adult Selenas in the 35-member cast, which has been in intense rehearsals at the Edgewood Academy of Fine Arts on San Antonio's West Side. The show premiered Tuesday at the Municipal Auditorium in San Antonio. Vazquez will be performing in four evening shows while Valadez will perform in one evening and three matinees.

Like Selena, Valadez and Vazquez had an early interest in singing.

And while Valadez earned her first professional credits singing backup on two Mazz albums, Vazquez was signed to Mercury Records in 1995 and released her pop/R&B debut album, "V as in Veronica."

As a teen-ager, Valadez sang backup vocals for the "Siempre Selena" CD and "Selena" movie soundtrack. She also was on the "Solo Para Ti," and "Al Frente de Todos" CDs by Mazz. In 1997, she was a background vocalist for pop singer Robyn on several of her television dates.

In 1998, Valadez was in Los Angeles trying to land a development contract with Sony Music when she heard about auditions for Janet Jackson's backup singers.

A few telephone calls and one audition later, including one over the telephone, Valadez found herself flying to France for rehearsals and the start of Jackson's "Velvet Rope" tour.

Valadez had seen huge concert crowds on TV but wasn't prepared for the excitement.

"I wasn't expecting it to be that wild. I've seen the Michael Jackson concerts on TV where all the girls are screaming, and they are going to faint," she said. "You can't believe you're there."

She is equally excited to be part of the play, but for different reasons.

"This is a chance to get recognized for who I am," she said. "The story of Selena is a romantic story, and this is a chance for Latino Americans to show that they, too, have talent and can produce something wonderful."

Vazquez began singing when she was only 5 and later, as a young child, regularly at the Kips Boys & Girls Club in the Bronx. She attended La Guardia High School for the Performing Arts where she studied classical music, performed opera and gospel. Her early influences included Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston and Barbra Streisand.

She said her mother inspired her to attend the La Guardia school.

"When I found out what I wanted to do, my mother told me there was a school that had a program like 'Fame,' and I said, 'You got to be kidding me,"' Vazquez said. "'You have got to get me into this school.' So she called up and set up an appointment for me to audition, and that's how I got into La Guardia."

In 1996, she signed on with producer Jellybean Benitez, who had just launched the new record label H.O.L.A. (Home Of Latin Artists) where she released a Latino/R&B CD titled "RISE."

Vazquez first heard of the "Selena" project from her mother.

"When I was a teen-ager, my grandmother always used to tell me that I reminded her of Selena, this girl on TV. She said you guys have the same body and everything, you've got to see. So I sat down with her and watched and I said, 'Yeah, we do resemble each other.'

"Back then I had long, dark hair with bangs. Even the earrings we wore were the same; it's so funny. But there wasn't that much awareness of her until her death. And that's when I really got into her stuff; that's when there was a lot of videos available. It's such a shame that I had to find out so late and learn that we had so much in common after she passed."

Both women find inspiration in Selena's story.

"When we had our first rehearsals, we had a dinner where all the girls told their stories about struggling as Latin women in the industry and how hard it is to gain that respect," said Valadez. "Selena showed that we can have success if we work hard."

"This is a musical about us (Latinos) and our culture," said Vazquez.

"It is also about the struggle, I feel, about being Mexican and being American, or in my case Puerto Rican. I think that that is something we are faced with a lot and it (the musical) goes into more depth than the movie."



Editor's Note: Ramiro Burr is a music reporter and critic for the San Antonio Express-News and has a syndicated weekly column on Latin music. He also is the author of "The Billboard Guide to Tejano and Regional Mexican Music."



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