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Saturday, February 5, 2000

Local girl to perform as young Selena

Lorissa Chapa will tour with company staging musical 'Selena Forever'

By Paige Ross
Caller-Times

Lorissa Chapa

It's white roses for Lorissa M. Chapa, one of four singing actresses selected to play Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla-Perez in the musical "Selena Forever," which starts a national tour in San Antonio in March.
   "We were just so excited when we got the call," said Lorissa, a fifth-grader at Oak Park Special Emphasis School. "Me and my mom were jumping around screaming."
   She and her mother, Imelda, flew to New York from Corpus Christi for the formal cast announcement by the show's producers Thursday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
   Lorissa got the role as the alternate young Selena, along with a two-year contract, after a national talent search last fall. Lorissa, along with four other finalists, was sifted from 800 girls who tried out for the role.
   She said she had been dreaming about the role since November.
   "It was weird because I was having all these dreams about flying everywhere," Lorissa said, just after her arrival at Corpus Christi International Airport on Friday night. "I'd dream they'd call and we'd get on a plane and go."
   Lorissa began singing five years ago after Selena's death.
   "I think she did such beautiful work," she said. "She was just beautiful."
   William Virchis, director of "Selena Forever," said the company was looking for specific qualities in casting the role of young Selena.
   "First, honesty and truth," he said. "The young Selenas had to have that youthful wanting, of wanting to sing a song that's in her heart. That's what we were looking for - not for someone to imitate Selena, but to interpret the role."
   Virchis said they were drawn to Lorissa because of her childlike qualities.
   "She's not a professional actress," he said during a chorus rehearsal Friday in San Diego, Calif. "She brings a lot of honesty to the role. She has a sense of truth. Also, she's not encumbered by what actors are encumbered by, the sense of acting."
   Lorissa's performances

'Selena' schedule "Selena Forever," the musical based on the life and work of Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla-Perez, premieres in San Antonio on March 21. The production marks the start of a national tour that includes performances in other Texas cities, as well as Chicago and Denver, before moving to the West Coast in June. Although exact dates have not yet been confirmed, producers of the show said the musical will come to Corpus Christi the first week of April for several performances. Producers said they expect to confirm dates in Laredo, Austin, and Lubbock, as well as Miami, Las Vegas, Seattle, Charlotte, N.C., Tucson and Albuquerque, N.M., Boston, Orlando, Fla., Mexico City and New York. March 21-26 San Antonio Municipal Auditorium Information: (210) 224-9600 March 28-April 2 Dallas Music Hall at Fair Park Information: (214) 373-8000 Early April (Dates to be announced) Corpus Christi Selena Auditorium April 11-16 El Paso University of Texas at El Paso Information: (915) 544-8444 April 18-23 Houston Jones Hall Information: (713) 629-3700 April 25-30 Chicago Rosemont Theater May 2-7 Phoenix, Ariz. Gammage Auditorium May 9-28 Los Angeles Wiltern Theatre June 6-11 Denver Buell Hall June 13-18 San Diego, Calif. Civic Center Theater June 27-July 2 San Jose, Calif. San Jose PAC

   Lorissa had attempted to add acting to her resume, auditioning unsuccessfully for parts in Harbor Playhouse productions of "Annie" and "Schoolhouse Rock," she said. But while she's never worked onstage in a musical or play, Lorissa has a lot of performing under her belt.
   She's sung opening performances for Tejano stars Michael Salgado, Margarita, Albert Zamora and Stephanie Lynn. She's also performed at dozens of birthdays, quinceaneras, mercados and special events such as Bayfest and the Pan de Campo Festival, her parents said.
   When Lorissa was five, she began working with Sylvia Dancer of Sylvia D's Talent Showcase, a karaoke troupe that works with local children in performances on the Peoples Street T-Head. Dancer encouraged Lorissa to study voice with Armando Botello of Mariachi Huego.
   Despite a busy schedule, she has maintained honor role status at Oak Park Special Emphasis School, said her father, Robert.
   Rehearsals begin Monday
   Rehearsals with the principal cast members in "Selena Forever" begin Monday in San Antonio, when the 28-member cast comes together. Lorissa will be rehearsing two major musical numbers in the show, Virchis said, stressing that the show will undergo some transformation and rewrites, especially in the early months.
   As an alternate cast member, Lorissa will tour with the company, performing matinees and staying ready to step into the role during evening performances as needed. Her mother will accompany her during the tour and a private tutor will be assigned.
   "It's like a marathon," said Virchis, a former child actor and father of two child performers. "You have to have a lot of endurance. . . . They don't ask how old you are, they just ask if you can deliver."
   Broadway potential
   Lorissa took first place in a talent search in San Antonio in 1997 and has won several top awards in local contests hosted by the Tejano Academy of Fine Arts, run by George Balli.
   "She has what we call 'fire in the belly,' " Balli said. "She brings more to a song and the interpretation of a song than the words. She becomes the part. She delivers. She has a great chance at a career on Broadway."
   Virchis said it's not clear yet whether the musical will make it to the Broadway stage.
   "It's like a ship that takes off on a destination and finds different islands to land on," he said. "We may be like Robinson Crusoe, stranded. In this business you can't ever tell."
   Lorissa said she finds the idea of appearing on Broadway "really shocking."
   "When I was little, all I imagined was singing, and my mom was like, 'Broadway! Can you believe it!' "
  
  

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Arts & Entertainment writer Paige Ross can be reached at 886-3753 or by e-mail at rossp@caller.com

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