A musical celebration of life - Reseña

Latin Beat Magazine, May, 2001 by Haydee Vicedo

SELENA Musical (April 19 through May 20), Los Angeles

I actually do remember the moment I heard that Selena Quintanilla, the legendary Tejano star, prematurely passed away. I was familiar with her crossover pop songs, and I had been hearing about her ascent in American airwaves in the previous months. I commented to a few friends that her hard work seemed to have paid off, and being such a success at her age was inspirational. Her sudden death took my breath away, with the kind of sigh that makes you realize we're inevitably mortal. After watching the Selena musical currently playing at the Doolittle Theatre in Hollywood (owned and operated by Ricardo Montalban), these strong emotions returned, and I am grateful for them.

How can I not be inspired again when performances like Natalie Herrera's (young Selena) and Veronica Vázquez (Selena Quintanilla) would take anyone's breath away? Both talents have an envious vocal range, and I can only assume that they will get even better as the show continues its run. These two young women kept my eyes and ears directed to the stage and made me hope that there would be a happy ending at the end of the show, instead of the tragedy we know occurred. Watching the Selena musical made me re-live the day that I found out one of our great, young talents died at such an early age. It gladly made me reassess my own future and how I want to spend my time, especially as I go through my early 20s, trying to establish my own identity. Don't miss out on this musical and allow Selena's illustrious life to help you capture your own.