'Drag Race' star Valentina is ready for her closeup in Fox's 'Rent'

By Alexander Kacala

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” star Valentina is taking her talents to the stage. The drag performer is set to play Angel Dumott Schunard in Fox’s live production of “Rent,” which is set to air Sunday.

“I was called in because one of the casting directors was a fan of mine from ‘Drag Race,’” Valentina told NBC News. “Without even knowing if I knew how to sing or if I had the experience or the potential for this, they invited me to come in and audition. They saw something in me.”

Valentina attends “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Meet The Queens” at TRL Studios on December 05, 2018 in New York City.Mike Coppola / Getty Images

Valentina admitted she “wasn’t really hitting the notes” when she went in for her audition.

“I just said, ‘Hey look, if you guys need me to do anything or you want to correct me on anything, feel free to let me know,’” Valentina recalled. She said it was “exciting” to just be invited in to audition.

Valentina said those auditions ended up being more like workshop sessions and creative forums, and she was eventually awarded the role.

“Valentina personifies all the qualities we associate with Angel — heart, energy, vulnerability and excitement,” original “Rent” casting director Bernie Telsey, who helped cast the Fox production, told NBC News in an email. “We saw many, many people for the role, but no one was better. As fans of ‘Drag Race’ know, Valentina, even while reading lines or singing songs, has a personality that is magnetic.”

“I want to be able to pave the way to give more visibility to people like me, for others to see themselves through me on TV to give them hope that they can achieve great things like this, too.”

The Tony Award-, Grammy Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical “Rent” tells the story of a group of poor, young artists struggling to survive in New York City’s East Village under the shadow of HIV and AIDS. The musical opened on Broadway in 1996, and after a 12-year run of 5,123 performances, it’s currently the 11th-longest-running Broadway show in history. In 2005, “Rent” was adapted into a motion picture featuring most of the original cast members. In Sunday’s live Fox production, Valentina will be joined by Vanessa Hudgens, Tinashe, Kiersey Clemons and Brandon Victor Dixon.

Valentina’s character, Angel — a young drag queen and street percussionist living with AIDS — is the heart of this group of bohemian artists.

“Angel really is like an angel, because he came in so quick and turned all these people’s lives around and showed them what it’s like to be compassionate and selfless,” Valentina explained. “Like the kind of person that just walks into the room and changes all the energy, you know?”

source: nbcnews.com