Taina (TV series)

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Taina
Christina Vidal as Taina.
Format	Sitcom / Musical
Starring	Christina Vidal Khaliah Adams Chris Knowings David Oliver Cohen LaTangela Newsome
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	26 (List of episodes)
Production
Running time	22 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	Nickelodeon
Original run	January 14, 2001 – May 11, 2002
External links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Taina is an American sitcom that aired on Nickelodeon and was one of the last live-action comedy shows taped at Nickelodeon Studios. The show aired from January 14, 2001 to May 11, 2002.

[edit] Synopsis

Taina is an aspiring singer, dancer, and actress who wanted to become a star. She, along with her best friend, Renee Jones, attend Manhattan High School Of The Performing Arts along with Lamar and Daniel. Taina and Renee's arch-nemesis Maritza attended the same school they did, and was also an aspiring singer/actress. Every episode featured Taina daydreaming her super stardom, with occasional performances of a new song. The show premiered on January 14, 2001 on Nickelodeon's TEENick, where ratings grew ^[1][2]and lasted for two seasons. The show was even put on Nickelodeon's SNICK lineup on Saturday nights in January-May 2002, where ratings more than doubled in its second season ^[3]. Despite its popularity, the show was cancelled that June. Nickelodeon cancelled it because they thought it only appealed to girls. CBC aired the show for a few months back in 2003.

[edit] Cast

• Christina Vidal as Taina Maria Morales
• Khaliah Adams as Renee Aretha Jones
• Chris Knowings as Lamar Carlos Johnson
• David Oliver Cohen as Daniel Nathaniel McDaniel
• LaTangela Newsome as Maritza Hogg
• Lisa Velez as Gloria Morales
• Cristina Saralegui as The Principal
• Josh Cruze as Eduardo Morales
• Manolo Villaverde as Gregorio "Abuelo" Sanchez
• Brandon Iglesias as Santito Morales (Season 1)
• Jacob Urrutia as Santito Morales (Season 2)
• Selenis Leyva as Titi Rosa
• Joseph Bertot as Hector Colon
• Ruben Rabasa as Papito

[edit] Characters

• Taina Morales: The show's protagonist, a young Puerto Rican girl with big dreams of being a professional singer and actress. She attended a performing arts school with her best friend Renee, rival Maritza, and friends Daniel and Lamar. She and her friends often got themselves into wacky situations in an attempt to become stars. Though Taina was occasionally put in scrape, she always let her honesty and truth get herself out of it.
• Renee Jones: Taina's best friend. She's an aspiring rapper and comedienne. A wacky girl, she attended the performing arts school to become a comedian. She often helped to ground Taina when her imagination ran away with her. Renee also tended to chase after boys frequently; unfortunately, her soul mates were never the right ones for her.
• Maritza Hogg: Taina and Renee's rival. She also aspired to be an actress and singer, but tended to be more ruthless than Taina. She loved to upstage others in her quest to become a star. However, she was not pure evil, and sometimes collaborated with Taina and her friends to make money or defeat other rivals. She prided herself on being an "evil diva".
• Lamar Johnson: Taina's friend, an aspiring journalist and writer. Not only did he serve as an editor of the performing art school's newspaper, he also had a crush on Taina and waited for the day she would finally come around. His best friend was Daniel, and the two often collaborated to make a quick buck. He served as a support for Taina and the others, offering level-headed advice.
• Daniel Nathaniel McDaniel: Taina's other male friend, a musician, who also shared the same school locker with Taina. His loves included writing songs and chasing after girls. Daniel prided himself on being quite the ladies' man, but often ended up snubbed. It was hinted that he had true feelings for Renee. He loved the Beatles, and usually accompanied Taina's songs on his guitar.

[edit] Soundtrack

Main article: Taina soundtrack

On February 19, 2002 during it's second season, Nickelodeon released the Taina soundtrack, featuring songs by Christina Vidal and LaTangela. Other songs on the soundtrack were sung by 3LW and Dream, who both guest starred on the show. The album, released by both Jive records and Nick records, includes songs such as "I Thought That We Were Friends" and the show's theme song, "Gonna Be A Star". The album is available at Amazon.ca.

[edit] DVD

There was a DVD release of the show titled after the pilot, Be Careful What You Wish For, in the UK, which features the first four aired episodes. The DVD is region 2 and has yet to be released in the U.S. but is available at Amazon.com.

[edit] Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• Guest stars on the show have included Shakira, Kelly Rowland, 3LW, Solange Knowles, Nick Cannon, Joe and Jaci Velasquez
• Several episodes were directed by actress Melissa Joan Hart, star of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and another Nickelodeon hit, Clarissa Explains It All. Vidal guest starred on an episode of Sabrina in 2003.
• Taina's idols on the show were Latina actress and singer Jennifer Lopez and late Tejano singer Selena.
• The word Taina comes from the name of the Indians that resided in Puerto Rico before the arrival of the Spaniards.
• Christina Vidal sings the theme song and provided her own vocals for the show.
• LaTangela Newsome, who played Maritza also provided her own singing vocals for the show.
• According to Vidal in a later interview, scripts for a third season were already written before the show was cancelled.

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Premiere of Nickelodeon's 'Taina' Posts Triple-Digit Ratings Gains
2. ^ Nickelodeon's 'Taina' Continues Ratings Rise, Posts Triple-Digit Gains in Tween and Kid Demos for Two Weeks
3. ^ Yahoo! Groups