Jessica Biel sings!
That may come as a surprise to audiences who only know the actress from her primarily dramatic work on television and in films, including the long-running "7th Heaven," and the big-screen "Stealth" and "The Illusionist."
Biel, 27, marks her major musical-theater debut this weekend, as the Los Angeles Philharmonic presents a three-night run of a concert version of the classic "Guys and Dolls" at the Hollywood Bowl.
"I haven't really done anything like this," Biel said, following a dress rehearsal Friday afternoon. "Well, I did one thing in college. In college, I did a concert version of 'Tommy' when I was in college. But, other For "Guys and Dolls," Biel takes on the role of saintly Sarah Brown, a Manhattan missionary at odds with a gang of gamblers - and eventually in love with one of them. It's a far cry from one of Biel's last roles: a stressed-out stripper in the steamy, straight-to-video "Powder Blue."
"No, definitely not what you would think to go from 'this' into this," Biel responded, with a smile. "But that's the fun of this world. That's what I love about this job. You get to do something like that and then you go completely extreme to the other side of it, and terrify yourself in some other way. It's really about terrorizing myself."
Perhaps Broadway?
"Oh, yeah. I would love to," Biel replied. "Literally, that is one of my eight-year-old dreams. That's like my little eight-year-old inside me is cartwheeling around, thinking about that idea."
"Guys and Dolls" continues through Sunday night.
Source: http://www.yahoo.com
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Jessica Biel marks major musical debut
Jessica Biel Profile
Jessica Claire Biel was born on March 3, 1982 in Ely, Minnesota, to Kimberly Biel, a homemaker and spiritual healer, and Jonathan Biel, an entrepreneur and international business consultant. She has a younger brother, Justin, born in 1985. Biel has German, French, English, and Choctaw ancestry. Biel's family moved frequently during her childhood, living in Texas, Connecticut and Woodstock, Illinois, before finally settling in Boulder, Colorado.
She is an American actress and former model, who has appeared in several Hollywood films, including Summer Catch, the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Illusionist and I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. She is also known for her television role as Mary Camden in the long-running family-drama series 7th Heaven.
Initially trained to be a vocalist, and appeared in several musical productions in her hometown, playing lead roles in productions such as Annie, The Sound of Music and Beauty and the Beast.
At 12 years old, she attended The International Modeling and Talent Association Conference in Los Angeles, where she was discovered and signed on by a talent agency. She began doing modeling work in print ads, as well as appearing in commercials for products such as Deluxe Paint and Pringles.
She also played a lead role in a low-budget musical short titled It's a Digital World, but the film was never released. At age 14, after auditioning for several television pilots, she was cast as the oldest daughter in the family drama, 7th Heaven. The show was originally scheduled to air on FOX, but was picked up by The WB Television Network instead. 7th Heaven would go on to last for 11 seasons, making it the longest-running family drama in U.S. television history, and also became the highest-rated show on The WB.
She landed her first feature film role, playing Peter Fonda's granddaughter in the critically-acclaimed drama Ulee's Gold, released in 1997. Her performance earned her a Young Artist Award. In spring 1998, during a break from filming 7th Heaven, She starred in the holiday movie I'll Be Home for Christmas, playing opposite Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
In 2000, during the fourth season of 7th Heaven, she commented that she grew tired of playing the wholesome preacher's kid, and blamed the show for giving her a squeaky-clean image, which caused her to lose out on a role in American Beauty (the part went to Thora Birch). In a last ditch attempt to be let out of her contract, she posed semi-nude for the cover of Gear magazine. Fans and producers of 7th Heaven were outraged, and the shoot also sparked a lot of controversy, as she was still a minor at the time, but Aaron Spelling made it clear that she would be staying with the show until her contract was due to expire. She has now claimed that she regrets the Gear shoot, but considers it a learning experience.
In 2001, she played the love interest of Freddie Prinze, Jr. in the baseball themed movie, Summer Catch. The next year, she starred as promiscuous college student Lara in the ensemble, The Rules of Attraction, a film adaptation of the Bret Easton Ellis novel of the same name.
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